--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The general struggle for existence of…" description: "\"The general struggle for existence of animate beings is not a struggle for raw materials, these for organisms are air water & soil, all abundantly avai..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ca/ludwig-boltzmann-31218_air_the-general-struggle-for-existence-of-an_186667.jpg" --- # The general struggle for existence of animate beings is… ![“The general struggle for existence of animate beings is not a struggle for raw materials, these for organisms are air water & soil, all abundantly available, nor for energy which exists in plenty in the sun and any hot body in the form of heat, but rather a struggle for entropy, which becomes…” quote by Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ca/ludwig-boltzmann-31218_air_the-general-struggle-for-existence-of-an_186667.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ca/ludwig-boltzmann-31218_air_the-general-struggle-for-existence-of-an_186667.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ca/ludwig-boltzmann-31218_air_the-general-struggle-for-existence-of-an_186667.jpg) > “The general struggle for existence of animate beings is not a struggle for raw materials, these for organisms are air water & soil, all abundantly available, nor for energy which exists in plenty in the sun and any hot body in the form of heat, but rather a struggle for entropy, which becomes available through the transition of energy from the hot sun to the cold earth.” [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life’s struggle is driven by entropy, not scarcity of resources; energy flows from hot to cold, creating order‑disorder dynamics. **In simple terms:** Existence is a battle over entropy, not material lack. Key Takeaway Recognize entropy’s role in natural processes. Themes physics entropy energy thermodynamics biology ecology Mood analytical scientific thought‑provoking Type educational scientific philosophical When to use this quote - climate change - industrial processes - resource management Key Concepts statistical mechanics systems theory evolutionary biology Questions to Reflect On - How does entropy influence daily decisions? - What strategies mitigate entropy’s effects in ecosystems? A Different Perspective Entropy considerations can be abstract and hard to apply practically. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Air](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/) [Available](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/available/) [Biology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biology/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Economics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economics/) [Energy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/energy/) [Energy Exists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/energy-exists-730880/) [Entropy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entropy/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Heat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heat/) [Hot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hot/) [Hot body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hot-body/) [Hot sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hot-sun/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Materials](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/materials/) [Materials Organisms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/materials-organisms-1982354/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Organisms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organisms/) [Plenty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plenty/) [Raw material](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raw-material/) [Raw materials](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raw-materials/) [Soil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soil/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) [Struggle Entropy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle-entropy-1919120/) [Struggle Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle-existence-282071/) [Struggle for existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle-for-existence/) [Sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sun/) [Transition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transition/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) ## Related quotes > [Just as the constant increase of entropy is the basic law of the universe, so it is the basic law of life to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/just-as-the-constant-increase-of-entropy-is-the-basic-law-of-the/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [Available energy is the main object at stake in the struggle for existence and the evolution of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/available-energy-is-the-main-object-at-stake-in-the-struggle-for/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [I like to keep an open mind, but I do think there is some form of energy that exists separate to our flesh and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-like-to-keep-an-open-mind-but-i-do-think-there-is-some-form-of/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [The magic begins in you. 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All energy is the same as mechanical energy, whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-clerk-maxwell/in-speaking-of-the-energy-of-the-field-however-i-wish-to-be/) [James Clerk Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-clerk-maxwell/) > [As an old-time New Yorker, it's not that I miss the '70s and '80s or whatever. I miss the fact that there was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abel-ferrara/as-an-old-time-new-yorker-it-s-not-that-i-miss-the-70s-and-80s-or/) [Abel Ferrara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abel-ferrara/) > [Love is an energy which exists of itself. It is its own value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/love-is-an-energy-which-exists-of-itself-it-is-its-own-value/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [We are morphing as we go through things, and then we're presented with the notion of a soul. A soul implies more than just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-cahill/we-are-morphing-as-we-go-through-things-and-then-we-re-presented-with/) [Mike Cahill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-cahill/) > [“Life energy exists in animate and inanimate things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanchita-pandey/life-energy-exists-in-animate-and-inanimate-things/) [Sanchita Pandey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanchita-pandey/) > [“The wish within a human being is the most powerful energy that exists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-rudrananda/the-wish-within-a-human-being-is-the-most-powerful-energy-that-exists/) [Swami Rudrananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-rudrananda/) > [Mystical powers develop primarily through the raising of the kundalini. The Kundalini is a type of energy that exists within all things. It's possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/mystical-powers-develop-primarily-through-the-raising-of-the/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“connection as “the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bren-brown/connection-as-the-energy-that-exists-between-people-when-they-feel/) [Brené Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bren-brown/) > [“All energy has an origin and carries with it the life spark of its creation. Energy that exists today has a lineage of origin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-joseph-mitskavich/all-energy-has-an-origin-and-carries-with-it-the-life-spark-of-its/) [Stephen Joseph Mitskavich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-joseph-mitskavich/) > [The facts of variability, of the struggle for existence, of adaptation to conditions, were notorious enough; but none of us had suspected that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-facts-of-variability-of-the-struggle-for-existence-of-adaptation/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Ludwig Boltzmann > [Thermodynamics, correctly interpreted, does not just allow Darwinian evolution; it favors it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/thermodynamics-correctly-interpreted-does-not-just-allow-darwinian/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [The life contest is primarily a competition for available energy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/the-life-contest-is-primarily-a-competition-for-available-energy/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [To go straight to the deepest depth, I went for Hegel; what unclear thoughtless flow of words I was to find there! My unlucky…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/to-go-straight-to-the-deepest-depth-i-went-for-hegel-what-unclear/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [Who ... is not familiar with Maxwell's memoirs on his dynamical theory of gases? ... from one side enter the equations of state; from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/who-is-not-familiar-with-maxwell-s-memoirs-on-his-dynamical-theory-of/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [A mathematician will recognise Cauchy, Gauss, Jacobi or Helmholtz after reading a few pages, just as musicians recognise, from the first few bars, Mozart,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/a-mathematician-will-recognise-cauchy-gauss-jacobi-or-helmholtz-after/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [Philosophy gets on my nerves. If we analyze the ultimate ground of everything, then everything finally falls into nothingness. But I have decided to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/philosophy-gets-on-my-nerves-if-we-analyze-the-ultimate-ground-of/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [Which is more remarkable fact about America: that millionaires are idealists or idealists become millionaires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/which-is-more-remarkable-fact-about-america-that-millionaires-are/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [Available energy is the main object at stake in the struggle for existence and the evolution of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/available-energy-is-the-main-object-at-stake-in-the-struggle-for/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [Bring forward what is true, Write it so that it is clear, Defend it to your last breath!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/bring-forward-what-is-true-write-it-so-that-it-is-clear-defend-it-to/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [Nothing is more practical than a good theory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/nothing-is-more-practical-than-a-good-theory/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [Bring forth what is true; Write it so it it's clear. Defend it to your last breath.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/bring-forth-what-is-true-write-it-so-it-it-s-clear-defend-it-to-your/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [It must be splendid to command millions of people in great national ventures, to lead a hundred thousand to victory in battle. But it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/it-must-be-splendid-to-command-millions-of-people-in-great-national/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [Since a given system can never of its own accord go over into another equally probable state but into a more probable one, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/since-a-given-system-can-never-of-its-own-accord-go-over-into-another/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [In my view all salvation for philosophy may be expected to come from Darwin's theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/in-my-view-all-salvation-for-philosophy-may-be-expected-to-come-from/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) > [The most ordinary things are to philosophy a source of insoluble puzzles. With infinite ingenuity it constructs a concept of space or time and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-boltzmann/the-most-ordinary-things-are-to-philosophy-a-source-of-insoluble/) [Ludwig Boltzmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) [Explore all 16 Ludwig Boltzmann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-boltzmann/) ## More Air quotes > [I will be a tireless advocate for our District's defense priorities including Sheppard Air Force Base, Pantex, Bell Helicopter, universities conducting important research, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-jackson/i-will-be-a-tireless-advocate-for-our-district-s-defense-priorities/) [Ronny Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-jackson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. The smell of coalsmoke in the air at night. Old times, dead years. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [I'm a candle flame that sways in currents of air you can't see. You need to be the one who steadies me to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/i-m-a-candle-flame-that-sways-in-currents-of-air-you-can-t-see-you/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. 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