In the mid-1800s, engineers were grappling with questions at the forefront of the Industrial Revolution,

how to convert steam into mechanical work, translate rushing streams into electrical energy, or pump water out

of mines.

Their inquiries and observations built the groundwork of a new science, thermodynamics.

By the early 1900s, we had not one, but three laws of thermodynamics.

These laws have since become ubiquitous and proven

fundamental to our understanding of physics in everyday life. But as our knowledge of the

physical world continues to grow, the limits of these old mechanical notions become more apparent,

especially as we approach the quantum scale. I'm Steve Strogatz, and this is the Joy of Why, a podcast from Quantum Magazine where I take turns at the mic with my co-host, Jan 11, exploring the biggest unanswered questions in math and science today.

In this episode, we're going to ask, what do concepts like work and heat mean on an atomic or

even subatomic level? And can our laws of thermodynamics be reinterpreted in quantum terms?

We're joined by Nicole Younger Halpern. She is a theoretical physicist at the National Institute of Standards

and Technology and an adjunct assistant professor at the University of Maryland. Her research

lies at the intersection of quantum physics, information processing, and thermodynamics.

She's also the author of an award-winning book, Quantum Steampunk, the physics of

yesterday's tomorrow. Nicole, it's a great pleasure to have you with us on The Joy of Why.

It's a delight to be here. Thanks for having me. Well, thank you for joining us. I really am excited

about this. I was just asking my wife on the drive over to the studio about the word steampunk.

I had to admit that I'm not familiar with this. She mentioned to me that even jewelry can be done in steampunk style.

Steampunk comes up in costumes, in conventions, in jewelry, in film, in books and short stories all over

the place. It combines the aesthetic of the 1800s, so the Victorian era, people in waistcoats, and

petticoats, and top hats, and also the American Wild Wild West, and Beijing, Japan, as well as futuristic technologies.

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