<LOL/>


From: Friam <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Santafe
Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2025 12:53 PM
To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [FRIAM] Entropy Redux

 

No wonder it is, de facto, a trick question, at the same time Nick maintains 
that he does not intend it to be, or to believe it is, a trick question.  





On May 29, 2025, at 3:08, Nicholas Thompson <[email protected] 
<mailto:[email protected]> > wrote:

 

My reasons for doing this is that the distinction between an air temperature 
that is arrived at by compression and the same air temperature that is arrived 
at through heating is crucial to meteorology, about which I am trying to write. 

 

Temperature is a state variable.  That is inherent to its definition, so if the 
word is to mean anything, its meaning is to include that.  If meteorology is a 
discipline within physical science, that is true in meteorology as well as 
anywhere else.  

 

“State variable” means that its value tells you all it has to tell you about 
its role.  How it was arrived at historically is exactly _not_ distinguishing 
of anything.

 

Eric 

 

 

On Wed, May 28, 2025 at 8:38 AM Alexander Rasmus <[email protected] 
<mailto:[email protected]> > wrote:

Pieter got all of this, but I’ll pile on. I think Nick is intending us to think 
that the initial fill is the same on both sides, but he definitely hasn’t said 
this. The answer to the problem as stated is that the barrier will move left, 
right, or not at all. I think Nick is intending that the fill be the same, and 
that the answer to be that the barrier move to the right. The pressure in the 
right cell is lower as the density is lower (unless the EOS is real weird).

 

What’s air Nick? You also messed up your corrected version and set the second 
initial fill temp to be the post heating temperature 

Sent from my iPhone





On May 28, 2025, at 3:02 AM, Pieter Steenekamp <[email protected] 
<mailto:[email protected]> > wrote:



I'm not sure if you deliberately left out any mention of the initial pressures 
— perhaps as part of the “catch,” which is common in trick questions like this. 
As I mentioned in my initial answer, it’s common to assume the initial 
pressures are equal, in which case the slider would move to the tight.
However, if the twist is that the right-hand cylinder was initially filled with 
high-pressure air, then of course the slider would move to the left.

 

On Wed, 28 May 2025 at 07:14, Nicholas Thompson <[email protected] 
<mailto:[email protected]> > wrote:

Thanks everybody.   Anybody else?   Remember, please no peeking.  Your efforts 
have already helped me identify an ambiguity in how I stated the problem.  Here 
is an edited version.  See if that clarification changes any answers.

Remember, no peeking before you kick in your answers.  No herding allowed.  

 

Side by side, butt-to-butt, two cylinders of air, of equal volume and equal 
temperature, but different histories. They are separated by a frictionless 
sliding divider which is now pegged.  Before compression or heating, both 
started with air at 10 degrees C, and after compression or heating, both arrive 
at 20 degrees C. The left one has arrived at its present temperature and volume 
by being compressed, the right-hand one by having its volume set to the same 
value as the left, BEFORE BEING FILLED WITH AIR AT 20 DEGREES C, and ONLY  then 
having contents  heated.  All compartments insulated, all manipulations 
quasi-static.  Now, remove the peg, allowing the partition between the two 
parts to slide, one way or the other.  Which way would it slide and why. What 
would your explanation be?  Please don't read others' answers until you have 
submitted your own.  This is enormously helpful to me.  

 

On Tue, May 27, 2025 at 10:19 PM Pieter Steenekamp <[email protected] 
<mailto:[email protected]> > wrote:

Assuming the pressures were equal at the start, it will slide from the left 
(having been compressed) to the right.
>From the ideal gas law PV = nRT, both have equal nRT;s so the one with smaller 
>V must have higher P and it would then push to the right.

 

On Wed, 28 May 2025 at 04:59, Nicholas Thompson <[email protected] 
<mailto:[email protected]> > wrote:

Side by side, butt-to-butt, two cylinders of air, of equal volume and equal 
temperature, but different histories. They are separated by a frictionless 
sliding divider which is now pegged.  Before compression or heating, both 
started with air at 10 degrees C, and after compression or heating, both arrive 
at 20 degrees C. The left one has arrived at its present temperature and volume 
by being compressed, the right-hand one by having its volume set to the same 
value as the left and then having contents  heated.  All compartments 
insulated, all manipulations quasi-static.  Now, remove the peg, allowing the 
partition between the two parts to slide, one way or the other.  Which way 
would it slide and why. What would your explanation be?  Please don't read 
others' answers until you have submitted your own.

-- 

Nicholas S. Thompson

Emeritus Professor of Psychology and Ethology

Clark University

[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> 

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-- 

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Clark University

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