Saturday, August 28, 2010

Response to The Second Law of Thermodynamics (4th post by Wen Jiang)

The second major discovery made by Clausius was the Law of Entropy Conservation (which would only exist in a perfect and theoretical universe) and the Law of Entropy Nonconservation (which exists in our imperfect universe). Entropy is a term coined by Clausius to mean all the variations of energy forms and temperature. The equation of Entropy Nonconservation is such: ΔSUniverse> 0. Defined simply, it means that the total entropy is always greater than zero. Positive Entropy refers to the product of natural energy transformation and irreversible processes, such as the natural flow of energy to the end product of heat energy. Negative Entropy is directed to the unnatural energy transformations and the defiance of irreversible processes (e.g. cold flowing to hot). An example of negative entropy is a refrigerator, which removes hotness from coldness, making the lower temperature place colder and making the warmer temperature place hotter. According to Clausius, when the natural Entropy production cease to continue, the universe would die; and it's to the universe's propensity that it should come to an end. What I'm skeptical about is if heat is truly irreversible through natural processes. I'm not convinced that the universe is dying through energy transformation; it's just seems to me that the universe is more complex than that. I believe there's a more complex natural law that governs the behavior and life of the universe. What was your response to the Second Law of Thermodynamics?

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