There exists between the sun and the Earth a colossal difference in temperature . . . The energy of the sun may, before reaching the temperature of the Earth, assume improbable transition forms. It thus becomes possible to use the temperature drop between the sun and the Earth for performing work, as is the case with the temperature drop between steam and water.
Boltzmann, quoted in Morton's Eating the Sun. From the quote I'm not sure if Boltzmann was really thinking of all of life's intricate processes as just complicated and improbable cascades of energy through electrons and molecules, but Morton definitely is.
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