Ginsberg's theorem: Difference between revisions
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==Theorem== |
==Theorem== |
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The theorem is given as a restatement of the first, second, and third laws of thermodynamics:<ref name="isbn0-399-52930-6">{{cite book |author=Bloch, Arthur |title=Murphy's Law |publisher=Perigee |location=New York, N.Y |year=2003 |pages=20 |isbn=0-399-52930-6 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref><ref name="isbn0-262-53111-9">{{cite book |author=Zanella, Andrew; Copp, Newton |title=Discovery, innovation, and risk: case studies in science and technology |publisher=MIT Press |location=Cambridge, Mass |year=1993 |pages=142 |isbn=0-262-53111-9 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref><ref name="isbn0-87814-746-2">{{cite book |author=Jim August |title=Applied reliability-centered maintenance |publisher=PennWell |location=Tulsa, Okla |year=1999 |pages=341 |isbn=0-87814-746-2 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref><ref name="isbn1-60358-033-6">{{cite book |author=Philip Ackerman-Leist |title=Up Tunket Road: The Education of a Modern Homesteader |publisher=Chelsea Green Publishing |location=White River Junction, VT |year=2010 |page=217 |isbn=1-60358-033-6 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref> |
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The theorem stated according to Bloch (2003):<ref name="isbn0-399-52930-6">{{cite book |author=Bloch, Arthur |title=Murphy's Law |publisher=Perigee |location=New York, N.Y |year=2003 |pages=20 |isbn=0-399-52930-6 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref> |
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# You can’t win. (restatement of [[first law of thermodynamics]]) |
# You can’t win. (restatement of [[first law of thermodynamics]]) |
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# You can’t break even. (restatement of [[second law of thermodynamics]]) |
# You can’t break even. (restatement of [[second law of thermodynamics]]) |
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# You can’t even get out of the game. (restatement of [[third law of thermodynamics]]) |
# You can’t even get out of the game. (restatement of [[third law of thermodynamics]]) |
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It is sometimes stated as a general adage without specific reference to the laws of thermodynamics.<ref name="isbn0-470-05771-8">{{cite book |author=Robert A. Bethem; Boyd, Robert W.; Bob Boyd; Cecilia Basic |title=Trace quantitative analysis by mass spectrometry |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |location=Chichester |year=2008 |page= 109|isbn=0-470-05771-8 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref><ref name="isbn1-4000-7872-5">{{cite book |author=Newhouse, John |title=Boeing versus Airbus: The Inside Story of the Greatest International Competition in Business (Vintage) |publisher=Vintage |location=London |year=2008 |page=4 |isbn=1-4000-7872-5 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref><ref name="isbn0-573-61821-6">{{cite book |author=Mastrosimone, William |title=The woolgatherer: a play in two acts |publisher=S. French |location=New York |year=1981 |page=36 |isbn=0-573-61821-6 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=}}</ref> |
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==Freeman's commentary== |
==Freeman's commentary== |
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Revision as of 15:35, 25 September 2011
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Ginsberg's theorem is a set of adages which restate the laws of thermodynamics in terms of a person playing a game. The quote is attributed to the poet Allen Ginsberg.[1]
Theorem
The theorem is given as a restatement of the first, second, and third laws of thermodynamics:[2][3][4][5]
- You can’t win. (restatement of first law of thermodynamics)
- You can’t break even. (restatement of second law of thermodynamics)
- You can’t even get out of the game. (restatement of third law of thermodynamics)
It is sometimes stated as a general adage without specific reference to the laws of thermodynamics.[6][7][8]
Freeman's commentary
Freeman's commentary on Ginsberg's theorem states[9]:
Every major philosophy that attempts to make life seem meaningful is based on the negation of one part of Ginsberg’s theorem.
- Capitalism is based on the assumption that you can win.
- Socialism is based on the assumption that you can break even.
- Mysticism is based on the assumption that you can quit the game.
H. Freeman, author of the blog Freeman's Commentary, has asserted that this commentary originated with comments he made to Arthur Bloch, first published in Bloch's 1974 book Murphy’s Law and Other Reasons Things Go Wrong.
References
- ^ Harris, Sidney; Wiggins, Arthur W. (2007). The Joy of Physics. Buffalo, N.Y: Prometheus Books. p. 186. ISBN 1-59102-590-7.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Bloch, Arthur (2003). Murphy's Law. New York, N.Y: Perigee. p. 20. ISBN 0-399-52930-6.
- ^ Zanella, Andrew; Copp, Newton (1993). Discovery, innovation, and risk: case studies in science and technology. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press. p. 142. ISBN 0-262-53111-9.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Jim August (1999). Applied reliability-centered maintenance. Tulsa, Okla: PennWell. p. 341. ISBN 0-87814-746-2.
- ^ Philip Ackerman-Leist (2010). Up Tunket Road: The Education of a Modern Homesteader. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing. p. 217. ISBN 1-60358-033-6.
- ^ Robert A. Bethem; Boyd, Robert W.; Bob Boyd; Cecilia Basic (2008). Trace quantitative analysis by mass spectrometry. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons. p. 109. ISBN 0-470-05771-8.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Newhouse, John (2008). Boeing versus Airbus: The Inside Story of the Greatest International Competition in Business (Vintage). London: Vintage. p. 4. ISBN 1-4000-7872-5.
- ^ Mastrosimone, William (1981). The woolgatherer: a play in two acts. New York: S. French. p. 36. ISBN 0-573-61821-6.
- ^ Freeman's Commentary
External links
Wikiquote has quotations related to Thermodynamics.