<
https://aeon.co/essays/why-the-empty-atom-picture-misunderstands-quantum-theory>
"The camera zooms in on the person’s arm to reveal the cells, then a cell
nucleus. A DNA strand grows on the screen. The camera focuses on a single atom
within the strand, dives into a frenetic cloud of rocketing particles, crosses
it, and leaves us in oppressive darkness. An initially imperceptible tiny dot
grows smoothly, revealing the atomic nucleus. The narrator lectures that the
nucleus of an atom is tens of thousands of times smaller than the atom itself,
and poetically concludes that we are made from emptiness.
How often have you seen such a scene or read something equivalent to it in
popular science? I am sure plenty, if you are fans of this genre like me.
However, the narrative is wrong. Atomic nuclei in a molecule are not tiny dots,
and there are no empty spaces within the atom.
The
empty atom picture is likely the most repeated mistake in popular
science. It is unclear who created this myth, but it is sure that Carl Sagan,
in his classic TV series
Cosmos (1980), was crucial in popularising it. After
wondering how small the nuclei are compared with the atom, Sagan concluded that
[M]ost of the mass of an atom is in its nucleus; the electrons are by
comparison just clouds of moving fluff. Atoms are mainly empty space. Matter
is composed chiefly of nothing.
I still remember how deeply these words spoke to me when I heard them as a kid
in the early 1980s. Today, as a professional theoretical chemist, I know that
Sagan’s statements failed to recognise some fundamental features of atoms and
molecules."
Via
Future Crunch:
<
https://futurecrunch.com/good-news-child-poverty-leprosy-conservation-california/>
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
