What are dissipative systems, a la Prigogine? I am trying to read a book on something related to this but they keep bringing up the term dissipative systems, dissipative systems and I can’t understand it. I brought it up on the internet but they just go into calculus or something. Somebody was from the famous Brussels School of Thermodynamics and it is a big issue in the field.
Signed, Curious
In general, dissipative processes are entropy producing and irreversible. I’m familiar with it from gas dynamics, where there are dissipative terms in may equations. I don’t know if that’s specific enough to help, but the general concept should apply.
In biological systems the long term existence of an energy gradient allows systems to build up complicated steady state pathways that may, when the total energy passing through the system is not accounted for, appear to defy the laws of thermodynamics.
For example a stream flows a from higher to a lower elevation. There is no law that says the stream must follow the most direct route. In fact streams are well known for their propensity to meander and thus dissipate the efficient flow from hilltop to valley. A biological system is likely to get even twistier by e.g. extracting energy from a part of the streams flow in order to transport a limited number of water molecules back up hill against the energy gradient. Unless the observer is aware of the overall system this can easily appear to violate the laws of thermodynamics.
These complex steady state dissipative paths are capable of evolving over time.