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11
votes
3answers
862 views
Prove that negative absolute temperatures are actually hotter than positive absolute temperatures
Could someone provide me with a mathematical proof of why, a system with an absolute negative Kelvin temperature (such that of a spin system) is hotter than any system with a positive temperature (in ...
33
votes
7answers
3k views
Why is the Earth so fat?
I made a naive calculation of the height of Earth's equatorial bulge and found that it should be about 10km. The true height is about 20km. My question is: why is there this discrepancy?
The ...
4
votes
1answer
150 views
Is this formula for the energy of a configuration of 3 fluids physically reasonable?
I have studied for a couple of months now a mathematical model of the energy of a configuration of immiscible fluids situated in a fixed container such that the fluids fill the container. In other ...
3
votes
1answer
158 views
Why is (von Neumann) entropy maximized for an ensemble in thermal equilibrium?
Consider a quantum system in thermal equilibrium with a heat bath. In determining the density operator of the system, the usual procedure is to maximize the von Neumann entropy subject to the ...
