By considering a simple thermodynamic system, in thermal equilibrium at a temperature T and in the presence of an external parameter A, we focus our attention on the particular thermodynamic (macroscopic) relation dU=TdS+δW. Using standard axioms from information theory and the fact that the...

We show here how to use pieces of thermodynamics’ first law to generate probability distributions for generalized ensembles when only level-population changes are involved. Such microstate occupation modifications, if properly constrained via first law ingredients, can be associated not...