Governing everything from the behavior of living cells to the black hole at the center of our galaxy, thermodynamics even explains why we must eat and breathe, how lights turn on, why there are limits to computing, and how the universe will end. Offering an accessible and impassioned introduction, Paul Sen discusses the world-changing breakthroughs of a diverse group of thinkers that includes Nicolas Sadi Carnot, Lord Kelvin, Albert Einstein, Emmy Noether, Alan Turing, and Stephen Hawking.