If we humans could move at the speed of light, wouldn't we be able to phase through matter?

Question

Electrons move at about the speed of light around a nucleus. Because their mass is almost zero, it would seem if we could move at the same speed as them, we would go right through them.

Answer 1

you don't need to get to the speed of light, which you can't anyway, to do that.

Mass, like energy, (actually being energy) has both particle and wave properties. So technically, one mass can phase through another. however the odds are pretty small that you as person can align all of your mass waves and phase through a wall for example.

Actually if you speed up to near the speed of light, your mass will increase which will in turn lower your probablity of success.

you could do a couple of experiments. push hard against a wall for a very long time and see what happens. vs running very fast and crashing into.

Answer 2

1) Electrons don't travel at the speed of light, because nothing can travel at the speed of light, but that is irrelevant. What is relevant is that all laws of Physics are the same in any reference frame. So if you phased through matter moving at a speed close to c, than a man moving at the same speed next to you will see you phase trough a wall while you have speed equal to zero. This, of course is absurd. Let me try to explain why:

2) When bulk matter is considered, the intra-atomic structure is irrelevant. It is the intermolecular forces that are determining its structure. These forces are of electrostatic nature, because the force from the positive nucleus don't exactly cancel with the forces of the negative electrons (although they carry same quantity of charge). That's why these forces are far weaker then the forces that bind the inner electrons in an atom and they fall more rapidly with distance. So, the question should be wether atoms from your body can phase through the atoms of the wall;

3) Heisenberg's principle of uncertainty (in one of its forms) states that you cannot know the position of a quantum object (like an electron, or an atom, or an ion) at all times. It is more common to speak in terms of probabilities for finding a certain electron at a certain volume (note that I don't say point, because the probability for finding the electron at any point is zero);

3) You are consisted of an enormous amount of atoms (1 kg of carbon has about 1000 x 6.022 x 10^23 / 12 = 5 x 10^25), order of magnitude ~10^26 . Each atom has an order of magnitude of 10^1 electrons. Think what is the chance of avoiding a hit with these numbers!

4) Due to electic forces, two charged particles have an effect on eachother even when they are separated. There will surely be a notabale effect between the atoms of your body and the atoms of the wall (commonly known as hitting your head against the wall);

Answer 3

This type of speculation is just silly. No way could any living being survive the g-force you would experience going at a tenth of that speed. Let alone actually being able do generate enough energy to travel at that speed without destroying a planet or even a galaxy.

Answer 4

No. Only one thing can occupy a space at the same time. While it may be true that we could (if possible) obtain the speed of electrons, We would still have the properties of the atoms that make up our body. This is just a basic Conservation of Mass and Energy thing.

Answer 5

Theoretically you can phase through right now, sitting still, given enough life expectancy and patience, however your way would be a sure thing every time. Now, about getting to the speed of light......