All posts tagged: entropy

Physics claims the past and future are identical — so why do we age

Physics claims the past and future are identical — so why do we age

Published by Jenni Sidey

A glass slips from a hand, hits the floor, and bursts into fragments. The sound fades quickly. Heat spreads into the room. Nothing about the scene looks reversible. Yet, in the language of physics, it is. That tension sits at the center of one of the oldest questions in science. The equations that govern motion, energy, relativity, and even quantum behavior do not prefer a direction. Run them forward or backward, they still work. But daily life insists on a different story. Glass breaks but does not rebuild. Coffee cools but never reheats itself. Memory points backward, never forward. You do not wake up younger than you were the night before. Cells wear down. Age accumulates in one direction. No one lives Tuesday, then Monday, then Sunday. In ordinary life, time has a grip. It leaves marks on faces, joints, skin, memory, and muscle. That one-way quality feels so natural that it hardly seems like a mystery until physics says it should not be. Somewhere between clean mathematics and lived experience, time seems to pick …

Einstein claims the past and future are identical – then why do we age

Einstein claims the past and future are identical – then why do we age

Published by Jenni Sidey

A glass slips from your hand, hits the floor, and shatters into pieces. The sound fades quickly. Heat spreads into the room. Nothing about the scene looks reversible. Yet, in the language of physics, it is. That tension sits at the center of one of the oldest questions in science. The equations that govern motion, energy, relativity, and even quantum behavior do not prefer a direction. Run them forward or backward, they still work. But daily life insists on a different story. Glass breaks but does not rebuild. Coffee cools but never reheats itself. Memory points backward, never forward. You do not wake up younger than you were the night before. Cells wear down. Age accumulates in one direction. No one lives Tuesday, then Monday, then Sunday. In ordinary life, time has a grip. It leaves marks on faces, joints, skin, memory, and muscle. That one-way quality feels so natural that it hardly seems like a mystery until physics says it should not be. Somewhere between clean mathematics and lived experience, time seems to pick …

Scientists Say: Entropy

Scientists Say: Entropy

Published by skeptic

Entropy (noun, “EN-troh-pee”) Entropy is a measure of the randomness of particles and energy in a system. High entropy means high randomness. Low entropy means low randomness. Imagine building a castle from blocks. The blocks start out in a disorganized pile. The pile has high randomness because there are so many ways you could arrange the blocks and still have just a pile. This is a high-entropy state. Over time, you pick blocks from the pile and arrange them into turrets and walls. A castle requires a very specific setup. You can only arrange the blocks a few ways to make it. So the castle is a less random, lower entropy state. Gradually, the messy, high-entropy pile becomes an organized, low-entropy structure. You have to spend time and energy to do this. Maintaining or increasing order always requires energy input. Entropy explains much of how the universe works. Scientists long ago identified a basic pattern about entropy: It tends to increase over time. And this pattern appears at the tiniest scale and the galactic level. …

Cosmic inflation explains the Universe’s low entropy at birth

Cosmic inflation explains the Universe’s low entropy at birth

Published by Jenni Sidey

Right now, at this very moment, the total amount of entropy contained within the observable Universe is greater than it’s ever been before. Tomorrow’s entropy will be even greater still, while yesterday, the entropy wasn’t quite as great as it is today. With each passing moment, inevitably, the Universe inches closer to its seemingly inevitable maximum entropy state known as the “heat death” of the Universe: a situation where all the particles and fields have reached their lowest-energy, equilibrium state, and no further energy can be extracted to perform work, or any other useful, order-creating tasks. The reason for the inevitable increase in entropy is as simple as it is inevitable: the second law of thermodynamics. It states that the entropy of a closed-and-isolated, self-contained system can only increase or, in the ideal case, stay the same over time; it can never go down. It has a preferred direction for time: forward, as systems always tend toward greater (or even maximal) entropy over time. Commonly thought of as “disorder,” it seems to take our Universe …

Surprising new research links LSD-induced brain entropy to seizure protection

Surprising new research links LSD-induced brain entropy to seizure protection

Published by José Betancourt

Two recent studies conducted by scientists at the University Health Network and the University of Toronto provide new evidence regarding the effects of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) on the brain. The findings suggest that this psychedelic compound may have unexpected neuroprotective properties against severe seizures in mice. Additionally, the research indicates that LSD significantly alters the electrical stability of brain networks. These papers, published in Next Research and Brain Research, challenge conventional assumptions about psychedelics and safety in the context of epilepsy. Lysergic acid diethylamide is a potent psychoactive substance known for its ability to alter perception, mood, and cognitive processes. It functions primarily by binding to serotonin receptors in the brain. These receptors are proteins that receive chemical signals to regulate various biological functions. While LSD is famous for its recreational use and its ability to induce hallucinations, medical researchers are increasingly examining its potential therapeutic benefits. Past studies suggest it may help treat conditions such as depression and anxiety. The rationale for investigating LSD in the context of seizures stemmed from a need …