Which means that if the positive change in entropy is always greater than
the negative, then eventually, everything will be in total disorder. I
believe Lazy Dog remembers that from his studies also.


"francisco" <paco1955@sbcglobal.net> wrote in message
news:9nA3f.16315$6e1.13600@newssvr14.news.prodigy.com...

a positive entropy change is a transformation in which a system changes
from an organized state to a disorganized state.

a negative entropy change is a transformation in which a system changes
from a disorganized state to an organized state.

if you observe a system in which the entropy appears to decrease, you
will also observe a positive entropy change somewhere in the environment
of the system large enough to make the total entropy change of system +
environment positive.

for example, supposed that i drop an ice cube in a cup which contains hot
water. two things happens simultaneously: the ice cube melts and the hot
water cools down until the ice cube and the hot water reach the same
temperature and they become a homogeneous body of lukewarm water. the
change of the ice in this process is a positive entropy change, and the
change of the hot water is a negative entropy change. it turns out that
if A = the positive entropy change of the ice cube and (-B) = the
negative entropy change of the hot water, then A + (-B) > 0. in other
words, if you observe the hot water in which the entropy appears to
decrease, you will also observe a positive entropy change in the ice
large enough to make the total entropy change of hot water + ice cube
positive.

in other words, the positive entropy change of the ice is greater than
the negative entropy change of the hot water.