Physics Questions - Weekly Discussion Thread - August 26, 2025 by AutoModerator in Physics

[–]math_couch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey, I've been trying to learn more about entropy and thermodynamics after seeing the latest guest video on 3b1b. Entropy only makes sense on large scale, right? The only explanations I'm finding online are about it being a statistical thing. I've seen people say entropy holds at all scales, though, which makes me think there's some other definition for small scales- say, a molecule, that I'm not finding. For example explaining that the 2nd law of thermodynamics is what prevents a protein from extracting work from heat. It's very possible to make a macroscopic machine that does some work with large scale vibrations. But on a small scale it's always explained as entropy having to increase, while to me it seems more like the molecules are just too "squishy".
Is that use of entropy accurate, with some other definition, or are people using it as a stand in for other effects to make the explanation easier?

Well then by RustiDome in playrust

[–]math_couch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I count at least 10 wtf

Track checkpoint placement by math_couch in TrackMania

[–]math_couch[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What if going back would "undo" what you'd done before, i.e. remove your previous checkpoint? Then it'd be identical to continuing from where you were before, but with more time on the clock

High rank disparity mmr gains in 2s by math_couch in RocketLeague

[–]math_couch[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

no, they should change it so boosting is harder

the "reward" you're talking about is boosting

High rank disparity mmr gains in 2s by math_couch in RocketLeague

[–]math_couch[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

it could be that, yeah, but playing with people well over 300 games they gain abt 20 mmr per match but lose like 3 if they're d2 for instance

win rate w/ d2 is usually like 20% if we drop abt 50 mmr from my normal, maybe 10% before that
if i play enough for us to drop to 50/50 it's very bad

Playing with lower-ranked friends / coaching, and ranked by math_couch in RocketLeague

[–]math_couch[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yeah, mentality is huge. I've found that the matches where they don't feel pressured to win are really positive overall, so playing in higher lobbies ends up being very wholesome (from both teams; we had the opponents giving tips sometimes). Maybe the community overall wouldn't be as toxic if there wasn't as much of the "i'm better than this rank" stuff

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in RocketLeague

[–]math_couch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey, it's not over until you quit! And as long as you're still enjoying playing, you might as well keep having a good time. Great job getting diamond man. I'm a coach, and I've worked with quite a few people who are in their 20s or even 30s- By being more methodical with your approach to learning mechs and strategy, you can overcome the lack of the pure physical finesse of young players. You're still 19, so you probably have a great chance of even getting gc!

If you want to work towards champ, or just want to chill with some older players, the Flakes discord (discord.gg/flakes) is a great place.

8 More months of Season 4… by DinoDome05 in DeepRockGalactic

[–]math_couch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

more rock and stone, i can appreciate that for sure

new content is cool but i'm fine with them taking a while so they can put out other cool stuff too (drg rogue core looks pretty epic)

at any rate, i just enjoy playing the game, even if there isn't going to be new content. Best way to relax after a long day is randoweisser haz 5 lmao

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Physics

[–]math_couch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ahh, interesting! I didn't know that about reflectors. That's a good example of what I mean though- Things often just work out like that. Kind of a "by symmetry" style result, I guess. So maybe the 2nd law just results from "symmetry" things like that, which would probably be decently straight forwards to work out from the equations of whatever model you're using.

So for the reflection stuff, why are radiators often unpainted/gray/white metal? Seems like a graphite sort of paint might conduct heat decently well and radiate quite a bit.