From information theory and thermodynamic considerations a universal bound on the relaxation time τ of a perturbed system is inferred, τ ≥h/πT , where T is the system's temperature. We prove that black holes comply with the bound; in fact they actually saturate it. Thus, when judged by their relaxation properties, black holes are the most extreme objects in nature, having the maximum relaxation rate which is allowed by quantum theory.A fundamental problem in thermodynamic and statistical physics is to study the response of a system in thermal equilibrium to an outside perturbation [1][2][3]. In particular, one is typically interested in calculating the relaxation timescale at which the perturbed system returns to a stationary, equilibrium configuration. Can this relaxation time be made arbitrarily small? That the answer may be negative is suggested by the third-law of thermodynamics, according to which the relaxation time of a perturbed system is expected to go to infinity in the limit of absolute zero of temperature. Finite temperature systems are expected to have faster dynamics and shorter relaxation times-how small can these be made? In this Letter we use general results from quantum information theory in order to derive a fundamental bound on the maximal rate at which a perturbed system approaches thermal equilibrium.On another front, deep connections between the world of black-hole physics and the realms of thermodynamics and information theory were revealed by Hawking's theoretical discovery of black-hole radiation [4], and its corresponding temperature and black-hole entropy [5]. These discoveries imply that black holes behave as thermodynamic systems in many respects. Furthermore, black holes have been proven to be very useful in deriving fundamental, static bounds on information storage [6][7][8][9][10][11]. Can one use black holes to obtain deep insights into natural limitations on dynamical relaxation times? Indeed one can, as we shall show below.Quantum information theory and Thermodynamics.-A fundamental question in quantum information theory is what is the maximum rate,İ max , at which information may be transmitted by a signal of duration τ and energy ∆E. The answer to this question was already found in the 1960's (see e.g. [12,13]):(We use units in which k B = G = c = 1.) An outside perturbation to a thermodynamic system is characterized by energy and entropy changes in the system, ∆E and ∆S, respectively. By the complementary relation between entropy and information (entropy as a measure of one's uncertainty or lack of information about the actual internal state of the system [14][15][16]12]), the relation Eq. (1) sets an upper bound on the rate of entropy change [17],where τ is the characteristic timescale for this dynamical process (the relaxation time required for the perturbed system to return to a quiescent state). Taking cognizance of the second-law of thermodynamics, one obtains from Eq. (2)where T is the system's temperature. Thus, according to quantum theory, a thermodynamic system has...