Universal Truths

I would have liked to write more frequently, but too often the urge to blow things up with a Panzerfaust in Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory was more overpowering than the somewhat pastoral creative pursuit of writing. Which is all not too surprising either, given the second law of thermodynamics, that the tendency is for reactions to dissipate energy to the surroundings rather than concentrate them in an ordered form.

This empirical fact most people know: a plate shattered on the ground cannot reversibly reassemble itself into its original form; flour, water, eggs, butter and strawberries don't automatically bake themselves into a tasty cake that materialises suddenly in one's mouth; and so on, but rather than know it as the imposing Second law of Thermodynamics, it seems more a part of common experience, which may be why almost everybody finds tapes being played on rewind so hilarious – they portray violations of the second law.

But at the mere mention of "Thermodynamics", and there is bound to be this sudden and awkward hush, like one that follows the entry of an infamous bandit and myriad guns into a saloon. What is simply a more formal and rigorous restatement of the laws of the Universe that we know and love is alienated because of its association with science, science that is like a cold, harsh knife. We know the second law, and we know 'there is no such thing as a free lunch', or the first law, and in this respect we have already covered the ground for 90% of thermodynamical study. All things considered, it is probably the subject in Physics and Chemistry that is the most well understood by, if but subconsciously, and most relevant to life for the average layman. However, it is so steeped in the impenetrable language of mathematics that everyone tends to develop some terrible fear of it.

Some scientists are loathe to touch thermodynamics because of its intense relation to everyday life – its principles shape and guide and conduct everything from the flight of airplanes to the synthesis of biochemicals in the body. Indeed, it is so intrinsically linked with life itself that it is hard not to become the target of midnight philosophising. A typical think-through reveals two obvious questions: If energy cannot be created nor destroyed, then what is its ultimate source? (something that may be considered even in the total absence of religious thought, even though that seems the most palpable path to take); How is it possible to understand life when the entire world is ordered by a law such as the second principle of thermodynamics, which points to death and annihilation?

This is why any university thermodynamics curriculum is so difficult to teach. In the course of endowing students with assorted but heavily methodical equations and ideas, the mind does begin to wonder about the relevance of taking such a technical and precise approach, because these don't ever seem to answer any of the questions (at least the important ones. We do know how to calculate the molar heat capacities or the pressure of a gas). Every thermodynamics lecture might be seen as an emotional play with a deep moral message, but as we nod meaningfully after these plays, sometimes we wonder if everything was just a great big waste of time.