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Niggles

Whereas the simulations involve point particles moving in vacuum, the real system involves molecules whose excluded volume should not be ignored. One might worry that the extra pressure exerted by the confined particles is offset by a reduction in the pressure exerted by water molecules that would have been in the space occupied by the particle. A kinetic view of the situation seems to be in conflict with the predictions of the entropic approach (in which, in the abscence of energetic terms, the probability of a macrostate is proportional to exp(S/k), where S is the entropy).

This is an interesting paradox of thermal physics; the same issue arises in osmotic pressure. We believe the paradox is resolveable.

(see later page)


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