The simplicity of entropy

The simplicity of entropy

With entropy law, it is very clear why external resources are essential for all biological and economic activities. With the concept of energy, it will be more difficult to understand why external resources are essential.

Entropy law is widely considered the most universal law in nature. This understanding is what drives the use of entropy as a basic variable in the research work of some pioneers. Planck used entropy in deriving the formula of quantum. Gibbs was quite conscious in using entropy as a basic variable. His derivation of many important results in thermodynamics seems effortless.

The following graph is the Carnot cycle on a Temperature-Entropy diagram, first drawn by Gibbs. Compared with the graph on a Pressure-Volume diagram, the graph of Carnot cycle becomes extremely simple.

The use of entropy as a basic variable in the economic theory also makes the economic theory very simple.