Re: 2nd Law of Thermodynamics

Greg Billock (billgr@cco.caltech.edu)
Mon, 19 Jan 1998 09:16:48 -0800 (PST)

Ron Chitwood:

[hotblooded and coldblooded animals]

> The progression indicates an increase in order, again based on what I
> read, something the 2LoT does not allow for.

Perhaps we should do a quick test to see if the second law as you've
described it really works. Here's the classic: take a jar and put a
bunch of gravel of varying sizes in it--everything from sand to bigger
chunks. Fill it like 2/3 of the way full. Mix it thoroughly. Now
shake the can fairly hard for a few minutes. If you are using a
glass jar, look through the side and see if you can discern any
order in the resulting disposition of the rocks in the jar.

Why are you so reluctant to answer the original question, though? Have
you decided that speciation isn't really what you mean by 'macroevolution'?

(Here it is as a reminder: What is more orderly about two groups of
organisms which can't interbreed as opposed to two groups which can?)

-Greg