At school, and someone brought up something about that we can't physically touch anything, everything has an electromagnetic field, and it repels other objects, so we aren't touching the ground, we are 1 electron away from touching it, and if there was no field, we would merge with the object we touched. Apparently, it's something about physics.
I wanna read about it, but I don't know what it's called, does anyone know what it is?
2007-01-11 10:47:57 · 6 answers · asked by arunforce 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
It doesn't really have a name...
I guess you could look under Electromagnetic repulsion. But then again, you say you can't touch something. You have to remember that these electrons are part of what the material is. You know, for instance, it's almost only the electrons that are responsible for gold being yellow or mercury being liquid.
The only state in which you could actually "touch" matter as you imply it, would be in a plasma. Plasma is often called the 4th state of matter: it's the seperation of atoms and electrons in a very hot gas.
I hope it helps :-)
2007-01-11 10:53:25 · answer #1 · answered by Vincent L 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The simpler concept is one of electron-electron repulsion.
It is based on the idea that electrons are negatively charged, and have specific spin directions (you've heard of spin up and spin down or spin pairing.)
Because of this (and innumerable other concepts) electron clouds will repel one another. However, atoms can bond together because there is usually an unfilled molecular orbital into which unpaired electrons can fill. When electrons from different atoms fill in these orbitals, you have bonding.
Now the idea that you could never actually touch anything is a huge oversimplification. The scale on which we experience the universe is so much larger (many billions) than the scale that electron clouds are observed. The idea of "touch" itself is that you are meeting resistance... you obviously can't touch something if it doesn't "touch" back. If you put your hand against the wall, the wall stops it
On the other hand, if you have a piece of metal less than 2 nanometers in thickness, and aimed a beam of electrons at it, some of those electrons would pop out the other side. This is an idea called electron tunneling - it is possible because of scale. An electron in a beam is on a much closer scale to the atoms than your hand is.
Also, you wouldn't "merge" with the thing that you were touching if there was no field. If there was no field in the material you were touching, then there would be no field in you.... What I'm saying is that you would both fail to exist. So if you don't exist, you really can't contemplate touching things that also don't exist.
So what's the point to all of this? You are actually touching things. If the walls didn't have fields, they wouldn't exist.
2007-01-11 11:01:53 · answer #2 · answered by Jess4352 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's basically true, assuming you define "touch" to mean the distance between electrons to be zero. If you plug that into Coulomb's law F = kq1q2/(r^2) where r is the distance between the two, well, you really can't. Division by zero makes mathematicians wet their pants. All you can do is take a limit. But the limit as r approaches zero is infinity. Which means an infinite force is repelling the electrons, so they'll never actually "touch". The closest you can get is make them near enough to where the repulsion given by Coulomb's law is equal to the force being applied to bring them together.
2007-01-11 11:52:08 · answer #3 · answered by Bigsky_52 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Only to a certain extent. In particle colliders the particles certainly touch, two sets of whatever going in opposite directions at near the speed of light have plenty of momentum and easily overcome any electron fields. Protons, neutrons and other particles also don't have electron fields. Lots of ways that statement is inaccurate or inadequate.
Anyway, what is touch? You need a specific definition to claim that what we normally take for contact actually isn't. From an engineers perspective, if we appear to be touching it and it meets all the usual criteria for contact then that's good enough for me.
2007-01-11 11:00:29 · answer #4 · answered by Chris H 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
i'm unlikely to wager. by applying the way, evolution has no longer something to do with the soul and God. Evolution comes from inheritable traits with the aid of organic determination. That being suggested, neither is conceived in basic terms made up. "technology Geek: The human strategies stepped forward to have faith in God and a soul. decrease primates possibly don't have those ideals, how is evolution the incorrect term right here?" -you No madam you're incorrect. Like I and technology Geek have suggested, God and soul isn't inherited. speedy occasion for you. -human beings are no longer born with faith, the perception in a soul, Math, writing, examining, technology, and time. All of those are discovered. this could be superb however. -The human strategies stepped forward, and with the aid of it the assumption of God and soul become created. It cant be suggested that the strategies stepped forward to have faith in God via fact the strategies won't be able to evolve with suggestions, in basic terms organic determination.
2016-12-12 09:29:40 · answer #5 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is a great video. In one of the epidsode, there is a talk about the exact question you have.
Go to youtube and search for elegant universe. it is a great video.
2007-01-11 11:12:22 · answer #6 · answered by Just_curious 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋