Roughly 95 percent of the heat generated by burning wood or coal was lost to the environment as waste. This inspired a handful of scientists to think deeply about the physical principles governing steam engines, seeking ways to burn less and get more. Over the course of many decades their research gradually led to an iconic result that has become justly famous: the second law of thermodynamics. In (highly) colloquial terms, the law declares that the production of waste is unavoidable. And what makes the second law vitally important is that while steam engines were the catalyst, the law is
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