- 3 days
For atomic particles (protons, neutrons, electrons), their average velocity (almost never the same across a given sample, and less likely the larger the sample) is measurable, and we call that temperature. It’s a way to describe the total energy of a system. As it happens, we use that property for everything from steam turbines to cutting torches to deep freezers. It’s a simplified answer, but the engineering realities take into account many other properties and variables which relate to temperature in order to achieve the desired effects.
- 4 days
All atoms are moving always. Well I guess debatable at absolute zero, but we don’t need to talk about that. Electrons constantly orbit their respective atomic nuclei. As someone else mentioned the smaller particles that make up the protons/neutrons are also moving.
So yes. Most everything is moving at all times.
- Semjeza@fedinsfw.appEnglish3 days
To add for others, electrons orbiting is a convenient assumption - really they’re more a delocalised cloud of negative charge that exists in various bits of space known as “orbitals”.
Not orbiting in the way we’d understand it from planets.
Oh 100 % agreed. I didn’t want to get too technical and have to talk about tunneling and such haha. I hate MO theory, but it is very useful.
Everything moves, except me. I am at rest in my reference frame at all times! Everything just moves around me.
- 4 days
Well the quarks and gluons inside the protons always move as close to the speed of light as the Strong Force and Higgs Fields allow.
- 4 days
Not looking for an argument just discussion. So your saying we have stuff on this earth that can move very close to the speed of light and yet we can’t even completely utilize it? Has there been any advancement in those fields, that would be applicable to the real world?
- 3 days
Hell the air molecules in the room are moving near the speed of sound
If you want to extract useful work from that, the problem is they all go in random directions and for really short distances.
Same deal for subatomic particles.
Entropy and thermodynamics. Very much worth the investment of time and effort to learn.
