Question

Two of the 3 common reasons systems fail are: 1) they have faulty or poorly matched parts; 2) they are used in ways that exceed the intended design. What is the 3rd common reason systems fail?

a) Entropy will always insure a more disordered state
b) They were poorly designed at the beginning
c) If something can go wrong, it will go wrong
d) They will always fall victim to the inevitable limit of human knowledge

Answer 1

The third common reason systems fail is because of entropy, which is a natural tendency toward disorder or randomness as described by the second law of thermodynamics. This increases the entropy of the universe, leading to system failure.

Step-by-step explanation:

The third common reason systems fail, among faulty or poorly matched parts and usage beyond intended design, is due to the principle of entropy. Entropy states that there is a natural tendency in physical systems toward a state of higher disorder or randomness. This concept is foundational in physics and is encapsulated by the second law of thermodynamics. Living systems require a constant energy input to maintain low entropy, which contradicts the natural direction towards higher entropy or disorder. As the student's bedroom example illustrates, without energy input to organize and clean, the room's entropy increases. In the broader sense, all energy transfers increase the entropy of the universe, thereby causing systems to become less ordered over time.