Collected Essays 7: The Perpetual-Motion Delusion

By Kim Dong-ryul · Original publication: February 12, 2025

English translation · Original: https://gujoron.com/xe/notice/1680653

Original image 1: https://gujoron.com/xe/files/attach/images/198/629/680/001/5678999009.jpg

People attempting perpetual motion believe gravity acts from a wheel's rim toward the Earth. In fact, centripetal force acts toward the wheel's center, so perpetual motion fails. This is the simplest explanation of entropy. It also means that not one person on Earth has fully understood entropy. The wheel's edge has higher entropy, and the force pushing it toward the lower-entropy axle is centripetal force.

The closer to the center of the wheel, the shorter the wavelength. When a pitcher throws a ball, the wavelength shortens from shoulder to elbow, wrist, fingers, and ball. Every force in nature that brings about change involves a shortening wavelength. When the wavelength becomes extremely short, it is matter.

What is force? Force is the shortening of wavelength. A lever's long handle has a long wavelength. Toward its working edge, the wavelength shortens to conserve angular momentum. Force is the concentration of energy as angular-momentum conservation changes a long wavelength into a short one.

When the wavelength grows, it becomes vibration and turns into heat. Short wavelengths are transmitted, while long wavelengths remain as scattered remnants: this is increasing entropy. Entropy increases because short wavelengths cannot be created without the action of energy. A pitcher can throw a ball, but a ball cannot throw a pitcher. What if it did? Change would stop, the system would break, and the energy supply would be cut off.

Both humans and nature prefer short wavelengths. Long wavelengths, however, transfer heat well. In transferring heat, the wave breaks, so entropy increases. Yoon Suk-yeol's crude “just charge ahead” slogan signifies a short wavelength with a quick response.

Because the wavelength does not shorten, waves reinforce one another through constructive interference and become large swells. Those swells eventually disappear. Thermodynamics is wave mechanics. Heat is molecular vibration; when vibration becomes regular, it is a wave. The law of entropy is that wavelength decreases in the course of change.

When energy is supplied, wavelength shortens and change occurs. What remains unchanged has a long wavelength, so entropy increases. Apply pressure to a system and add energy, and it changes into shorter waves.

For example: solar energy raises air temperature → wind speed increases → a typhoon develops.

Civilization's progress, the growth of plants and animals, the development of businesses, and the advance of history all move toward shorter wavelengths. Without additional energy, they turn into longer wavelengths and disappear.