---
name: Heat
slug: heat
type: physical phenomenon
status: running
version: 13800000000.0.1
released: "13,800,000,000 BCE"
maintainer: thermodynamics
dependencies:
  - matter
  - energy
  - time
  - entropy
license: Public Domain (non-revocable)
tags:
  - physics
  - sensation
  - summer
  - danger
  - comfort
  - cooking
---

Heat

What it actually is

The vibration of matter interpreted as temperature, experienced as everything from comfort to catastrophe depending almost entirely on context.

How it works

Energy moves. It does not ask. It does not stop unless you are already at absolute zero, which you are not and cannot be. The three main delivery mechanisms:

Method	Description	Polite?
Conduction	Touch something hot. Learn.	No
Convection	Hot fluid rises, cool fluid falls, loop forever	Indifferent
Radiation	Energy crosses vacuum because it can	Deeply indifferent

Heat flows from high to low temperature the way water flows downhill. This is not a preference. This is the second law of thermodynamics doing its only job.

Features

Converts raw food into cooked food via the Maillard reaction and related processes
Expands metals, warps wood, makes railroads interesting in summer
Powers every engine humanity has built since 1712
Provides the sensation of warmth, which is load-bearing for intimacy and survival in roughly equal measure
Kills bacteria. Also, occasionally, people.
Redistributes itself globally via ocean currents, producing what we call "weather" and "climate" and "that thing we are currently ruining"

Known bugs

Does not distribute equitably across geography or income brackets
Urban heat islands emerge wherever humans pave things and call it progress
Feedback loops: more heat produces conditions that produce more heat
The human body cannot distinguish "comfortable warmth" from "dangerous warmth" until approximately 15 minutes after the distinction matters
Heatstroke presents with an absence of sweating, which is the opposite of what you would expect and has killed accordingly

Configuration

# heat.config

units: kelvin  # celsius acceptable, fahrenheit tolerated
reference_zero: absolute  # not arbitrary
human_comfort_range: [18C, 26C]
urban_modifier: +3C to +7C
climate_trend: ascending
lethal_threshold: context-dependent  # see: humidity, shade, age, water access

Error codes

Code	Meaning
`HEAT_001`	Burn. You touched it anyway.
`HEAT_002`	Heat exhaustion. Drink water immediately.
`HEAT_003`	Heatstroke. Stop reading docs. Call someone.
`HEAT_404`	Warmth not found. See: loneliness, winter, altitude
`HEAT_451`	Fahrenheit reference. Noted.

Edge cases

Fire is not heat. Fire is heat's most theatrical output.
Cold is not the opposite of heat. Cold is the absence of it. There is no cold module. There is only less heat.
At the quantum scale, heat becomes statistical. Individual particles do not have a temperature. Only crowds do. This is either reassuring or disturbing depending on your afternoon.

FAQ

Is heat the same as temperature? No. Temperature measures average kinetic energy. Heat is energy in transfer. A lake at 20C contains more heat than a lit match. The match will still burn you.

Why does spicy food feel hot? Capsaicin triggers the same receptor that detects actual heat. The body is running the wrong subroutine. It is not a bug in capsaicin.

Will it get worse? The changelog does not support optimism at this time.

drafting spec…