A violation of the second law of thermodynamics would occur if
A) a ball lying on the ground started to bounce.
B) transfer of energy by heat moved energy from an object at low temperature to an object at a higher temperature.
C) a refrigerator heated the air in the room in which the refrigerator is located.
D) any of the above occurred.
E) (a) or (b) occurred, but not (c).

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The second law of thermodynamics states that the total entropy of an isolated system can never decrease over time, and is constant if and only if all processes are reversible. It also states that heat cannot spontaneously flow from a colder location to a hotter location. Thus, a ball spontaneously starting to bounce (a) and heat moving from a cold object to a hot object (b) would violate this law. However, a refrigerator heating the air in a room is in accordance with the second law, as it moves heat from inside the refrigerator to the outside, increasing the room's temperature while being powered by an external energy source.

A Violation of the Second Law of Thermodynamics Would Occur