> More realistically, they are a simple list of materials (in this case a listing of proteins). > Its the equivalent of someone saying: 14,234 tons of steel..

> More realistically, they are a simple list of materials (in this case a listing of proteins). > Its the equivalent of someone saying: 14,234 tons of steel.. I feel like that's taking things a bit too far in the other direction. With our current understanding, it's like saying: 14,234 tons of steel that's capable of self-assembling (e.g., collagen), 23,000 tons of concrete that automatically folds into a specific structure (~everything other than disordered proteins). That's not to say that we fully understand how proteins fold/function... but it's a bit more than a static block of steel.