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Topic: Second law of thermodynamics


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In the News (Thu 24 Jul 08)

  
 The second law of thermodynamics and evolution   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
The value of the second law of thermodynamics is that it quantitatively describes the energetic aspects of the chemical elements and the compounds they form.
The second law states that energy tends not to be restricted to one or a few energy levels in atoms and molecules, but to be dispersed to as many such levels as possible – rephrased in homely terms involving molecules, "Intense or concentrated energy tends to spread out and diffuse".
They claim that the second law not only says that it is impossible for more complex substances to be spontaneously formed from simpler materials, but also a non-spontaneous process like photosynthesis that produces complex substances requires the presence of an organism, such as a plant.
www.2ndlaw.com /evolution.html   (2610 words)

  
 Second Law of Thermodynamics   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
Thermodynamics is a branch of physics which deals with the energy and work of a system.
The first law of thermodynamics defines the relationship between the various forms of energy present in a system (kinetic and potential), the work which the system performs and the transfer of heat.
The description of the second law stated on this slide was taken from Halliday and Resnick's textbook, "Physics".
www.grc.nasa.gov /WWW/K-12/airplane/thermo2.html   (574 words)

  
 second law of thermodynamics
Thermodynamics literally means "energy in action." It is a word with roots that indicate that it has to do with both heat and motion.
Although the second law of thermodynamics does mean that energy transformations are inefficient in practical terms, and implies that all energy transformations result in lost useful energy, this does not apply to every energy transformation.
The third law of thermodynamics is beyond the scope of this document.
home.earthlink.net /~mflabar/second_law_of_thermodynamics.htm   (2338 words)

  
 Creationism and the Second Law of Thermodynamics: Science and Anticreationist Misconstruals
Although the second law of thermodynamics can be stated in many ways, in the context of energy it has to do with the “quality” of the energy.
The second law says that the entropy of an isolated system inevitably increases, and thus creationists argue that the cosmological evolution theory involving the universe as a whole becoming more ordered is therefore false.
Keeping in mind that the first law says that the quantity of energy is constant, if we extrapolate into the past there would be a point where the total energy equals the amount of available energy [2].
www.angelfire.com /mn2/tisthammerw/science/2ndlaw.html   (2707 words)

  
 The Second Law of Thermodynamics in the Context of the Christian Faith   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
The first law of thermodynamics, also known as the law of conservation of energy, states that the total energy of any system remains the same, except to the extent it exchanges energy with its surroundings.
If the 2nd law has not been violated as the number of humans grew from two to 6 billion, it is ridiculous to assert that it was violated in the comparatively minuscule change from zero to two.
The important point is that, while violations of the 2nd law are highly improbable (this improbability is the essence of the 2nd law in the statistical-mechanical formulation), not every improbable event is a violation of the 2nd law.
members.aol.com /steamdoc/writings/thermo.html   (4036 words)

  
 The Arrow of Time
Thermodynamics is the branch of theoretical physics which deals with the laws of heat motion, and the conversion of heat into other types of energy.
In the middle of the last century, R. Clausius and W. Thomson, the authors of the second principle of thermodynamics, attempted to apply the second law to the universe as a whole, and arrived at a completely false theory, known as the "thermal death" theory of the end of the universe.
The second law states that the entropy of an isolated system always increases, and that when two systems are joined together, the entropy of the combined system is greater than the sum of the entropies of the individual systems.
www.marxist.com /science/arrowoftime.html   (3039 words)

  
 The Second Law of Thermodynamics, Evolution, and Probability
For example, it is a fundamental axiom of thermodynamics that when heat flows from subsystem A to subsystem B, the entropy of A decreases and the entropy of B increases.
Failure to understand that in thermodynamics probabilities are not fixed entities has led to a misinterpretation that is responsible for the wide- spread and totally false belief that the second law of thermodynamics does not permit order to spontaneously arise from disorder.
In describing the laws of thermodynamics we often refer to "systems." A system is a specific entity or object or region in space to be evaluated in terms of its thermodynamic properties and possible changes.
www.talkorigins.org /faqs/thermo/probability.html   (4596 words)

  
 Second Law of Thermodynamics   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
It retains the status of a law because it cannot be fully deduced from the statistical mechanics, which is itself derived from quantum theory.
It is shown that the second law is unnecessary if any of several common formulations are considered, and quantum theory is assumed.
It seems that the second law of thermodynamics is an ad hoc law, with no particular significance other than as a general tendency which results from QT.
www.drchinese.com /Second_Law_of_Thermodynamics.htm   (1867 words)

  
 Entropy and the Second Law of Thermodynamics
So whereas the first law expresses that which remains the same, or is time-symmetric, in all real-world processes the second law expresses that which changes and motivates the change, the fundamental time-asymmetry, in all real-world process.
Clausius coined the term "entropy" to refer to the dissipated potential and the second law, in its most general form, states that the world acts spontaneously to minimize potentials (or equivalently maximize entropy), and with this, active end-directedness or time-asymmetry was, for the first time, given a universal physical basis.
The first and second laws are thus automatically given in every measurement process for the simple fact, in accordance with the discussion above, that they are entailed in every epistemic act (Swenson, in press a, b; see also Matsuno, 1989, in press on generalized measurement).
www.entropylaw.com /entropy2ndlaw.html   (473 words)

  
 Shakespeare and Thermodynamics - Dam the Second Law!   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
Shakespeare and Thermodynamics - Dam the Second Law!
When second law concepts are coupled with examples of the effect of activation energies on chemical and physical events, they become a Rosetta stone for interpreting all the matter-dependent happenings in life.
In summary, activation energy barriers to the second law and biochemical feedback mechanisms which act as pattern protective barriers are the keys to maintenance of our most prized artifacts and, indeed, of all living creatures in our oxygen- and energy-rich world.
www.shakespeare2ndlaw.com   (4788 words)

  
 Second Law of Thermodynamics
The second law of thermodynamics is a general principle which places constraints upon the direction of heat transfer and the attainable efficiencies of heat engines.
This is sometimes called the "first form" of the second law, and is referred to as the Kelvin-Planck statement of the second law.
Second Law of Thermodynamics: It is not possible for heat to flow from a colder body to a warmer body without any work having been done to accomplish this flow.
hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu /hbase/thermo/seclaw.html   (339 words)

  
 Second law of thermodynamics - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The second law of thermodynamics has been proven mathematically for thermodynamic systems, where entropy is defined in terms of heat divided by the absolute temperature.
The second law is often applied to other situations, such as the complexity of life, or orderliness.
In statistical thermodynamics, which uses probability theory to calculated thermodynamic variables, such as entropy, the second law only holds for ensemble averages and the probability for single systems to violate it increases with discreasing size.
en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Second_law_of_thermodynamics   (3149 words)

  
 The Second Law of Thermodynamics
This page is the second part of a series that describes entropy and the fabled second law of thermodynamics, the previous part being "The Definitions of Entropy".
The 2nd law of thermodynamics is the law that constrains how the entropy of a thermodynamic system is allowed to change, given some process or circumstances.
Admitting heat to be a form of energy, the second law asserts that it is impossible, by the unaided action of natural processes, to transform any part of the heat of a body into mechanical work, except by allowing heat to pass from that body into another at a lower temperature.
www.tim-thompson.com /entropy2.html   (2602 words)

  
 Second Law of Thermodynamics
However, the mathematical laws of thermodynamics make it perfectly clear: it is possible for the entropy of a system to spontaneously decrease, providing the over-all entropy of the system's surroundings increases to a greater degree.
Creationists believe that the second law of thermodynamics does not permit order to arise from disorder, and therefore the macro evolution of complex living things from single-celled ancestors could not have occurred.
The second law of thermo- dynamics states that the water will not spontaneously raise itself to its original elevation using the heat produced on splashing as the sole source of energy.
home.comcast.net /~fsteiger/2nd-law.htm   (5194 words)

  
 Second law of thermodynamics "broken" - 19 July 2002 - New Scientist
One of the most fundamental rules of physics, the second law of thermodynamics, has for the first time been shown not to hold for microscopic systems.
The team say their experiment provides the first evidence that the second law of thermodynamics is violated at appreciable time and length scales.
Their results are also in good agreement with predictions of the "fluctuation theorem", a theory developed at ANU 10 years ago to reconcile the second law with the behaviour of particles at microscopic scales.
www.newscientist.com /news/news.jsp?id=ns99992572   (556 words)

  
 The Second Law of Thermodynamics (2)   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
The second law of thermodynamics looks mathematically simple but it has so many subtle and complex implications that it makes most chem majors sweat a lot before (and after) they graduate.
The second law of thermodynamics summarizes that totally different events involving all kinds of energy have a common cause.
I think it is helpful to see some of the ways the second law works in the ordinary dusty world of actual objects before looking at its relation to pure substances, the chemicals that make up those objects.
www.secondlaw.com /two.html   (1652 words)

  
 Entropy and the Laws of Thermodynamics   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-10)
The second law, known as Carnot's principle, is controlled by the concept of entropy.
The second law of thermodynamics states that the quality of this energy is degraded irreversibly.
In breaking the vicious circle of repetitiveness in which the ancients were trapped, and in being confronted with biological evolution generating order and organization, the concept of entropy indirectly opens the way to a philosophy of progress and development (see: the direction of evolution).
pespmc1.vub.ac.be /ENTRTHER.html   (921 words)

  
 ENTROPY AND THE SECOND LAW OF THERMODYNAMICS
The law of entropy, or the second law of thermodynamics, along with the first law of thermodynamics comprise the most fundamental laws of physics.
Entropy (the subject of the second law) and energy (the subject of the first law) and their relationship are fundamental to an understanding not just of physics, but to life (biology, evolutionary theory, ecology), cognition (psychology).
Thermodynamics and Evolution: The Evolution of Life as a Consequence of the Laws of Thermodynamics
www.entropylaw.com   (233 words)

  
 The Second Law of Thermodynamics and Evolution
The second law of thermodynamics was first expressed in stated form by the German physicist, Rudolf Clausius (1822-1888).
Thus the second law of thermodynamics is often stated as the law of increasing entropy: "A natural process always takes place in such a direction as to cause an increase in the entropy of the universe."
Thus the only means to maintain the theory of evolution in light of the second law of thermodynamics is to postulate that, while chance combinations of simple molecules into exceedingly complex ones would be very rare, given enough time (billions of years) it could happen.
www.aboundingjoy.com /2ndlaw-fs.html   (2166 words)

  
 Second Law of Thermodynamics: Answers to Critics
Law of Thermodynamics, stating that they thought it was irrelevant to creation/evolution because the earth is not an isolated system since the sun is constantly pumping in more energy.
Law is stated such that the total entropy of the system and surroundings never decreases.
Ordinarily the second law is stated for isolated systems, but the second law applies equally well to open systems.
www.answersingenesis.org /docs/370.asp   (1716 words)

  
 Christian Right Lobbies To Overturn Second Law Of Thermodynamics | The Onion - America's Finest News Source
TOPEKA, KS–The second law of thermodynamics, a fundamental scientific principle stating that entropy increases over time as organized forms decay into greater states of randomness, has come under fire from conservative Christian groups, who are demanding that the law be repealed.
The controversial law of nature, which asserts that matter continually breaks down as disorder increases and heat is lost, has long been decried by Christian fundamentalists as running counter to their religion's doctrine of Divine grace and eternal salvation.
Calling the second law of thermodynamics "a deeply disturbing scientific principle that threatens our children's understanding of God's universe as a benevolent and loving place," Blanchard is spearheading a nationwide grassroots campaign to have the law removed from high-school physics textbooks.
www.theonion.com /content/node/28308   (851 words)

  
 Second Law of Thermodynamics -- from Eric Weisstein's World of Physics
The second law of thermodynamics prohibits the construction of a perpetual motion machine "of the second kind." There are two usual statements of this law.
Two important consequences of the second law are the existence of a new state variable, the entropy S, and the theorem
Combined Law of Thermodynamics, Entropy, First Law of Thermodynamics, Perpetual Motion Machine, Reversible Process, Thermodynamic Laws, Third Law of Thermodynamics, Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics
scienceworld.wolfram.com /physics/SecondLawofThermodynamics.html   (150 words)

  
 IoHT :: 110+ Variations of the Second Law of Thermodynamics
The entropy of the universe tends to increase.
Although the total quantity of energy must be conserved in any process, the distribution of that energy changes in an irreversible manner; the second law is concerned with the natural direction of change of the distribution of energy.
The law that energy always moves from hot to cold which governs the direction in which natural events happen spontaneously.
www.humanthermodynamics.com /2nd-Law-Variations.html   (2721 words)

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