Sometimes, I revert back to my natural bookworm ways and start reading science books. I’ve been reading about Thermodynamics, which is the study of temperature. I’ve always thought that there are a lot of philosophical ideas in Thermodynamics. Case in point: Absolute Zero.

Absolute Zero is a temperature on the Kelvin scale (as opposed to Farenheit or Celsius) of -273.15. It is the temperature at which all thermal motion would stop (if absolute zero could be achieved in our physical world). Scientists try to reach close to absolute zero in the hopes of creating superconductors with zero resistance.

But in our everyday lives, we don’t ever come close to anything such as the absolute zero. Think of all the atoms of which our physical world is made. Think of all the electrons in those atoms which are constantly spinning. Think of all the motion going on constantly around us. Then think of absolute zero, the point where all of this motion would cease. It’s a mind boggling thing to contemplate for two reasons.

The first reason is that our whole world and everything in it is in motion all of the time. It would be hard to imagine all of that motion stopping. The second daunting thing to think of is that there could be any absolutes in nature, any limits in nature, at all.

When we think of temperatures from month to month, we think of how much they fluctuate through the winter, spring, summer, and fall months. It gets very hot and humid in the summer, when you feel that you could cut the air with a knife. Then it can also get so cold in winter that even with a heavy coat on, we shiver when we are out in the elements. In this way, nature is really flexible, and there is such a broad spectrum that nature can take in terms of temperature.

I like to think of nature and of life as flexible and forgiving, and that there is a pendulum swinging back and forth. Eventually, wherever the pendulum is, it will always swing back the other way. Thinking of an absolute zero is scary because it is something that would be very inflexible, very unforgiving. Somehow there is always a second chance in the physical world we live in. After the cold winter days, there are always the warmer summer days. I’m glad that the pendulum swings back and forth. I would shudder to think of all motion at a standstill. I’m glad that it is not something we see in our everyday lives.

And that is how Thermodynamics can be philosophical. It gets you thinking about day to day life in our physical world.