"The earth converts almost all that solar radiation into kinetic energy."

So in other words, solar radiation (primarily electromagnetic) imparts kenetic energy to mass- ie heat (thermodynamics SDAI?). This is what were talking about, yes? Or are you suggesting that kinetic energy and heat energy are not the same... ???

Look, I'm no physicist and only a software engineer, but I don't think you have the correct picture of conservation of mass and energy, entropy, and how closed systems behave.

Unless you want to tell me that there is a magical Maxwellian Demon at the center of the earth sucking out heat and flushing it down a wormhole, then how precisely is it not the case that the earth is not at as hot as the sun after capturing several billion years of solar energy?

If your hypothesis is that the earth does not radiate (much) energy, I can disprove that simply. Go out there on the web. Search for the string "earth rises over moon". Go look at that picture. What do you see? Notice that you are *seeing*.... you see what I mean?

In as much as electromagnetic radiation is harnessed by some biological forms to perform work- well, um, yeah. So?

Look- seal a solar cell in a leyden jar and stick it in the sunlight and have it turn a wheel with an actuator- make sure the wheel and actuator is INSIDE the leyden jar. Then, next to it, stick a leyden jar with no solar cell in it (well, stick a piece of cloth with about the same wide-spectrum reflectivity, to be fair). Include also 2 ultra-sensitive themometers. Leave both in the sun for 6 hours, come back, and measure the temeperature. I will send you a money order for the sum of $5 US if both themometers don't read the same temperature.

You could also, say, use the solar cell to do electolysis on a test tube of water- same difference.

The point is the electromagnetic radiation harnessed to do work still produces heat, and the point is also that a system will reach equilibrium between the energy it absorbs and the energy it radiates. Venus is so hot because __________________(fill in the blank)

Also, the number of photons intercepted by living photsythesising organisms is probably only a minute fraction of the electromagnetic energy. The sky IS blue, right SDAI? You do SEE that, right? What does that mean WRT to what we are discussing?

Additionally, the amount of mass that is 'alive' on/in earth compared to the mass of the earth, core to ionosphere, is like the skin of an apple. Actually, its more like the paint on battleship. With Respect to the heat of this particular system, they don't have much to do beyond effecting the reflectivity of our atmosphere.

and solar radiation has nothing to do with the fact that the earth spins, or has crustal movement (thank you moon), or 'lives'. Conservation of momentum has more to do with that.

Davin L.