XPost: sci.astro.research   
   From: gerry@bindweed.com   
      
   In article ,   
   helbig@asclothestro.multivax.de says...   
   >   
   > A smooth distribution corresponds to high entropy and a lumpy one to low   
   > entropy if gravity is not involved.  For example, air in a room has high   
   > entropy, but all the oxygen in one part and all the nitrogen in another   
   > part would correspond to low entropy.   
   >   
   > If gravity is involved, however, things are reversed: a lumpy   
   > distribution (e.g. everything in black holes) has a high entropy and a   
   > smooth distribution (e.g. the early universe) has a low entropy.   
   >   
   > Let's imagine the early universe---a smooth, low-entropy   
   > distribution---and imagine gravity becoming weaker and weaker (by   
   > changing the gravitational constant).  Can we make G arbitrarily small   
   > and the smooth distribution will still have low entropy?  This seems   
   > strange: an ARBITRARILY SMALL G makes a smooth distribution have a low   
   > entropy.  On the other hand, it seems strange that the entropy should   
   > change at some value of G.   
      
   The smooth distribution always has the same entropy.  Start with the   
   smooth distribution and no gravity, and increase the gravitational   
   constant.  Now high entropy states start to become available that were   
   not available withouy gravity.   
      
   To put it another way, the 'clumpy' states in the non-gravitational   
   universe have lower entropy than the smooth state, but the clumpy states   
   in the gravitational universe have higher entropy than the smooth state.   
      
   The clumpiness versus dispersion 'paradox' isn't such a paradox either.   
   When gravitational clumping takes place, energy is released which will   
   eventually become widely dispersed as low-grade thermal energy.  This   
   ultimately applies even if black holes are formed, although the thermal   
   energy will for a long time be locked up in black holes.   
      
   - Gerry Quinn   
      
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