“OPERATING THETAN, 1. a thetan exterior who can have but doesn’t have to have a body in order to control or operate thought, life, matter, energy, space and time.” … “THETAN EXTERIOR, 1. a being who knows he is a spirit with a body and not just a body.” … “THETAN EXTERIOR, 2. he’s out but if the body were to be injured he would be back in.” … “THETAN EXTERIOR, 3. a being not influenced by a body.” … “THETAN EXTERIOR, 4. a thetan who is clear of the body and knows it but is not yet stable outside.” … “EXTERIOR, the fellow would just move out, away from the body and be aware of himself as independent of a body but still able to control and handle the body.”
The person knows that his individuality does not depend on the body. His attention is no longer fixated on the body. He can operate freely without any considerations of body restricting him in any way. But this is interpreted in Scientology to mean that a person can operate without a body.
“OPERATING THETAN, 2. willing and knowing cause over life, thought, matter, energy, space and time. And that would of course be mind and that would of course be universe.“
The person has become one with nature and all life in the sense that his postulates are completely aligned with the laws of nature as per the Principle of Oneness. But this is interpreted in Scientology that the person controls the laws of the universe.
“OPERATING THETAN, 3. an individual who could operate totally independently of his body whether he had one or didn’t have one. He’s now himself, he’s not dependent on the universe around him.”
A person can become aware of the programming that is running his body and the mind and become exterior to it. But his beingness is defined by that programming and the postulates underlying it. He cannot exist without them.
“OPERATING THETAN, 4. a Clear who has been refamiliarized with his capabilities.”
As a clear, a person no longer has facsimiles. As an operating thetan, he is learning to exercise his capabilities.
“OPERATING THETAN, 5. a being at cause over matter, energy, space, time, form and life. Operating comes from “able to operate without dependency on things” and thetan is the Greek letter theta (θ), which the Greeks used to represent “thought” or perhaps “spirit” to which an “n” is added to make a new noun in the modern style used to create words in engineering.”
The postulates and considerations of an operating thetan are totally aligned with natural laws governing thought, energy and matter. He, therefore, operates without any effort. It is cooperation rather than dependency. But this is interpreted in Scientology as operating independently of the body and the laws of nature.
“OPERATING THETAN, 6. by operating thetan we mean theta clear plus ability to operate functionally against or with mest and other life forms.” … “THETA CLEAR, 1. it is a person who operates exterior to a body without need of a body.” … “THETA CLEAR, 2. that state wherein the preclear can remain with certainty outside his body when the body is hurt.” … “THETA CLEAR, 3. a theta clear, then can be defined as a person who is at cause over his own reactive bank and can create and uncreate it at will. Less accurately he is a person who is willing to experience. Theta clear is stable.” … “THETA CLEAR, 4. theta clear would mean clear of the mest body or cleared of the necessity to have a mest body.” … “THETA CLEAR, 5. there are two types of theta clear, the theta being which is cleared of its necessity or compulsion to have a body and a theta being which is cleared all the way on the track.” … “THETA CLEAR, 6. the basic definition of theta clear is: no further necessity for beingnesses.” … “THETA CLEAR, 7. this is a relative not an absolute term. It means that the person, this thought unit, is clear of his body, his engrams, his facsimiles, but can handle and safely control a body.” … “THETA CLEAR, 8. in its highest sense, means no further dependency on bodies.” … “THETA CLEAR, 9. an individual who, as a being, is certain of his identity apart from that of the body, and who habitually operates the body from outside, or exteriorized.”
A theta clear would be a person who has resolved all anomalies among his own postulates. He is now becoming an operating thetan as he resolves anomalies with rest of the postulates of the universe. He is, therefore, able to pervade the whole universe and operate as one with the universe. Scientology interprets it as control rather than cooperation.
“OPERATING THETAN, 7 . this state of being is attained by drills and familiarity after the state of Clear has been obtained. A real OT has no reactive bank, is cause over matter, energy, space, time and thought and is completely free.”
The operating thetan is now learning by exercising its capabilities in the absence of facsimiles.
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Subject Clearing
Apparently, a person is an operating thetan when he operates unrestricted by the consideration of the body. This is interpreted to mean that the person can operate without a body. This is further interpreted to mean that a person is immortal. Therefore, the goal in Scientology is to achieve immortality for one’s individuality.
According to Subject Clearing, a person is an operating thetan when he no longer has any unassimilated impressions. His postulates and considerations are totally aligned with the natural laws governing thought, energy and matter. He has resolved the anomalies to do with his beingness, and he operates without effort as one with his body and the universe. He is able to pervade the whole universe and resolves anomalies actively as he comes across them. The goal in Subject Clearing is the continual resolution of anomalies to see where it takes us.
Here are Hubbard’s definitions related to the 8th Dynamic, which are taken from the Technical Dictionary of Scientology. Let’s look at each definition carefully.
“DYNAMIC, 1 . any one of the eight subdivisions of the dynamic principle of existence—SURVIVE.”
The concept of DYNAMIC starts with the idea of SURVIVE.
“SURVIVE, the dynamic principle of existence is survive. At the opposite end of the spectrum of existence is succumb.”
This definition provides us with the duality of survive-succumb. The regular English dictionary provides the definition, “to remain or continue in existence or use.”
“SURVIVAL, 1. is a condition susceptible to non-survival. If one is “surviving,” one is at the same moment admitting that one can cease to survive, otherwise one would never strive to survive.”
There is a basic impulse to survive. One may say that reality is surviving because it is simply there. But Hubbard focuses on survival in the context of the individual.
“SURVIVAL, 2. survival might be defined as an impulse to persist through time, in space, as matter and energy.”
Again, Hubbard’s focus is on the survival of the individual. But one may see that MEST is also surviving.
“SURVIVAL, 3. survival is understood to be the basic single thrust of life through time and space, energy and matter. Survival is subdivided into eight dynamics.”
The eight dynamics are the subdivision of survival.
“DYNAMIC, 2 . dynamic is the ability to translate solutions into action.”
The idea of dynamic boils down to resolving anomalies. That is how one survives.
“DYNAMIC, 3 . the tenacity to life and vigor and persistence in survival.”
Dynamic is tenacity and persistence. This introduces the idea of effort in surviving. But all that effort is directed towards resolving anomalies. Note that before life and the individual emerged on the scene, anomalies were resolved through trial and error. That is how the universe evolved.
“DYNAMICS, there could be said to be eight urges (drives, impulses) in life. These we call dynamics. These are motives or motivations. We call them the eight dynamics. The first dynamic —is the urge toward existence as one’s self. Here we have individuality expressed fully. This can be called the self dynamic. The second dynamic—is the urge toward existence as a sexual or bisexual activity. This dynamic actually has two divisions. Second dynamic (a) is the sexual act itself and the second dynamic (b) is the family unit, including the rearing of children. This can be called the sex dynamic. The third dynamic—is the urge toward existence in groups of individuals. Any group or part of an entire class could be considered to be a part of the third dynamic. The school, the society, the town, the nation are each part of the third dynamic, and each one is a third dynamic. This can be called the group dynamic. The fourth dynamic—is the urge toward existence as mankind. Whereas the white race would be considered a third dynamic, all the races would be considered the fourth dynamic. This can be called the mankind dynamic. The fifth dynamic—is the urge toward existence of the animal kingdom. This includes all living things whether vegetable or animal. The fish in the sea, the beasts of the field or of the forest, grass, trees, flowers, or anything directly and intimately motivated by life. This could be called the animal dynamic. The sixth dynamic—is the urge toward existence as the physical universe. The physical universe is composed of matter, energy, space and time. In Scn we take the first letter of each of these words and coin a word, mest. This can be called the universe dynamic. The seventh dynamic—is the urge toward existence as or of spirits. Anything spiritual, with or without identity, would come under the heading of the seventh dynamic. This can be called the spiritual dynamic. The eighth dynamic—is the urge toward existence as infinity. This is also identified as the Supreme Being. It is carefully observed here that the science of Scn does not intrude into the dynamic of the Supreme Being. This is called the eighth dynamic because the symbol of infinity oo stood upright makes the numeral “8 .” This can be called the infinity or God dynamic.”
The dynamics are an excellent concept that is universally applicable. But Hubbard describes the dynamics from the viewpoint of the individual. This limits the concept.
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Anomaly
In Scientology, these dynamics are viewed in the context of the survival of the individual. Dynamics exist by themselves in the Universe. Why should Dynamics be limited to the survival urge of the individual? This limitation seems to be the result of Hubbard’s fixation on individuality. This is an anomaly because these dynamics are broadly applicable in the context of the universe.
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Resolution
In mathematical terms the universe is the overall set. It will include all life and individuals. From this viewpoint may define the UNIVERSE as follows:
The universe is not just physical; it is metaphysical too. The universe includes everything whether physical, metaphysical, real, imaginary, postulated or speculated. Nothing is excluded from the universe.
We may express these dynamics from the viewpoint of the universe as follows:
“The basic dynamic is not only SURVIVE but also EVOLVE. The universe cannot help but survive; so, it must evolve. This is the overall dynamic of the universe called the eighth dynamic. The universe, obviously, has an inherent impulse built in it. Therefore, we may say that the eighth dynamic subdivides into the inner impulse and the outer appearance as the seventh and sixth dynamics respectively.
“As the universe evolves from gases to liquids to solids, to minerals, to animated life, to reacting organisms, to thinking mammals, and finally, to self-aware humans, we get life or the fifth dynamic. The humans are such a major step in evolution that they are called the mankind or fourth dynamic.
“The human awareness has evolved under different geographic conditions and locations into different cultures, thinking patterns, abilities, etc. Thus we have subdivisions into many different groups, and each group is seen as a third dynamic. The keynote of a group is its common purpose and cooperation. Within the third dynamic we have the evolution of families to take better care of future generations. This is seen as the second dynamic. There is sexual activity within the context of second dynamic. The keynote here is taking responsibility for the future.
“The second dynamic then provides an environment in which children develop their potential fully as individuals. The problem solving ability of an individual is the highest achievement of evolution. This is the first dynamic.”
Looking at the above, we may that
The EIGHTH DYNAMIC is the universe and beyond. It includes all the lower dynamics.
“POSTULATE, n. 1. a self-created truth would be simply the consideration generated by self. Well, we just borrow the word which is in seldom use in the English language, we call that postulate. And we mean by postulate, self-created truth. He posts something. He puts something up and that’s what a postulate is.”
A postulate, such as, “the speed of light is a universal constant” by Einstein, is simply put there to explain a phenomenon. It is treated as self-evident as long as it does not conflict with what is observed.
“POSTULATE, n. 2. a postulate is, of course, that thing which is a directed desire or order, or inhibition, or enforcement, on the part of the individual in the form of an idea.
A postulate is continuous, consistent and harmonious with other observations. It is not something arbitrary, whether a directed desire or an idea.
“POSTULATE, n. 3 . that self-determined thought which starts, stops or changes past, present or future efforts.”
The purpose of postulate is to know the unknowable. Self is the ability to postulate and to become aware. Self is not some identity or individuality.
“POSTULATE, n. 4 . is actually a prediction.”
A postulate provides the basis for further reasoning.
“POSTULATE, v. 1 . in Scn the word postulate means to cause a thinkingness or consideration. It is a specially applied word and is defined as causative thinkingness.”
To postulate is to put something up that explains a whole lot of observations.
“POSTULATE, v. 2 . to conclude, decide or resolve a problem or to set a pattern for the future or to nullify a pattern of the past.”
To postulate is to provide stable data that resolves problems or anomalies.
“POSTULATE, v. 3 . to generate or “thunk” a concept. A postulate infers conditions and actions rather than just plain thinks. It has a dynamic connotation.”
To postulate is to conceive a basic concept that explains a whole lot of conditions and actions.
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Subject Clearing
A postulate explains a whole lot of observed phenomena. Therefore, there has to be a set of postulates that explains the knowable universe.
The particle of thought may be called a postulate. A postulate is something, which is put forth with or without reasoning. Its source is unknowable. A postulate is manifested and knowable. It has substance, extents and duration. Postulates may be arranged in a “spectrum” of increasing condensation of thought. The thought in the state of apathy is much more condensed than the thought in the state of serenity. We have an approximation of this “spectrum” in the Tone Scale of Scientology by Hubbard. The size of a postulate is estimated to be trillions of times the size of a photon. Postulates account for all space. This is an area where much research is needed.
SCIENTOLOGY AXIOM 1: Life is basically a static. Definition: a Life Static has no mass, no motion, no wavelength, no location in space or in time. It has the ability to postulate and to perceive.
Static implies that Theta and MEST are substances in two different dimensions. Theta is the potential that becomes actual only when manifested in MEST. This manifestation results in motion which is life. In Hubbard’s Theta-MEST theory, theta may separate from MEST and survive as pure potential.
Hubbard postulated the Theta-MEST theory to explain the phenomena of Death. Most of the conscious life laves the body at the moment of death. So, Hubbard postulated a unit of theta (thetan) leaving the body at death. But life in the organs of the body takes another 14 days to leave completely. So Hubbard postulated a Genetic Entity to explain that.
But even when the body disintegrates completely, some motion still remains at the atomic level. This presents an anomaly because if theta leaves MEST, then no motion should be left at all in MEST.
We find that motion is inherent to MEST at the atomic level and it can never be separated. Motion becomes more sophisticated as MEST becomes more complex at the molecular level. As molecules increase in complexity they act like computers. A DNA molecule is so complex that it can store the whole blue print of the body within itself. The sophisticated motion at the level of body expresses itself as thought.
Throughout this increasing complexity of MEST, the increasingly sophisticated motion cannot be separated from MEST.
So, at the moment of death, most of the sophisticated motion of life ceases, because the overall system of the body breaks down. The remaining motion of the body ceases over the next 14 days as body’s sub-systems break down one by one. Subsequently, any sophisticated motion goes dormant in the DNA molecules.
So, we can explain death in terms of an integrated Theta-MEST system gradually breaking down and becoming dormant, instead of “theta leaving MEST.” This is more consistent.
Lets’ look at the phenomenon of exteriorization where, in Hubbard’s model, the thetan leaves the body, and the genetic entity is left in the body to maintain its functions. We may explain the phenomenon of exteriorization in terms of a shift in consideration. When the person is interiorized, his attention is fixated on the body. When this attention frees itself up, it makes one feel that one is outside the body. The reason for this is that the body extends as an invisible aura around itself. The attention units, when freed up from fixation on the body, can be focused anywhere in the aura away from the solid body.
So, exteriorization does not have to be explained in terms of “theta leaving MEST.” Theta and MEST can still be shown to be integrated as always. This is more consistent.
We may modify the Axiom 1 as follows:
KHTK AXIOM 1: Life is a sophisticated expression of integrated Theta-MEST.
ENERGY Energy, in general, refers purely to the intrinsic motion of substance. Matter has energy. Radiation has anergy. Thought has energy. Both mass (degree of substantiality) and energy (degree of motion) are inherent to substance. They are different concepts and should not be confused with each other as common in physics when talking about radiation. The intrinsic motion gives an object certain intrinsic kinetic energy (KE). KE can be added to an object pushing it such that it gains velocity. The KE of an object can be made to appear zero in an inertial reference frame that is moving at the same velocity as the object. By contrast, the total kinetic energy of a system of objects cannot be reduced to zero by a suitable choice of the inertial reference frame, when the objects are moving at different velocities. But there can be a non-zero minimum. This minimum kinetic energy contributes to the system’s invariant mass, which is independent of the reference frame.
FORCE Origin: “strong.” Force is an interaction (a push or a pull) that can change an object’s motion or its shape. More formally, it is any action that tends to accelerate a body, deform it, or maintain/alter its state of motion. A force can cause an object to start moving, stop moving, speed up, slow down, change direction, or deform (stretch, compress, twist). In introductory terms, whenever two objects interact—like your hand pushing a door—there is a force involved in that interaction. Force is a vector quantity: it has both magnitude (how strong) and direction (which way it acts). To predict motion, one must add all forces as vectors to get the net (resultant) force acting on the body.
GRAVITY Gravity is a phenomenon very similar to inertia. Inertia acts to restore the equilibrium between the thickness and motion of a body. Similarly, gravity acts to restore the equilibrium of the distribution of thickness and motion among the bodies of a system.
INVARIANTS An invariant is a property, quantity, or condition that remains unchanged when a specific transformation, operation, or process is applied to a mathematical object or system.
LOCALITY The principle of locality states that objects are only directly influenced by their immediate surroundings, requiring physical interactions to propagate through space at or below the speed of light. It rejects instantaneous “action at a distance”. While classical physics is local, quantum entanglement demonstrates non-local correlations.
MECHANICS Mechanics (from Ancient Greek ‘of machines’) is the area of physics concerned with the relationships between force, matter, and motion among physical objects. Forces applied to objects may result in displacements, which are changes of an object’s position relative to its environment. Mechanics is built on the idea that the motion of material bodies is governed by precise, quantitative relationships between forces, mass, and the resulting motion (or equilibrium) of those bodies. There exist universal laws (classically, Newton’s laws) and conservation principles (energy, momentum, angular momentum) that connect force, mass, and motion in a mathematically exact way, letting us predict how systems will evolve.
MOMENTUM Momentum in physics is the quantity of motion an object has, defined as the product of its mass and its velocity; it measures how hard it is to stop or change that motion. Momentum points in the same direction as the motion and its magnitude grows with both mass and speed. Momentum extends the idea of inertia (resistance to change of state) to moving bodies. A more massive or faster object has more momentum, so it takes a greater or longer‑acting force to significantly change its motion (for example, stopping a truck vs. a bicycle at the same speed). Force is the rate of change of momentum. In a closed system with no net external force, total momentum remains constant; this is the law of conservation of momentum. Collisions and interactions redistribute momentum among objects, but the vector sum of all momenta before and after the interaction is the same. Momentum is connected to the very structure of the physical law.
WORK Work is the transfer of energy that happens when a force causes an object to move over some distance in the direction of that force (W= Fd cosθ). There may be force, but if the displacement is zero, or it is perpendicular to the force, then the work done is zero. Work and energy share the same unit because the net work done on a particle equals its change in kinetic energy. Work is positive when energy is added to the object as in accelerating a car forward. Work is negative when energy is removed as in friction slowing a sliding block. Work has magnitude and sign (positive or negative) but no direction in space. In general, work is the mechanical effort required to change a system from one state to another. In thermodynamics, work performed by a system is energy transferred by the system to its surroundings, by a mechanism through which the system can spontaneously exert macroscopic forces on its surroundings, where those forces, and their external effects, can be measured.
PRESSURE Pressure is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed.
SPEED Average speed is defined as the total distance traveled in a given time divided by that time interval. Since distance traveled is always positive, the average speed is always positive. Its units are the same as those of velocity. Average speed is either equal to or greater than the average velocity. Instantaneous speed is always the same as instantaneous velocity.
TIME
Time is a measure of when the object is at a certain position in a coordinate system. Time elapsed is always positive.
VELOCITY
Velocity is the time rate of change of displacement.
WAVE WAVES are cycles of oscillations that have the characteristics of a continuum. A wave can be a disturbance traveling in a stationary medium, such as, the waves on the surface of water in a pond. A wave can also be a rapidly traveling substance with the characteristics of a continuum, such as, light or the rolling waves of the sea.
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SECTION 3: THERMODYNAMICS
THERMODYNAMICS, HEAT, TEMPERATURE
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ADIABATIC PROCESS An adiabatic process occurs without transferring heat or mass between a thermodynamic system and its surroundings. Unlike an isothermal process, an adiabatic process transfers energy to the surroundings only as work. It also conceptually forms the foundation of the theory used to expound the first law of thermodynamics and is therefore a key thermodynamic concept. Q = 0 but ΔT ≠ 0.
CARNOT CYCLE The Carnot Cycle is a theoretically reversible cycle in which entropy is conserved. The cycle operates between two “heat reservoirs” at temperatures Th and Tc (hot and cold respectively). The reservoirs have such large thermal capacity that their temperatures are practically unaffected by a single cycle.
During the Carnot cycle, an amount of energy ThΔS is extracted from the hot reservoir and a smaller amount of energy TcΔS is deposited in the cold reservoir. The difference in the two energies (Th-Tc)ΔS is equal to the work done by the engine. Thus, heat is converted into work.
ENERGY, INTERNAL The internal energy keeps account of the gains and losses of energy of the system that are due to changes in its internal state. It is often not necessary to consider all of the system’s intrinsic energies. Internal energy is measured as a difference from a reference zero defined by a standard state. The processes that define the internal energy in the state of interest are transfers of matter, or of energy as heat, or as thermodynamic work. If the containing walls pass neither matter nor energy, the system is said to be isolated and its internal energy cannot change. Microscopically, the internal energy can be analyzed in terms of the kinetic energy of microscopic motion of the system’s particles from translations, rotations, and vibrations, and of the potential energy associated with microscopic forces, including chemical bonds. Internal energy excludes the kinetic energy of motion of the system as a whole and the potential energy of the system as a whole due to external force fields.
ENERGY, THERMAL Thermal energy refers to several distinct physical concepts, such as the internal energy of a system; heat or sensible heat, which are defined as types of energy transfer (as is work); or for the characteristic energy of a degree of freedom in a thermal system (kT).
ENTROPY The word ‘entropy’ comes from the Greek words, `en-tropie’ (intrinsic direction). The concept of entropy came about from investigations into lost energy in heat engines. Entropy was introduced as the concept of ‘transformation-energy’, i.e. energy lost to dissipation and friction. Entropy is a macro state variable for a system that is defined only when the system is in equilibrium.
1789 Count Rumford – heat could be created by friction as when cannon bores are machined.
1803 Lazare Carnot – Losses of moments of activity
1824 Sadi Carnot – Work or motive power can be produced when heat falls through temperature difference
1843 James Joules – expresses the concept of energy and its conservation in all processes. He is unable to quantify the effects of friction and dissipation.
1850s Rudolf Clausius – objected to the supposition that no change occurs in the working body. There is inherent loss of usable heat when work is done, e.g. heat produced by friction. This was in contrast to earlier views, based on the theories of Isaac Newton, that heat was an indestructible particle that had mass.
1877 – Boltzmann – visualized a probabilistic way to measure the entropy of an ensemble of ideal gas particles
Entropy is a state variable. Its thermodynamic definition is “Q/T,” and its statistical mechanics definition is “k ln Ω.” Essential problem in statistical thermodynamics has been to determine the distribution of a given amount of energy E over N identical systems.
FREE ENERGY
The change in the free energy is the maximum amount of work that a thermodynamic system can perform in a process at constant temperature, and its sign indicates whether the process is thermodynamically favorable or forbidden. Free energy is not absolute but depends on the choice of a zero point. Therefore, only relative free energy values, or changes in free energy, are physically meaningful.
(Gibbs function) the thermodynamic function of a system that is equal to its enthalpy minus the product of its absolute temperature and entropy: a decrease in the function is equal to the maximum amount of work available exclusive of that due to pressure times volume change during a reversible, isothermal, isobaric process.
(Helmholtz function) the thermodynamic function of a system that is equal to its internal energy minus the product of its absolute temperature and entropy: a decrease in the function is equal to the maximum amount of work available during a reversible isothermal process.
GAS CONSTANT The gas constant R is a physical constant that is featured in many fundamental equations in the physical sciences, such as the ideal gas law. It relates the energy scale to the temperature scale, when a mole of particles at the stated temperature is being considered. It is defined as the Avogadro constant multiplied by the Boltzmann constant.
HEAT A non-mechanical energy transfer with reference to a temperature difference between a system and its surroundings or between two parts of the same system.
In thermodynamics, heat is not the property of an isolated system. It is energy in transfer to or from a thermodynamic system. Heat excludes any thermodynamic work that was done and any energy contained in matter transferred. Heat transfer occurs by the following mechanisms:
(1) Conduction, through direct contact of immobile bodies, or through a wall or barrier that is impermeable to matter. (2) Radiation between separated bodies. (3) Convective circulation that carries energy from a boundary of one to a boundary of the other. (4) Friction due to work done by the surroundings on the system of interest, such as Joule heating.
Quantity of energy transferred as heat can be measured by its effect on the states of interacting bodies. For example, by the amount of ice melted, or by change in temperature of a body in the surroundings of the system.
HEAT, SENSIBLE Sensible heat is heat exchanged by a body (or thermodynamic system) in which the exchange of heat changes the temperature of the body, and some macroscopic variables, but leaves unchanged certain other macroscopic variables, such as volume or pressure. The term is used in contrast to a latent heat, which is the amount of heat exchanged that is hidden, meaning it occurs without change of temperature.
IDEAL GAS The volume of ideal gas is essentially made up of electromagnetic substance. At very high pressures and very low temperatures the Ideal gas approximations are not valid.
IDEAL GAS An ideal gas is a theoretical gas composed of many randomly moving point particles that are not subject to inter-particle interactions. The ideal gas concept is useful because it obeys the ideal gas law, a simplified equation of state, and is amenable to analysis under statistical mechanics.
IDEAL GAS LAW The ideal gas law is the equation of state of a hypothetical ideal gas. It is often written in an empirical form: PV = nRT where P, V and T are the pressure, volume and temperature; n is the amount of substance; and R is the ideal gas constant. It is a good approximation of the behavior of many gases under many conditions, although it has several limitations.
ISOTHERMAL PROCESS
An isothermal process is a change of a system, in which the temperature remains constant: ΔT = 0. This typically occurs when a system is in contact with an outside thermal reservoir (heat bath), and the change in the system will occur slowly enough to allow the system to continue to adjust to the temperature of the reservoir through heat exchange. ΔT = 0 but Q ≠ 0.
LAW (ZEROTH) OF THERMODYNAMICS: TEMPERATURE If two systems are in thermal equilibrium with a third system, they are in thermal equilibrium with each other.
This law helps define the notion of temperature.
Systems in thermal equilibrium with each other have the same temperature.
Temperature is one-dimensional, that one can conceptually arrange bodies in real number sequence from colder to hotter.
This law allows the definition of temperature in a non-circular way without reference to entropy, its conjugate variable.
LAW (FIRST) OF THERMODYNAMICS: INTERNAL ENERGY When energy passes, as work, as heat, or with matter, into or out from a system, its internal energy changes in accord with the law of conservation of energy.
The establishment of the concept of internal energy distinguishes the first law of thermodynamics from the more general law of conservation of energy.
The first law of thermodynamics may be regarded as establishing the existence of the internal energy.
Equivalently, perpetual motion machines of the first kind are impossible.
A perpetual motion machine of the first kind produces work without the input of energy. It thus violates the first law of thermodynamics: the law of conservation of energy.
The internal energy of a system is energy contained within the system… It keeps account of the gains and losses of energy of the system that are due to changes in its internal state.
The internal energy of a system can be changed by transfers: (a) as heat, (b) as work, or (c) with matter.
When matter transfer is prevented by impermeable containing walls, the system is said to be closed. Then the first law of thermodynamics states that the increase in internal energy is equal to the total heat added plus the work done on the system by its surroundings.
If the containing walls pass neither matter nor energy, the system is said to be isolated. Then its internal energy cannot change. The first law of thermodynamics may be regarded as establishing the existence of the internal energy.
LAW (FIRST) OF THERMODYNAMICS: INTERNAL ENERGY When energy passes, as work, as heat, or with matter, into or out from a system, its internal energy changes in accord with the law of conservation of energy.
The establishment of the concept of internal energy distinguishes the first law of thermodynamics from the more general law of conservation of energy.
The first law of thermodynamics may be regarded as establishing the existence of the internal energy.
Equivalently, perpetual motion machines of the first kind are impossible.
A perpetual motion machine of the first kind produces work without the input of energy. It thus violates the first law of thermodynamics: the law of conservation of energy.
The internal energy of a system is energy contained within the system… It keeps account of the gains and losses of energy of the system that are due to changes in its internal state.
The internal energy of a system can be changed by transfers: (a) as heat, (b) as work, or (c) with matter.
When matter transfer is prevented by impermeable containing walls, the system is said to be closed. Then the first law of thermodynamics states that the increase in internal energy is equal to the total heat added plus the work done on the system by its surroundings.
If the containing walls pass neither matter nor energy, the system is said to be isolated. Then its internal energy cannot change. The first law of thermodynamics may be regarded as establishing the existence of the internal energy.
LAW (FIRST) OF THERMODYNAMICS: INTERNAL ENERGY When energy passes, as work, as heat, or with matter, into or out from a system, its internal energy changes in accord with the law of conservation of energy.
The establishment of the concept of internal energy distinguishes the first law of thermodynamics from the more general law of conservation of energy.
The first law of thermodynamics may be regarded as establishing the existence of the internal energy.
Equivalently, perpetual motion machines of the first kind are impossible.
A perpetual motion machine of the first kind produces work without the input of energy. It thus violates the first law of thermodynamics: the law of conservation of energy.
The internal energy of a system is energy contained within the system… It keeps account of the gains and losses of energy of the system that are due to changes in its internal state.
The internal energy of a system can be changed by transfers: (a) as heat, (b) as work, or (c) with matter.
When matter transfer is prevented by impermeable containing walls, the system is said to be closed. Then the first law of thermodynamics states that the increase in internal energy is equal to the total heat added plus the work done on the system by its surroundings.
If the containing walls pass neither matter nor energy, the system is said to be isolated. Then its internal energy cannot change. The first law of thermodynamics may be regarded as establishing the existence of the internal energy.
In a natural thermodynamic process, the sum of the entropies of the interacting thermodynamic systems increases.
Equivalently, perpetual motion machines of the second kind are impossible.
Indicates the irreversibility of natural processes. NOTE: The precipitation of order from chaos seems to be irreversible.
When two initially isolated systems in separate but nearby regions of space, each in thermodynamic equilibrium with itself but not necessarily with each other, are then allowed to interact, they will eventually reach a mutual thermodynamic equilibrium. The sum of the entropies of the initially isolated systems is less than or equal to the total entropy of the final combination. Equality occurs just when the two original systems have all their respective intensive variables (temperature, pressure) equal; then the final system also has the same values.
This statement of the second law is founded on the assumption, that in classical thermodynamics, the entropy of a system is defined only when it has reached internal thermodynamic equilibrium (thermodynamic equilibrium with itself).
The second law is applicable to a wide variety of processes, reversible and irreversible. All natural processes are irreversible. Reversible processes are a useful and convenient theoretical fiction, but do not occur in nature.
A prime example of irreversibility is in the transfer of heat by conduction or radiation. It was known long before the discovery of the notion of entropy that when two bodies initially of different temperatures come into thermal connection, then heat always flows from the hotter body to the colder one.
The second law tells also about kinds of irreversibility other than heat transfer, for example those of friction and viscosity, and those of chemical reactions. The notion of entropy is needed to provide that wider scope of the law.
Heat Q is proportional to the total kinetic energy (K.E.) of microscopic particles in a system. Temperature T is proportional to the average K.E. of the system. Therefore, the ratio Q/T (entropy) shall be constant for a closed system, being the ratio of total to average K.E. Thus, it would represent the total number of particles in a system. Q reduces as does T when heat energy converts to the mechanical work done.
Conversion of Heat to mechanical Work is essentially the kinetic energy of microscopic particles converting to kinetic energy of large objects.
Not all K.E. of microscopic particles can be converted to K.E. of large objects. As long as temperature is not zero (K), the microscopic particles retain some of their K.E.
When heat is added to a system in which the number of microscopic particles do not change, then both Q and T increase in the same proportion. It is incorrect to assume that T remains constant.
When Q is converted to mechanical work in a system in which the number of microscopic particles do not change, then both Q and T decrease in the same proportion. It is incorrect to assume that Q remains constant.
Q1 = Q2 + W with a decrease in temperature from T1 to T2. or, W = Q1 – Q2 or, W = n (T1 – T2), where n is proportional to the number of particles in the system
Mechanical work done should be proportional to the difference in temperatures in a reversible process. In an irreversible process where losses occur, work w is less than W.
Efficiency = w/W x 100% = w/[n(T1-T2)] x 100%
Entropy increases when Q remains constant while T decreases. How is Q defined here?
LAW (THIRD) OF THERMODYNAMICS The entropy of a system approaches a constant value as the temperature approaches absolute zero. The entropy of a perfect crystal of any pure substance approaches zero as the temperature approaches absolute zero.
At zero temperature the system must be in a state with the minimum thermal energy. This statement holds true if the perfect crystal has only one state with minimum energy.
The constant value (not necessarily zero) is called the residual entropy of the system.
LAWS OF THERMODYNAMICS
FIRST LAW: Energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed.
MOLE (AVOGADRO CONSTANT) The mole is the unit of measurement for amount of substance. A mole of particles is defined as 6.022 × 10^23 particles, which may be atoms, molecules, ions, or electrons. The mass of one mole of a chemical compound, in grams, is numerically equal (for all practical purposes) to the average mass of one molecule of the compound, in atomic mass units).
SPECIFIC HEAT CAPACITY The specific heat capacity of a substance is the amount of energy that must be added, in the form of heat, to one unit of mass of the substance in order to cause an increase of one unit in its temperature. The SI unit of specific heat is joule per kelvin per kilogram, J/(K kg). Liquid water has one of the highest specific heats among common substances, about 4182 J/(K kg) at 20 °C. The specific heat often varies with temperature, and is different for each state of matter.
TEMPERATURE Temperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses hot and cold. It is the manifestation of thermal energy, present in all matter, which is the source of the occurrence of heat, a flow of energy, when a body is in contact with another that is colder.
TEMPERATURE A measure of the warmth or coldness of an object or substance with reference to some standard value.
TEMPERATURE, THERMODYNAMIC Thermodynamic temperature is defined by the third law of thermodynamics in which the theoretically lowest temperature is the null or zero point. At this point, absolute zero, the particle constituents of matter have minimal motion and can become no colder. Thermodynamic temperature is often also called absolute temperature, for two reasons: the first, proposed by Kelvin, that it does not depend on the properties of a particular material; the second, that it refers to an absolute zero according to the properties of the ideal gas.
THERMODYNAMICS (“force or power of heat”) The science concerned with the relations between heat and mechanical energy or work, and the conversion of one into the other.
THERMODYNAMIC CYCLE Every single thermodynamic system exists in a particular state. When a system is taken through a series of different states and finally returned to its initial state, a thermodynamic cycle is said to have occurred. In the process of going through this cycle, the system may perform work on its surroundings, for example by moving a piston, thereby acting as a heat engine.
THERMODYNAMIC EQUILIBRIUM Macrostates are not changing, but microstates are constantly changing. When a system changes state, the beginning and final states may be well-defined, but the intermediate states may not be defined because the system is not in equilibrium. However, if we can maintain equilibrium the whole time by making the changes very slowly and in very small steps (quasi-static process). Then we can describe the path from beginning and final states. Most quasi-static processes are reversible because there is no loss of energy. In real world there is no perfectly reversible process.
THERMODYNAMIC STATE A thermodynamic system is a macroscopic object, the microscopic details of which are not explicitly considered in its thermodynamic description.
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SECTION 4: STATISTICAL MECHANICS
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BOLTZMANN CONSTANT It is the proportionality factor that relates the average relative kinetic energy of particles in a gas with the thermodynamic temperature of the gas.
The Boltzmann constant (kB or k), which is named after Ludwig Boltzmann, is a physical constant relating the average kinetic energy of particles in a gas with the temperature of the gas. It is the gas constant R divided by the Avogadro constant NA.
MACROSTATES
Pressure, temperature and volume are macrostates of a system.
MAXWELL-BOLTZMANN DISTRIBUTION
A Maxwell–Boltzmann Distribution is a probability distribution used for describing the speeds of various particles within a stationary container at a specific temperature. The distribution is often represented with a graph, with the y-axis defined as the number of molecules and the x-axis defined as the speed.
MICROSTATES State of every atom and molecule.
STATE VARIABLE Internal energy, enthalpy, and entropy are state quantities or state functions because they describe quantitatively an equilibrium state of a thermodynamic system, irrespective of how the system arrived in that state. In contrast, mechanical work and heat are process quantities or path functions, because their values depend on the specific transition (or path) between two equilibrium states.
STATISTICAL MECHANICS Statistical mechanics involves dynamics, Where the attention is focused on statistical equilibrium (steady state). Statistical equilibrium does not mean that the particles have stopped moving (mechanical equilibrium), rather, only that the ensemble is not evolving.
(1860) Statistical mechanics was developed to define temperature equilibrium… Statistical mechanics shows how the concepts from macroscopic observations (such as temperature and pressure) are related to the description of microscopic state that fluctuates around an average state… Randomness is used to find meaningful information… Discreteness at microscopic scale averages as fluidity on macroscopic scale.
STATISTICAL THERMODYNAMICS (equilibrium statistical mechanics) The primary goal of statistical thermodynamics is to derive the classical thermodynamics of materials in terms of the properties of their constituent particles and the interactions between them. In other words, statistical thermodynamics provides a connection between the macroscopic properties of materials in thermodynamic equilibrium, and the microscopic behaviors and motions occurring inside the material.
STATISTICS We can’t keep track of trillions of molecules individually, so we track the average.
