Information reduction in thermodynamics A very specific example of information reduction can be found in the field of thermodynamics. What makes this example so special is its simplicity. It clearly illustrates the basic structure of information reduction without the complexity found in other examples, such as those from biology. And it’s a subject many of us will already be familiar with from our physics lessons at school. What is temperature? A glass of water contains a huge amount of water molecules, all moving at different speeds and in different directions. These continuously collide with other water molecules, and their speed