The refrigerator and the universe : understanding the laws of energy

著者

書誌事項

The refrigerator and the universe : understanding the laws of energy

Martin Goldstein, Inge F. Goldstein

Harvard University Press, 1993

  • : pbk

大学図書館所蔵 件 / 全15件

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注記

Includes bibliographical references (p. [413]-419) and index

内容説明・目次

巻冊次

ISBN 9780674753242

内容説明

In this volume, the Goldsteins aim to explain the laws of thermodynamics. Whether we want to know how a simple device like a refrigerator works, or to understand the fate of the universe, we must start with the concepts of energy and entropy. The authors begin with the historical development of thermodynamics. They describe attempts by engineers and "natural philosophers" to understand the nature of heat and its efficient use in heat engines to produce motion, and how these led to the 19th-century discovery of two fundamental laws of energy, which apply to fields as diverse as physics, chemistry, biology, and geology. Although 20th-century discoveries of relativity, and quantum mechanics have modified these laws, they have not been contradicted. Once the fundamental concepts have been explained, the Goldsteins show how the laws follow from the atomic theory of matter. They give examples of their applicability to phenomena such as: the radiation of light from hot bodies; the formation of diamonds from graphite; how the blood carries oxygen; and the history of the earth, and how it maintains its temperature. The laws of energy, the authors conclude, affect everything, even if they do not explain everything. The Goldsteins feature the scientific personalities involved, and the problems that they solved, or failed to solve. The book is designed to appeal to those with little scientific background but a curiosity about the concepts of energy and entropy; and also to scientists who use thermodynamics in their research and would like to broaden their understanding of the subject.

目次

  • Energy and entropy in everyday terms
  • work and force
  • heat from work - the first law
  • the microscopic view of energy
  • engines and refrigerators - the second law
  • implications of the second law
  • the molecular view of entropy
  • why does entropy always increase?
  • entropy and/or information
  • radiant energy, black bodies, and the greenhouse effect
  • chemistry - diamonds, blood, iron
  • biology - muscles, kidneys, evolution
  • geology - how old is the earth?
  • quantum physics and the third law
  • relativity and the fate of the universe. Appendix: math tools.
巻冊次

: pbk ISBN 9780674753259

内容説明

C. P. Snow once remarked that not knowing the second law of thermodynamics is like never having read Shakespeare. Yet, while many people grasp the first law of energy, "Energy can neither be created nor destroyed," few recognize the second, "Entropy can only increase." What is entropy anyway, and why must it increase? Whether we want to know how a device as simple as a refrigerator works or understand the fate of the universe, we must start with the concepts of energy and entropy. In The Refrigerator and the Universe, Martin and Inge Goldstein explain the laws of thermodynamics for science buffs and neophytes alike. They begin with a lively presentation of the historical development of thermodynamics. The authors then show how the laws follow from the atomic theory of matter and give examples of their applicability to such diverse phenomena as the radiation of light from hot bodies, the formation of diamonds from graphite, how the blood carries oxygen, and the history of the earth. The laws of energy, the Goldsteins conclude, have something to say about everything, even if they do not tell us everything about anything.

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