How to Follow a Traveler with a Brownian Swagger

In 1827, the botanist Robert Brown made the curious observation that particles trapped in pollen grains exhibit stochastic motion (1). At the time, there was no physical explanation for the mysterious phenomenon. Now we know this Brownian random walk is driven by thermal energy and provides rich information about the molecular world (2). Observations of single diffusing particles have helped to clarify membrane organization, cellular compartment composition, and numerous active transport mechanisms, among many other processes (3–5).

http://ift.tt/2E6N0oh