Research Seminars @ Illinois

Tailored for undergraduate researchers, this calendar is a curated list of research seminars at the University of Illinois. Explore the diverse world of research and expand your knowledge through engaging sessions designed to inspire and enlighten.

To have your events added or removed from this calendar, please contact OUR at ugresearch@illinois.edu

Entropy and Complexity

Feb 20, 2026   3:00 - 5:00 pm  
223 Gregory Hall
Lecture
Sponsor
Department of Philosophy
Contact
Trish Barker
E-Mail
tlbarker@illinois.edu
Originating Calendar
Campus Humanities Calendar

While the second law of thermodynamics states that entropy increases over time, in some systems entropy decreases in parts of the system while increasing in others. A zebra resists or exploits the second law by shunting extra entropy into its environment. Philosopher Heather Demarest (University of Colorado, Boulder) defends a metaphysical account of this difference in terms of multiple realizability.

link for robots only