The first law of thermodynamics is essentially a statement of conservation of energy. There is an undisputed scientific consensus that perpetual motion in a closed system violates either the first law of thermodynamics, the second law of thermodynamics, or both. Similarly, machines which comply with both laws of thermodynamics but access energy from obscure sources are sometimes referred to as perpetual motion machines, although they also do not meet the standard criteria for the name.ĭespite the fact that successful closed system perpetual motion devices are physically impossible in terms of our current understanding of the laws of physics, the pursuit of perpetual motion remains popular. Machines which extract energy from seemingly perpetual sources - such as ocean currents - are indeed capable of moving "perpetually" (for as long as that energy source itself endures), but they are not considered to be perpetual motion machines because they are consuming energy from an external source and are not closed systems. There is undisputed scientific consensus that perpetual motion in a closed system would violate the first law of thermodynamics and/or the second law of thermodynamics. Perpetual motion describes hypothetical machines that operate or produce useful work indefinitely and, more generally, hypothetical machines that produce more work or energy than they consume, whether they might operate indefinitely or not. The rotary motion of the water wheel also drives two grinding wheels (bottom-right) and is shown as providing sufficient excess water to lubricate them. Although the machine would not work, the idea was that water from the top tank turns a water wheel (bottom-left), which drives a complicated series of gears and shafts that ultimately rotate the Archimedes' screw (bottom-center to top-right) to pump water to refill the tank. This device is widely credited as the first recorded attempt to describe such a device in order to produce useful work, that of driving millstones. Robert Fludd's 1618 "water screw" perpetual motion machine from a 1660 wood engraving.
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