written by Harvey Gould and Jan Tobochnik

The goal of this introductory chapter is to explore the fundamental differences between microscopic and macroscopic systems and the connections between classical mechanics and statistical mechanics. We note that bouncing balls come to rest and hot objects cool, and discuss how the behavior of macroscopic objects is related to the behavior of their microscopic constituents. Computer simulations will be introduced to demonstrate the relation of microscopic and macroscopic behavior. These simulations can be found by searching ComPADRE for Open Source Physics, STP, or Statistical and Thermal Physics.

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Last Modified September 27, 2009

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