Mr. Bound,
If you breakdown the word "thermodynamics" into the latin roots, you get "movement of heat", thermo=heat; dynamic=movement. The second law, in a round about way, says that a cool object can not cause an increase in temperature of another object. Heat only flows one way, down hill; from a hotter object to a cooler object. However, within that transfer of energy, there is available work that can drive reactions from a lower energy state to a higher energy state. This can be seen in plants where photons from the sun are used to create more energetic carbohydrates from less energetic carbon dioxide and water. The process of carbon dioxide + water ----> carbohydrates is considered negative entropy, or going against the down hill flow of energy. However, negative entropy is possible if work (in this case, photons) is put into the system.
The 2nd law states that all entropy in the universe is going down hill, or positive entropy, and will eventually come to a zero state, where energy is no longer available. Negative entropy events/reactions take advantage of this downhill movement, since work/heat is being transfered. It is kind of like a waterwheel capturing the downhill rush of water in order to do work.
My physics is a little weak, but this is how I remember it so don't take these explanations as definitive. Perhaps we will get lucky and have a physics doc stop by.
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