On the second law of thermodynamics

The second law of thermodynamics has two distinct aspects to its foundations. The first concerns the question of why entropy goes up in the future, and the second, of why it goes down in the past. Statistical physicists tend to be more concerned with the first question and with careful considerations of definition and mathematical detail. The second question is of quite a different nature; it leads into areas of cosmology and quantum gravity, where the mathematical and physical issues are ill understood.