Boltzmann's Entropy Equation: A History from Clausius to Planck
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Date: 2022-12-27
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Comments and reviews: 20
Bill
I had to take statistical thermodynamics as an undergrad. It was one of the last courses I took long after I had studied thermodynamics from a non-statistical or classical point of view. The professor was really good and made what could've been a horribly confusing topic somewhat comprehensible. I always marveled at that class because despite its name, the class devoted a big chunk discussing quantum mechanics (we basically derived Schrodinger's Equation from statistical thermodynamics. So, in a bizarre twist, even though I was not a physics major, I have had at least an intro to quantum mechanics. And for what it is worth, that class was much easier than my class on electromagnetism. Anyway, perhaps it was explained (I don't recall though, but now I understand the link between statistical thermodynamics and quantum mechanics and Planck's role. Max Planck's name was mentioned all throughout that course, and I grew to marvel just how brilliant that man must have been. I still have my notes and textbook from that class (even though it has been decades) because many of the derivations we did were quite literally works of art.
I too have struggled to understand entropy. I know this comment is way late, but I think a follow up to this video that includes Claude Shannon's thoughts on entropy is definitely in order.
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I had to take statistical thermodynamics as an undergrad. It was one of the last courses I took long after I had studied thermodynamics from a non-statistical or classical point of view. The professor was really good and made what could've been a horribly confusing topic somewhat comprehensible. I always marveled at that class because despite its name, the class devoted a big chunk discussing quantum mechanics (we basically derived Schrodinger's Equation from statistical thermodynamics. So, in a bizarre twist, even though I was not a physics major, I have had at least an intro to quantum mechanics. And for what it is worth, that class was much easier than my class on electromagnetism. Anyway, perhaps it was explained (I don't recall though, but now I understand the link between statistical thermodynamics and quantum mechanics and Planck's role. Max Planck's name was mentioned all throughout that course, and I grew to marvel just how brilliant that man must have been. I still have my notes and textbook from that class (even though it has been decades) because many of the derivations we did were quite literally works of art.
I too have struggled to understand entropy. I know this comment is way late, but I think a follow up to this video that includes Claude Shannon's thoughts on entropy is definitely in order.
reply
David
Never trusted the idea of Entropy as a defiant dissipation of constants and conservation of energy, the same way as those Sciencing participants didn't believe in atoms and molecules. You would be stuck with an expanding Universe and cold dark finality, when the obviousness of omnipresent modulated vibration is revealed in the phase-shifting coordination of e-Pi-i omnidirectional-dimensional cause-effect self-defining Actuality. For instance think through the Hetorodyne phenomena of modulation and compare with solid-liquid-gas-plasma relative-timing ratio-rates of log/antilog condensation in the context of Entanglement and Sublimation and/or Evaporation in terms of compound frequency, resonance integrity and bonding within a carrier wave you can name Gravity. Ie this logarithmic singularity positioning coordination of time-timing projection-drawing holographic embedding methodology is our Homeworld in the Eternity-now Interval Conception Universe.
So the story here in the video presented is when Henri Bergson was dismissed and Einstein made it a material Spacetime for us to puzzle out. Tut tut.
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Never trusted the idea of Entropy as a defiant dissipation of constants and conservation of energy, the same way as those Sciencing participants didn't believe in atoms and molecules. You would be stuck with an expanding Universe and cold dark finality, when the obviousness of omnipresent modulated vibration is revealed in the phase-shifting coordination of e-Pi-i omnidirectional-dimensional cause-effect self-defining Actuality. For instance think through the Hetorodyne phenomena of modulation and compare with solid-liquid-gas-plasma relative-timing ratio-rates of log/antilog condensation in the context of Entanglement and Sublimation and/or Evaporation in terms of compound frequency, resonance integrity and bonding within a carrier wave you can name Gravity. Ie this logarithmic singularity positioning coordination of time-timing projection-drawing holographic embedding methodology is our Homeworld in the Eternity-now Interval Conception Universe.
So the story here in the video presented is when Henri Bergson was dismissed and Einstein made it a material Spacetime for us to puzzle out. Tut tut.
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dlevi67
I like the concept of these videos on the history of science and technology, and the enthusiasm that you put into them, but please, do take some care with the details.
I have watched 4 videos - in two you mispelled and mispronounced Italian names (Marconi's specifically) as if they were Spanish. In another one you called the Pantheon in Rome 'the Parthenon' which is in Athens (and looks nothing like the Pantheon. In this one, you call a logarithm a 'trig function'. Sorry, but these things matter - how am I to trust anything else you say, when very basic details like these are wrong?
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I like the concept of these videos on the history of science and technology, and the enthusiasm that you put into them, but please, do take some care with the details.
I have watched 4 videos - in two you mispelled and mispronounced Italian names (Marconi's specifically) as if they were Spanish. In another one you called the Pantheon in Rome 'the Parthenon' which is in Athens (and looks nothing like the Pantheon. In this one, you call a logarithm a 'trig function'. Sorry, but these things matter - how am I to trust anything else you say, when very basic details like these are wrong?
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Jonathan
Great videos. As a grad student, we would take courses in Statistical Mechanics and Thermodynamics without any of the historical background. It's very interesting to see the evolution of these ideas and how people were thinking about things. As an idea for a future video, I'd love to know how Newtonian mechanics progressed into Lagrangian and Hamiltonian mechanics. We use the later extensively, but I'm not at all sure of how they were formulated. They seem to pop up out of nowhere in Mechanics courses like magic.
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Great videos. As a grad student, we would take courses in Statistical Mechanics and Thermodynamics without any of the historical background. It's very interesting to see the evolution of these ideas and how people were thinking about things. As an idea for a future video, I'd love to know how Newtonian mechanics progressed into Lagrangian and Hamiltonian mechanics. We use the later extensively, but I'm not at all sure of how they were formulated. They seem to pop up out of nowhere in Mechanics courses like magic.
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Rama
The concept of entropy is closely related to arrow of time. This philosophical aspect of this is in existence from time immemorial. Buddha in his last sermon is reported to have said that, decay is inherent in all component things. It was Boltzmann who identified arrow of time in entropy. Boltzmann was a tragic hero. He committed suicide in 1906, what a tragedy! He should have been alive when general theory was published. My physics professor had told me that he was pushed to suicide by other physicists of the day.
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The concept of entropy is closely related to arrow of time. This philosophical aspect of this is in existence from time immemorial. Buddha in his last sermon is reported to have said that, decay is inherent in all component things. It was Boltzmann who identified arrow of time in entropy. Boltzmann was a tragic hero. He committed suicide in 1906, what a tragedy! He should have been alive when general theory was published. My physics professor had told me that he was pushed to suicide by other physicists of the day.
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The
When Maxwell died, the average life expectancy was about 45, so he was already past that. THat was the grim realty of life back then. It was short and what you had was full of suffering because, by and large, superstitution, instead of science, held sway over large swaths of society. It seems in the Western world today there is a kind of regression into more superstitious views again under the title of new age, which is just the old age of superstitition being repackaged.
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When Maxwell died, the average life expectancy was about 45, so he was already past that. THat was the grim realty of life back then. It was short and what you had was full of suffering because, by and large, superstitution, instead of science, held sway over large swaths of society. It seems in the Western world today there is a kind of regression into more superstitious views again under the title of new age, which is just the old age of superstitition being repackaged.
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Vanger
Hilarious! And very entertaining! :)
Physics suddenly start to make so much sense to me!
The argument about probability distributions & entropy having to be finite, thus requiring energy to be discrete, is so enlightening!
Before today I've only heard Planck just had to quantize energy to fit the data, which now feels so misleading and ignorant as for the fundamentals and understanding!
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Hilarious! And very entertaining! :)
Physics suddenly start to make so much sense to me!
The argument about probability distributions & entropy having to be finite, thus requiring energy to be discrete, is so enlightening!
Before today I've only heard Planck just had to quantize energy to fit the data, which now feels so misleading and ignorant as for the fundamentals and understanding!
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Sonar
Extremely beautifully and masterfully explained by Kathy. Why Plank's equation was engraved on Boltzmann's tomb stone is one of paying respect out of indebtedness on the part of Plank, perhaps saddened by the death of a great man and teacher. Kathy you video sounded like music to my ears. Thank you.
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Extremely beautifully and masterfully explained by Kathy. Why Plank's equation was engraved on Boltzmann's tomb stone is one of paying respect out of indebtedness on the part of Plank, perhaps saddened by the death of a great man and teacher. Kathy you video sounded like music to my ears. Thank you.
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Peter
Hi! I read that many established physicists in EU persecuted Boltzmann, apparently led by Ernest Mach, who was quite adamant that atoms did not exist! This persistent criticism wore Boltzmann down, eventually leading to depression and his suicide. Such a really sad ending to a brilliant scientist.
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Hi! I read that many established physicists in EU persecuted Boltzmann, apparently led by Ernest Mach, who was quite adamant that atoms did not exist! This persistent criticism wore Boltzmann down, eventually leading to depression and his suicide. Such a really sad ending to a brilliant scientist.
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Lech
18: 01. Please, correct me, if I am wrong. I believe that the charge of an electron cannot be determined using the Boltzman constant because they both are fundamental quantities, not related to each other through any equation. The slide does not demonstrate that Planck used k to find e.
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18: 01. Please, correct me, if I am wrong. I believe that the charge of an electron cannot be determined using the Boltzman constant because they both are fundamental quantities, not related to each other through any equation. The slide does not demonstrate that Planck used k to find e.
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Welles
Thanks for communicating this point the public! These 2 articles by Swendsen (doi: 10. 1119/1. 2174962 & 10. 3390/entropy-e10010015, I believe at least the second one is open, might be of interest by showing how Boltzmann true entropy definition helps to get rid of Gibbs' paradox.
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Thanks for communicating this point the public! These 2 articles by Swendsen (doi: 10. 1119/1. 2174962 & 10. 3390/entropy-e10010015, I believe at least the second one is open, might be of interest by showing how Boltzmann true entropy definition helps to get rid of Gibbs' paradox.
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Shambulardo
I don't mind your arms moving all over. At first it bothered me I must confess. Now I couldn't care less. The content and its delivery (pace, style, graphhics, etc) are absolutely captivating. Seriously, I don't mind. It's a part of the package that's totally fine with me.
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I don't mind your arms moving all over. At first it bothered me I must confess. Now I couldn't care less. The content and its delivery (pace, style, graphhics, etc) are absolutely captivating. Seriously, I don't mind. It's a part of the package that's totally fine with me.
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vibratingstring
This is so cool to hear. Like someone else said below, we learn all the science out of its original context. Really really interesting to learn the dynamic personal interplay that resulted in the seeming magic of modern physics.
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This is so cool to hear. Like someone else said below, we learn all the science out of its original context. Really really interesting to learn the dynamic personal interplay that resulted in the seeming magic of modern physics.
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Martin
As I don't like Entropy that much, I cannot consider this episode the best of all the more than good ones you created. It's a bit too much content for a single video to me. Keep up adding your excellent work. Cheers
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As I don't like Entropy that much, I cannot consider this episode the best of all the more than good ones you created. It's a bit too much content for a single video to me. Keep up adding your excellent work. Cheers
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Thomas
Correction: log is a transcendental function, not a trigonometric function. (Side note: all the trig funcs are transcendental) Transcendental means that the function cannot be described by a polynomial.
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Correction: log is a transcendental function, not a trigonometric function. (Side note: all the trig funcs are transcendental) Transcendental means that the function cannot be described by a polynomial.
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Norman
Again, died in childbirth. Soi a bunch of middlr-aged males, for whom this phrase shall Never apply, want to decide the fate of Lowly women everywhere. To quote a smart person named Kathy Bleeech!
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Again, died in childbirth. Soi a bunch of middlr-aged males, for whom this phrase shall Never apply, want to decide the fate of Lowly women everywhere. To quote a smart person named Kathy Bleeech!
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Nasseh
I really enjoy your videos. As a metallurgist these names and formula were my bread and butter at school but I never knew the history behind them. Thank you and please keep up the good word.
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I really enjoy your videos. As a metallurgist these names and formula were my bread and butter at school but I never knew the history behind them. Thank you and please keep up the good word.
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Gildardo
Nice video, but the logarithm is not a trig function -- logarithms and trig functions do have a connection when you consider complex analysis, but not if you only consider real numbers.
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Nice video, but the logarithm is not a trig function -- logarithms and trig functions do have a connection when you consider complex analysis, but not if you only consider real numbers.
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Steve
This is one of the all time greatest stories i ever heard! And I would like to add to it: Goef Hinton created the machine vision for electric cars, he calls it a Boltzman machine! Holy Cow.
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This is one of the all time greatest stories i ever heard! And I would like to add to it: Goef Hinton created the machine vision for electric cars, he calls it a Boltzman machine! Holy Cow.
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Erik
6: 02 Wait, THE Lise Meitner, who later worked together with Otto Hahn?
13: 38 Correctly pronounced the name Wien, because in your earlier video, you flipped the i and e sounds.
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6: 02 Wait, THE Lise Meitner, who later worked together with Otto Hahn?
13: 38 Correctly pronounced the name Wien, because in your earlier video, you flipped the i and e sounds.
reply
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