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RE: Hurricane



Hurricanes don't violate the second law because they are not isolated systems.
Energy is being pumped into them.

There is a fairly active research community studying patterns formed by systems
far from thermal equilibrium. One of the classic examples is thermal convection
where a horizontal layer of fluid is heated from below. Above a critical
temperature difference the fluid is set into motion into beautiful and
fascinating patterns that we are only now getting a handle on understanding.
The buzzword(s) "order out of chaos" are sometimes applied to this field.

Tim Sullivan
sullivan@kenyon.edu