equipartition

British

/ ˌɛkwɪpɑːˈtɪʃən /

noun

the equal division of the energy of a system in thermal equilibrium between different degrees of freedom. This principle was assumed to be exact in classical physics, but quantum theory shows that it is true only in certain special cases

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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If the system consists of molecules and ether, as the former have a finite number of degrees of freedom and the latter an infinite number, the unmodified law of equipartition would require that the ether should finally appropriate all energy, leaving none of it to the matter.

From Project Gutenberg

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