My physics teacher told us that in theory it is highly unlikely but possible for someone to someday walk through a wall, or fall through the floor. What do you think?
2006-07-03 19:15:25 · 14 answers · asked by woolybugger 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
Yeah, your physics teacher is probably talking about "quantum mechanics".
In quantum mechanics, nothing has a definite fixed position. It has to do with the fundamental "wave" nature of matter. In "classical mechanics" we could imagine matter as being made of billiard-ball like particles, which could be described as having a specific position and velocity at some specific time. Our understanding of "quantum mechanics" has taught us that this is not quite true. In the realm of the very small, everything acts kind of like a wave.
Imagine a water wave, if you will. while you can describe a wave in terms of "how much of it" is between two points, you can't really say that it has some specific location.
Now, because of the rules of quantum mechanics, it turns out that the "quantum wave" of an object (a proton or electron or... ?) can't end abruptly. By that I mean that there's no place in the universe that it cannot be to 100% certainty. You can fence it in, and say that it exists in some specific location to 99.99999% certainty, but you can never make it all the way.
So as a result, quantum waves occasionally cross barriers that they should not be able to cross. We call this phenomena "quantum tunneling", and it's usually a pretty rare occurrence.
Anyway, the moral of the story is that there isn't a 100% chance that all of the atoms in your body will not, suddenly, decide to exist on the other side of a wall, or a floor.
of course, the odds that something as large as your body will quantum tunnel through something as thick as a wall is almost nothing.
but still. there's always a very very very very very very slight chance that it can happen.
that's probably what your physics teacher was talking about. physics teachers like talking about stuff like this.
2006-07-03 21:32:36 · answer #1 · answered by BenTippett 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is, in theory, possible to walk through a wall. To do so however, every atom of your body and of the wall would have to be in a position where they do not interact with each other - that is not occupy the same space at the same time. That is where the near physical impossibility enters the problem.
2006-07-04 02:37:17 · answer #2 · answered by 63vette 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is a common misconception about the idea of quantum mechanics stating that one might be able to put their hand through a wall or walk through a wall or some other insane proposal such as that. The problem this macroworld idea faces, however, is that your fist or the wall you intend to shove that fist through can not be described by a quantum mechanical wavefunction. It's not possible to describe the wall with a wave-function nor your hand so it is not possible to put your hand through a wall.
2006-07-04 00:38:12 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think your physics teacher loves theory or is crazy. Walking through anything requires you to change your chemical structure. Your body couldn't survive such a drastic change. If you could change the physical properties of the wall it would no longer be a wall.
2006-07-04 17:07:49 · answer #4 · answered by Axiom 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
NO. It is not possible for two or more objects to occupy the same space at the same time. In this case, the only exception to this rule would be if you are standing in a doorway in the wall. I assume that the question was being asked in literal terms.
2006-07-03 19:57:40 · answer #5 · answered by fuzzabella 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If we could rid the atoms electrical charges we could walk through a wall
2006-07-03 19:19:20 · answer #6 · answered by Tojo 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, according to quantium physics, its possible to walk thru walls, or fall thru the floor, or the example normally given is that all the air in a room will suddenly all go into one of the 8 corners (Assuming the room is cubical in shape), HOWEVER- its just mathematically possible, obviously the odd's of this happening is almost zero.
The flip side of this quesiton is- has it happened? Aparently YES IT HAS.
Read the book by "Factoid Press" called "The Big Book of the Unexplained"- 2 examples of teleportation happened. One was in 1640 where a poor innocent soldier was transported from the Phillipine Spanish Garrison to Mexico. Obviouisly they didn't know how he had arrived- so they sent him back on the first ship, saying that he was on an excused absense.
2006-07-09 10:46:26 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Acc. to recent studies, solids are not compact substances. Even they have large spaces between them.If it so happens that all the atoms start vibrating in the same direction at the same time,one could cross it through the gap!!!
I bet ur teacher read about this article.
2006-07-03 22:38:34 · answer #8 · answered by whatever 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no
but if this becomes possible then we won't be able to stand on earth , we would go on penentrating inside earth till we reach the core
but then one problem - will all mass get concentrated at core
hence not possible
2006-07-03 20:16:38 · answer #9 · answered by yoovraj s 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Push him through the wall and see what happens. to much acid in the sixties if you ask me.
2006-07-03 19:19:33 · answer #10 · answered by Texas 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you could be out of Phase with the structure, yes. but you would more than likely just break your atomic bonds in the process.
2006-07-03 19:19:39 · answer #11 · answered by tethtibis 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋