what exactly does E = M C 2 mean?

Answer 1

E energy

M mass

C Speed of Light

2 Squared

The formula for energy is mass X the speed of light squared.

Answer 2

Before Einstein, it was known that a beam of light pushes against matter; this is known as radiation pressure. This means the light has momentum. A beam of light of energy E has momentum E/c. Einstein used this fact to show that radiation (light) energy has an equivalent mass. Consider a cylinder of mass M (see accompanying figure-"energy"). A pulse of light with energy E is emitted from the left side. The cylinder recoils to the left with velocity v=E/(Mc). If the mass of the cylinder is large, it doesn't move far before the light reaches the other side. So, the light must travel a distance L, requiring time t=L/c. In this time, the cylinder travels a distance x=vt=[E/(Mc)](L/c). Einstein reasoned that the center of mass of an isolated system doesn't just move on its own. So, the motion of the cylinder must be compensated by the motion of some other mass. Let's assume the light has mass m. Then, Mx=mL, since the cylinder moves x to the left and the light moves L to the right. Substituting the expression for x given above, the equation can be simplified to E=mc2. From the fact that light has momentum, Einstein showed that light energy has the characteristics of mass also. In other words, energy has inertia. It turns out that all energy has this feature. That's because one form of energy can be transformed into another. So, if one kind of energy has this characteristic, all forms of energy do.

Answer 3

Other people have already told you what the symbols stand for (Energy = Mass X The Speed Of Light squared), but not what it means. When Einstein developed his theories, this was truly revolutionary thinking. Essentially, what this particular equation means is that mass (matter) and energy are interchangeable.

You'd have to have unthinkable amounts of energy to translate into a tiny amount of matter, but what's of far greater use to us is the fact that a tiny amount of matter can be translated into vast amounts of energy. This is what happens in a nuclear fission reaction. A subatomic particle hits the nucleus of an atom, "splitting" it and releasing a very large amount of energy (relative to the individual atom).

What's most interesting is that the total mass of the two "halves" of the original atom is slightly less than the mass of the original atom. The mass (the matter) that is missing has been transformed into (a lot of) energy.

There are a lot of other implications of this formula, and the relativity theory it's part of, but nuclear energy is the most practically relevant to us today.

Answer 4

E= Energy, M= Mass, C= constant [ speed of light,which is constant throughout the universe] 2= squared. So Energy is = to equal to the mass x by the speed of light,squared. As you can imagine this is an unbelievable high number. This is you why you get so much energy by splitting an atom.

Answer 5

E = mc2 is one of the most famous equations, even to non-physicists, and which states a relationship between energy (E), in whatever form, and mass (m). In this formula, c², the square of the speed of light in a vacuum, is the conversion factor required to formally convert from units of mass to units of energy, i.e. the energy per unit mass. In unit specific terms, E (joules) = M (kilograms) multiplied by (299792458 m/s)2.

The equation was first published in a slightly different formulation by Albert Einstein in 1905 in one of his famous articles. He derived it as a consequence of the special theory of relativity which he had proposed the same year.

Answer 6

It simply means that mass and energy are equivalent. If you convert a mass (m) entirely into energy (E) the amount of energy yielded is given by the formula in which c is the speed of light in free space (300,000km/s). Likewise if you wish to create mass by using energy the formula gives you the basic amount of energy needed.

Energy production from fuels such as we use always entails a loss of mass but it is an extremely small fraction of the total mass involved. The sun produces its extreme power output by the contiuous destruction of mass and will one day burn itself out

Answer 7

It means energy equals mass times the speed of light squared, which is very important to quantum physics, because it proves a number of things. Firstly, it means that if any object (matter) travels the speed of light, it will be transformed in to energy. Secondly, it is the theory behind nuclear fission/fusion. When 2 atoms of hydrogen are fused, one helium atom is formed, and when one helium atom is split, 2 hydrogen atoms are formed. However, the mass of two hydrogen atoms is different than one helium atom. This difference in mass is compensated by a huge amount of energy (this is because of the law of conservation of energy/matter).

Answer 8

E = mc2 is one of the most famous equations, even to non-physicists, and which states a relationship between energy (E), in whatever form, and mass (m). In this formula, c², the square of the speed of light in a vacuum, is the conversion factor required to formally convert from units of mass to units of energy, i.e. the energy per unit mass. In unit specific terms, E (joules) = M (kilograms) multiplied by (299792458 m/s)2.

The equation was first published in a slightly different formulation by Albert Einstein in 1905 in one of his famous articles. He derived it as a consequence of the special theory of relativity which he had proposed the same year.



Note : Most on the queries I see in this forum - answers to them are already available in Wikpedia. Just spend time to surf and read and understand.

Answer 9

Energy equals Mass times the speed of light squared. It is the most famous of Einstein's equations for converting mass into energy and vice versa.

Answer 10

It means in laymans terms that matter and energy are equivallent. It means that matter can be expressed as energy & vice versa. The formula demonstrates that matter itself contains a great deal of energy and an interesting piece of trivia is that if you could convert with 100% efficiency the energy contained within the matter of one potato into energy... you would have enough energy to get a ton of potatoes to the moon.

Answer 11

Joe gave you the correct definition of this most famous equation. But imagine the energy in a small amount of mass. Energy is equal to the mass times the speed of of light squared. That is energy is equal to a unit of mass times 186,000 MHP X 186,000 MHP. This is a massive, incredible amount of energy. It is what led scientists to understand the unharnished power of matter, it led to an understanding of atomic power, a map that led to nuclear power and weapons.