Word Study
Entropy
WORDNET DICTIONARY
Noun Entropy has 2 senses
- entropy(n = noun.attribute) information, selective information - (communication theory) a numerical measure of the uncertainty of an outcome; "the signal contained thousands of bits of information" is a kind of information measure
- entropy(n = noun.attribute) randomness, s - (thermodynamics) a thermodynamic quantity representing the amount of energy in a system that is no longer available for doing mechanical work; "entropy increases as matter and energy in the universe degrade to an ultimate state of inert uniformity" is a kind of physical property
has particulars: conformational entropy
CIDE DICTIONARY
Entropy, n. [Gr. a turning in; in + a turn, fr. to turn.].
A certain property of a body, expressed as a measurable quantity, such that when there is no communication of heat the quantity remains constant, but when heat enters or leaves the body the quantity increases or diminishes. If a small amount, h, of heat enters the body when its temperature is t in the thermodynamic scale the entropy of the body is increased by h . The entropy is regarded as measured from some standard temperature and pressure. Sometimes called the thermodynamic function . [1913 Webster]
"The entropy of the universe tends towards a maximum."
[1913 Webster]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
Entropy, n.
1 Physics a measure of the unavailability of a system's thermal energy for conversion into mechanical work.
2 Physics a measure of the disorganization or degradation of the universe.
3 a measure of the rate of transfer of information in a message etc.
1 Physics a measure of the unavailability of a system's thermal energy for conversion into mechanical work.
2 Physics a measure of the disorganization or degradation of the universe.
3 a measure of the rate of transfer of information in a message etc.
Derivative
entropic adj. entropically adv.
Etymology
G Entropie (as EN-(2), Gk trope transformation)
THESAURUS
Entropy
EDP, abeyance, aloofness, amorphia, amorphism, amorphousness, anarchy, apathy, bit, blurriness, catalepsy, catatonia, channel, chaos, communication explosion, communication theory, confusion, data retrieval, data storage, deadliness, deathliness, decoding, derangement, diffusion, disarrangement, disarray, disarticulation, discomfiture, discomposure, disconcertedness, discontinuity, discreteness, disharmony, dishevelment, disintegration, disjunction, dislocation, disorder, disorderliness, disorganization, dispersal, dispersion, disproportion, disruption, dissolution, disturbance, dormancy, electronic data processing, encoding, formlessness, fuzziness, haphazardness, haziness, incoherence, inconsistency, indecisiveness, indefiniteness, indeterminateness, indifference, indiscriminateness, indolence, inertia, inertness, information explosion, information theory, inharmonious harmony, irregularity, languor, latency, lotus-eating, messiness, mistiness, most admired disorder, noise, nonadhesion, noncohesion, nonsymmetry, nonuniformity, obscurity, orderlessness, passiveness, passivity, perturbation, promiscuity, promiscuousness, randomness, redundancy, scattering, separateness, shapelessness, signal, stagnancy, stagnation, stasis, suspense, torpor, turbulence, unadherence, unadhesiveness, unclearness, unsymmetry, untenacity, ununiformity, upset, vagueness, vegetation, vis inertiae
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