Related papers: Probability as a physical motive
From the principle of maximum entropy for a closed system in thermal equilibrium, for the first instance a clear relation is shown to exist between total entropy S (in terms of arrangements of particles) and the classical expression for the…
"Ceci n'est pas une pipe" wrote Ren\'e Magritte on what was only the representation of a pipe. Phenomena and their physical descriptions differ, and in particular the laws ruling the former might enjoy symmetries that have to be spent to…
I argue here that both the first and second laws of thermodynamics, generally understood to be quintessentially physical in nature, can be equally well described as being about certain types of information without the need to invoke…
In this paper an alternative approach to statistical mechanics based on the maximum information entropy principle (MaxEnt) is examined, specifically its close relation with the Gibbs method of ensembles. It is shown that the MaxEnt…
The kinematics and dynamics of deterministic physical systems have been a foundation of our understanding of the world since Galileo and Newton. For real systems, however, uncertainty is largely present via external forces such as friction…
In most data-scientific approaches, the principle of Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) is used to a posteriori justify some parametric model which has been already chosen based on experience, prior knowledge or computational simplicity. In a…
This thesis investigates the connection between quantum theory, thermodynamics and information theory. Theories with structure similar to that of quantum theory are considered, mathematically described by the framework of "Generalized…
Here we deconstruct, and then in a reasoned way reconstruct, the concept of "entropy of a system," paying particular attention to where the randomness may be coming from. We start with the core concept of entropy as a COUNT associated with…
It exists a large class of systems for which the traditional notion of extensivity breaks down. From experimental examples we induce two general hypothesis concerning such systems. In the first the existence of an internal coordinate system…
By using a fonctionelle of probability distributions, several different statistical physics including extensive and nonextensive statistics are unified in a general method. The essential equivalence between the MaxEnt process of the most…
Development of thermodynamic induction up to second order gives a dynamical bifurcation for thermodynamic variables and allows for the prediction and detailed explanation of nonequilibrium phase transitions with associated spontaneous…
Modern developments in nonequilibrium thermodynamics have significant implications for the origins of life. The reasons for this are closely related to a generalized version of the second law of thermodynamics recently found for entropy…
Bayesian maxent lets one integrate thermal physics and information theory points of view in the quantitative study of complex systems. Since net surprisal (a free energy analog for measuring "departures from expected") allows one to place…
Free energy and entropy are examined in detail from the standpoint of classical thermodynamics. The approach is logically based on the fact that thermodynamic work is mediated by thermal energy through the tendency for nonthermal energy to…
Despite its enormous empirical success, the formalism of quantum theory still raises fundamental questions: why is nature described in terms of complex Hilbert spaces, and what modifications of it could we reasonably expect to find in some…
In the scientific and engineering literature, the second law of thermodynamics is expressed in terms of the behavior of entropy in reversible and irreversible processes. According to the prevailing statistical mechanics interpretation the…
Many mechanisms, functions and structures of life have been unraveled. However, the fundamental driving force that propelled chemical evolution and led to life has remained obscure. The 2nd law of thermodynamics, written as an equation of…
The method of Maximum (relative) Entropy (ME) is used to translate the information contained in the known form of the likelihood into a prior distribution for Bayesian inference. The argument is guided by intuition gained from the…
The asymptotic convergence of probability density function (pdf) and convergence of differential entropy are examined for the non-stationary processes that follow the maximum entropy principle (MaxEnt) and maximum entropy production…
Boltzmann's principle is used to select the "most probable" realization (macrostate) of an isolated or closed thermodynamic system, containing a small number of particles ($N \llsp \infty$), for both classical and quantum statistics. The…