Second Law of Thermodynamics(Mainstream Apologetics)

Second Law of Thermodynamics

Evidence ID: COS-EV06

Evidence: Second Law of Thermodynamics

Summary: The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that the fixed amount of energy in the universe will disperse over time. Another way to understand this is that the order the things we see around us is unraveling and the universe is trending toward disorder. Because of the dispersion of energy over time, life as we know it will cease to exist. Because we are still in a state of orderliness, time must be finite, not infinite. Otherwise, we would have already reached the final state of complete disorder. Therefore, the universe must have had a beginning.

Description: Thermodynamics is the study of heat and energy. It is comprised of three laws that describe the relationships between all forms of energy. Most notable is the Second Law of Thermodynamics which is credited to the French scientist Sadi Carnot in 1824.

The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that matter is becoming more disordered and that the fixed amount of energy in the universe is becoming more dispersed over time.

Illustrations

Another way to understand the Second Law of Thermodynamics is that the order the things we see around us is unraveling and becoming less structured.

A word picture that illustrates this process is the unraveling of knit garment. If we pull on a loose end of thread, we can unravel the entire garment until it no longer resembles the original. Consequently, the effort required to knit the original garment is undone.

Another example of this process is the burning of wood. The burning process transforms the original wood, cellulose (C₆H₁₀O₅) into new forms of energy such as heat, light, atomic elements such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), water (H₂O), and other non-flammable elements such as ash and soot. During this burning process, no new energy is gained, and none is lost. Energy in the form of heat is dispersed from the burning wood to the surrounding environment.

In both of these examples, the garment and wood lose form and structure.

Implications

Because our universe is a closed system where no new energy is being fed into it, the amount of energy in the universe is constant or fixed. This implies that the energy in the universe is conserved. This is the First Law of Thermodynamics.

According to the Second Law of Thermodynamics, both the entropy (disorder) and enthalpy (heat) of the universe will increase over time.

Increasing Disorder - The energy that binds matter together is released over time. Matter is broken down or reduced into its constituent parts. In natural systems, the process of entropy is irreversible. Over time, the order or structure of the universe decreases.
Final Heat State - The byproduct of entropy is increased heat. Heat always flows from a hotter object to a cooler object. Subsequently, heat is dispersed and distributed uniformly throughout the universe. This raises the temperature of the universe. Over time, the heat of the universe increases.

Ultimately, the universe will become a featureless soup in which no life is possible. Given enough time, the universe will inevitably stagnate in what scientists refer to as a state of heat death. Once the universe reaches this state, no further change is possible. The universe will be in a final state of equilibrium.

Observations

So why is this relevant to the universe's beginning?

This discovery unmistakably demonstrates the irreversible passage of time and state of the universe. The universe is progressively moving from a state of orderliness, toward a final state of disorder or heat death. Therefore, we conclude that the universe must have had a beginning.

We also conclude that time is finite not infinite. For if time were infinite, we would already be in the final state of heat death [MATH-IS04].

Resources:

Second Law of Thermodynamics (REF-THER01)