Laws of Thermodynamics definitions Flashcards

The capacity to do work or produce change, which can be transferred or transformed but never created or destroyed.

Study of energy transformations and transfers in biological systems, emphasizing that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only converted from one form to another, and that energy transfer is not 100% efficient.

Measure of disorder or randomness in a system, where higher values indicate greater disorganization.

A measure of randomness or chaos in a system, often used to describe the level of unpredictability or lack of order.

The degree of disorder or unpredictability in a system, often associated with the concept of entropy in thermodynamics.

A set of interacting or interdependent components forming an integrated whole, often analyzed in terms of energy transfer and entropy.

A hierarchical series of organisms each dependent on the next as a source of food, where energy is transferred and transformed, but some is lost as heat at each trophic level.

Organisms that convert solar energy into chemical energy through photosynthesis, forming the base of the food chain.

An organism that obtains energy by consuming other organisms, transferring energy through the food chain, but not all energy is transferred efficiently, with some lost as heat.

Energy can be transferred and transformed but cannot be created or destroyed.

Energy transfer is inefficient, with some energy always lost as heat, increasing the system's entropy or disorder.

Energy can be transferred and transformed but cannot be created or destroyed, as stated by the first law of thermodynamics.