Physical chemistry: The loss of certainty

The explosion of knowledge in the biological and biochemical sciences would not have been possible without the techniques of the physical sciences; however, the theoretical framework of physical chemistry has been largely irrelevant to that progress. The situation poses a philosophical dilemma, the physical and biological sciences remaining disjoint. A case is made that the puzzle will be resolved if it be recognised that the present framework is deeply flawed. Emerging theories in physical chemistry that correct present inadequacies lead to the hope that the barriers will disappear.