Loading...The second law of thermodynamics
The idea that heat cannot pass from a colder to a hotter body and that entropy can only increase, in a closed system – it may be the only basic law of physics that distinguishes the past from the future.
IS the Universe a closed system? How could you disprove that it isn’t? Too many assumptions in order to KNOW the second law is ALWAYS right (for me).
Time will tell….. “Physicists at the University of Zurich have developed a deceptively simple device that allows heat to flow temporarily from a cold object to a warm object without an external power supply.”
Don’t hold your breath. If this new theory pans out, quantum demons might someday power our air conditioners and refrigerators, saving you electricity and cheating the current laws of physics at the same time.
nice idea, but the jury is still out on if it is the reason time goes one way only, everything else points to it being able to go both ways, just not for urr, us.
Bet they didn’t realise at the time that the idea of the second law was what gives time a forward only direction. ie…”Entropy is one of the few quantities in the physical sciences that require a particular direction for time, sometimes called an arrow of time. As one goes “forward” in time, the second law of thermodynamics says, the entropy of an isolated system can increase, but not decrease.”
Professor Mike Merrifield does a good job of explaining what this idea entails. The second law is the interesting one though, because it has various formulations as it was thought up before people understood entropy. Yes you need to add energy to a system in order to make colder things hotter. With regards to entropy, Lord Kelvin states that you can’t turn heat directly into useful energy. Seems obvious really but its an idea that has stood the test of time and likely won’t be disproven.