The present study provides a thermodynamic degradation approach to model human stress response. Finger skin temperature was used as an indicator of stress response to a stressor (or stressful event) followed by a recovery. The entropy change (<svg xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" style="vertical-align:-0.2064009pt" id="M1" height="8.8423pt" version="1.1" viewBox="-0.0498162 -8.6359 14.6229 8.8423" width="14.6229pt"><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,0,0)"><path id="g113-133" d="M600 0V24L339 665L311 657L43 24V0H600ZM497 50H107L303 539L497 50Z"/></g><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,8.327,0)"><path id="g113-84" d="M449 634C442 637 425 643 405 650C376 660 341 666 307 666C181 666 98 590 98 485C98 400 170 343 215 310L246 288C307 243 343 204 343 147C343 67 291 18 219 18C104 18 61 124 51 202L23 199C28 124 27 71 27 47C47 22 122 -16 204 -16C324 -16 428 60 428 174C428 256 379 309 307 360L276 382C223 419 179 455 179 516C179 576 221 632 293 632C379 632 410 564 418 487L448 490C446 536 446 592 449 634Z"/></g></svg>) is calculated using heat transfer (<svg xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" style="vertical-align:-2.15067pt" id="M2" height="11.439pt" version="1.1" viewBox="-0.0498162 -9.28833 16.267 11.439" width="16.267pt"><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,0,0)"><path id="g113-226" d="M494 514C482 587 419 712 303 712C238 712 174 667 174 603C174 561 205 514 249 449C219 438 187 422 162 407C93 366 23 283 23 177C23 69 87 -12 190 -12C244 -12 288 5 328 33C406 87 444 170 444 249C444 329 404 391 331 475C265 550 222 605 222 627C222 647 238 657 267 657C355 657 421 585 484 499L494 514ZM359 234C359 143 319 30 219 30C172 30 114 75 114 178C114 275 163 343 195 378C212 397 241 415 269 425C305 382 359 313 359 234Z"/></g><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,6.722,0)"><path id="g113-82" d="M699 368C699 549 574 666 407 666C186 666 23 488 23 277C23 113 129 -3 288 -13L307 -26C431 -111 501 -139 533 -147C559 -154 613 -163 658 -164L666 -141C597 -111 507 -66 430 -11L416 -1C580 42 699 190 699 368ZM601 371C601 227 518 54 381 22L354 40L278 24C175 47 120 145 120 269C120 451 235 631 398 631C540 631 601 521 601 371Z"/></g></svg>) from the peripheral skin and finger skin temperature (<svg xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" style="vertical-align:-5.52898pt" id="M3" height="14.4911pt" version="1.1" viewBox="-0.0498162 -8.96212 13.683 14.4911" width="13.683pt"><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,0,0)"><path id="g113-85" d="M620 675H597C578 656 570 650 541 650H144C112 650 104 653 94 675H72C59 618 42 552 23 493L53 491C71 534 88 564 105 585C124 608 144 615 238 615H290L197 121C182 40 174 34 88 28L82 0H361L367 28C275 34 266 38 281 121L374 615H441C522 615 543 608 553 583C562 560 566 531 565 493L597 494C603 551 612 629 620 675Z"/></g><g transform="matrix(.0091,0,0,-0.0091,7.176,3.132)"><path id="g50-103" d="M620 667C620 684 593 710 552 710C515 710 459 687 409 634C360 582 334 506 320 433H247L215 400L220 388H310L259 80C224 -129 199 -161 185 -174C175 -183 160 -192 141 -192C123 -192 90 -181 75 -165C69 -158 64 -156 54 -164C39 -178 24 -195 24 -208C24 -231 61 -257 94 -257C124 -257 162 -243 209 -194C267 -134 303 -66 343 107C369 220 378 279 393 385L503 397L523 433H404C432 619 464 660 500 660C522 660 542 646 566 621C573 614 583 615 593 621C603 628 620 648 620 667Z"/></g></svg>). It was hypothesized that the human stress response, as evidenced by finger skin temperature change, is a quasi-static process. The entropy approach is demonstrated using data from a medical school experimental study. The finger skin temperature was measured under three conditions (relaxation, stressor task, and recovery) during the physiological test profile. The entropy change (<svg xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" style="vertical-align:-0.2064009pt" id="M4" height="8.8423pt" version="1.1" viewBox="-0.0498162 -8.6359 14.6229 8.8423" width="14.6229pt"><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,0,0)"><use xlink:href="#g113-133"/></g><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,8.327,0)"><use xlink:href="#g113-84"/></g></svg>) is postulated as<i> entropy damage</i> (<svg xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" style="vertical-align:-3.1815pt" id="M5" height="11.8174pt" version="1.1" viewBox="-0.0498162 -8.6359 21.8515 11.8174" width="21.8515pt"><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,0,0)"><use xlink:href="#g113-133"/></g><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,8.327,0)"><use xlink:href="#g113-84"/></g><g transform="matrix(.0091,0,0,-0.0091,14.398,3.132)"><path id="g58-66" d="M43 650V617C122 612 130 606 130 522V128C130 44 122 37 34 32V0H275C400 0 497 25 573 82C652 142 698 229 698 350C698 445 662 518 613 565C549 625 456 650 327 650H43ZM217 544C217 580 220 591 229 599C240 607 264 613 311 613C380 613 437 599 482 570C561 523 598 436 598 336C598 177 511 40 324 40C248 40 217 61 217 135V544Z"/></g></svg>), which is a metric for measuring the aging or system degradation. 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The statistical <svg xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" style="vertical-align:-0.2063999pt" id="M7" height="8.02022pt" version="1.1" viewBox="-0.0498162 -7.81382 4.54925 8.02022" width="4.54925pt"><g transform="matrix(.013,0,0,-0.013,0,0)"><path id="g113-117" d="M324 430H196L233 583L223 592L145 529L120 430H54L29 396L31 388H111L56 126C33 15 54 -12 77 -12C137 -12 214 57 250 95L233 119C208 92 155 59 138 59C126 59 120 70 131 125L186 390L298 394L324 430Z"/></g></svg>-tests demonstrate statistical significance in human stress response to stressor and recovery states within and between male and female subjects. This novel approach could be valuable to medical researchers, particularly in the field of occupational health to evaluate human exposure to stressful environments.

Satish Boregowda

Rod Handy

Darrah Sleeth

Naomi Riches

Using Thermodynamic Degradation Approach to Quantify Human Stress Response

The effects of low dimensionality on the thermodynamics of a Fermi gas trapped by isotropic power-law potentials are analyzed. Particular attention is given to different characteristic temperatures that emerge, at low dimensionality, in the thermodynamic functions of state and in the thermodynamic susceptibilities (isothermal compressibility and specific heat). An<i> energy-entropy</i> argument that physically favors the relevance of one of these characteristic temperatures, namely, the nonvanishing temperature at which the chemical potential reaches the Fermi energy value, is presented. Such an argument allows interpreting the nonmonotonic dependence of the chemical potential on temperature, as an indicator of the appearance of a thermodynamic regime, where the equilibrium states of a trapped Fermi gas are characterized by larger fluctuations in energy and particle density as is revealed in the corresponding thermodynamics susceptibilities.

Francisco J. Sevilla

Thermodynamics of Low-Dimensional Trapped Fermi Gases

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Journal of Thermodynamics

Table of Contents

Table of Contents: 2017

Using Thermodynamic Degradation Approach to Quantify Human Stress Response

Thermodynamics of Low-Dimensional Trapped Fermi Gases