On 20/07/12 11:05:09, Virgil Stokes wrote: > On 20-Jul-2012 10:27, Steven D'Aprano wrote: >> On Fri, 20 Jul 2012 08:20:57 +1000, Chris Angelico wrote: >> >>>>> Since the current evidence indicates the universe will just >>>>> keep >>>>> expanding, it's more of a "deep freeze death..." >>>> Heat death means *lack* of heat. >>> The second law of thermodynamics states that energy tends to go from >>> higher states to lower, with heat being the very lowest. It's possible >>> to do work using (say) kinetic energy, and in the process, some of that >>> energy becomes heat. It's also possible to do work with any difference >>> in temperature (eg Stirling engines), so the state of the universe in >>> which it's no longer possible to do any work will be one in which all >>> energy is heat and everything's at the same temperature. That doesn't >>> mean a lack of heat; in fact, it implies that there'll be rather more >>> heat than there now is, because we currently have a whole lot of >>> chemical energy available to be used. >> Yes, but the point is, that heat will be *incredibly* diffuse, >> essentially spread over the entire universe, which will be MUCH bigger >> than it is now, and hence the temperature will be low even though the >> total amount of heat will be high. >> >> The average temperature of the universe now is about 2.7 degrees above >> absolute zero (i.e. 2.7 K, -270.45 C or -454.81 F), with individual >> hotspots reaching into millions of degrees or higher. By the time the >> last of the stars burn out, the average temperature will be a minuscule >> fraction of a degree above absolute zero, and the only hotspots will be >> the slowly cooling neutron stars. >> >> >>> But in any case, that's a looooooooong way off... >> I once went to an astronomy lecture where the lecturer was talking about >> the eventual death of the sun. He said, "In about 10 billion years, the >> sun will consume almost all of its fuel. It will cool and expand into a >> red giant, and the earth will be engulfed by the expanded sun and >> destroyed." >> >> This fellow sitting next to me got all agitated, stood up and cried out, >> "Does the government know about this? We have to do something!" >> >> The lecturer said "Don't worry sir, there's no need to panic, this won't >> happen for billions of years." >> >> The fellow looked relived and said "Oh thank god, I thought you said >> *million*!" >> > How does this relate to the python list?
This thread is as coherent as a typical episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus :-) -- HansM -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
