In 1983 Göran Lindblad published a monograph on nonequilibrium thermodynamics. We here summarize the contents of this book, and provide a perspective on its relation to later developments in statistical physics and quantum physics. We high-light two aspects. The first is the idea that while all unitaries can be allowed in principle, different theories result from limiting which unitary evolutions are realized in the real world. The second is that Lindblad’s proposal for thermodynamic entropy (as opposed to information-theoretic entropy) foreshadows much more recent investigations into optimal quantum transport which is a current research focus in several fields.

1983 年，Göran Lindblad 出版了一本关于非平衡热力学的专着。我们在此总结本书的内容，并提供其与统计物理学和量子物理学后来发展的关系的观点。我们重点强调两个方面。第一个想法是，虽然原则上所有单一性都可以被允许，但不同的理论是由于限制现实世界中实现的单一性演化而产生的。第二个是林德布拉德关于热力学熵（相对于信息论熵）的提议预示着最近对最佳量子输运的研究，这是当前多个领域的研究焦点。