Nanotubes self-organize, wiggle

Phys.Org (Feb. 10) -- Since the mid-20th century, research has pointed to an extension of the second law for nonequilibrium systems: the Maximum Entropy Production Principle (MEPP) states that a system away from equilibrium evolves in such a way as to maximize entropy production, given present constraints. Now, physicists at the University of Illinois have demonstrated the emergence of self-organized structures that drive the evolution of a non-equilibrium system to a state of maximum entropy production. The authors suggest MEPP underlies the evolution of the artificial system's self-organization, in the same way that it underlies the evolution of ordered systems (biological life) on Earth. Also: R&D Magazine (Feb. 10), Nanotechnology Now (Feb. 10), ScienceBlog (Feb. 10).