Maxwell's Demon

The second law of thermodynamics—stating that any isolated microcosm moves only toward an increase in entropy—was accepted uneasily by the scientific community, and in 1867, physicist James Clerk Maxwell sought to disprove it. Maxwell’s thought experiment utilized a hypothetical creature, which he called a “finite being,” that could sort molecules of different velocities or temperatures without expending energy, thus bringing about a general decrease in entropy. Who dubbed the being a “demon”? Discuss

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *