Final answer:
An open system exchanges both energy and matter with its surroundings, while a closed system only exchanges energy. Examples include a boiling pot of water for an open system and a sealed food pouch for a closed system. The laws of thermodynamics dictate that the total energy in a system and its environment is conserved.
Step-by-step explanation:
In thermodynamics, the main difference between an open system and a closed system pertains to energy and matter exchanges with the surroundings.
An open system can transfer both energy and matter with its environment. An example is a pot of boiling water on a stove, where heat is lost into the air and water vapor is released. Conversely, a closed system can exchange energy but not matter.
An instance of this would be a sealed pouch of food that is heated in boiling water; it receives heat but does not exchange any matter unless it leaks, after which it would no longer be considered a closed system.
Biological organisms are open systems because they both consume energy and release it to the environment. The concept of an isolated system, which exchanges neither energy nor matter, is theoretical, as all systems in the universe exchange energy, though some, like a thermos of coffee, only do so very slowly.
The conservation of energy, central to the laws of thermodynamics, upholds that the total energy of a system and its surroundings remains constant.