Posted on December 18, 2013 at 7:13 pm by Jaime Trosper
The Physics of Death:
Credit: depositphotos
Attached to the bottom of this article, we have included one of the most profound poems we know of about death. It’s one of my favorites, as it doesn’t necessarily touch base on the many disturbing things that happen to the body during the decomposition phase, when the cells and tissues begin to break down, ravishing the physical remnant of a person’s life. Instead, it looks at the subject from a physics standpoint.. the redistribution of energy that occurs during the decomposition process.
In life, the human body is comprised of a combination of matter and energy, both electrically (through neurons and electrical impulses) and chemically. (The same can be said about plants. they are powered by a phenomenon we know as photosynthesis. whereby they generate energy from sunlight) At any given moment, we contain some 20-watts of energy, which is sufficient to power a single light-bulb. This energy is acquired in a plethora of ways. Mostly through the consumption of food, which gives us chemical energy. Said chemical energy is then used to power our muscles and facilities, transforming into kinetic energy.
Credit: Jon Sullivan
As we know through thermodynamics, energy can not be created nor destroyed.. it can simply change states. Whereas; The total amount of energy in an isolated system does not, can not, change. (and thanks to Einstein, we also know matter and energy are two rungs on the same ladder) The universe as a whole IS closed. However, human bodies (and ecosystems alike) are not closed systems, but open systems, which essentially means that we exchange energy with our surroundings. We can gain energy (again, through chemical processes) and we can lose it (by expelling waste or emitting heat from our bodies).
In death, your atoms (and the energy contained within your body) are returned to the universe, where they are subsequently used in various other substances and forms. These same atoms and energy, which originated during the big bang, will always be around. Therefore, your “light,” the essence of your energy (not to be confused with your actual consciousness) will continue to echo throughout spacetime until the lights around here go out permanently.
And we leave you with this jewel:
Larger Image: http://imgur.com/gallery/cC8sAOw (via All Science, All the Time)
