What makes particles stick?

CaptainComedy

CaptainComedy

CaptainComedy

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Just sitting in my room having a ponder about stuff I don't understand.

So everything is made of atoms? But what makes them stick together to make the things we see today?

Feel free to post a pic of a pritt stick (sp)

Anyway, one of many things I don't get.
 
May get this all wrong. Been a while since I learnt about this.

Each atom has rings of electrons. The outer ring never has a full set - normally 8.

So say 1 atom has an outer ring of 7 electrons, another atom with an outer ring of 1 electron would bond together.


....IIRC.
 
There are lots of forces at play:

Weak nuclear
Strong nuclear
mavity
Electromagnetism

etc

Atoms are made up of protons, electons and neutrons which are all different charges, thus, electromagnetism is what binds them. When an atomic bomb goes off for example, they are usually splitting an atom in half (usually from an Uranium isotope) - this is known as fission. As atoms are matter, splitting them causes them to become energy (e=mc2) thus, this is where the explosion comes from.

Fusion (which is supposed to help solve our energy problems) involve fusing two atoms together but we haven't yet managed to do this. It is cleaner and more efficient than fission.

Anyway, I'll step aside now and let those who remember/understand this stuff better to explain it. :)

If I'm in anyway wrong, feel free to correct me.
 
Nix said:
Fusion (which is supposed to help solve our energy problems) involve fusing two atoms together but we haven't yet managed to do this. It is cleaner and more efficient than fission.
Click to expand...

Woh dude, I never knew that, and I've watched Chain reaction with Keanu reeves and everything. Cheers for that :)
 
Well fusion with atoms and subatomic particles are done on a regular basis in particle accelerators. And then we have thermonuclear weapons of course on a self sustaining basis.
 
Theguy said:
why is fusion cleaner and more efficient then fission?
Click to expand...

You're dealing with friendly light elements like hydrogen and helium, not nasty heavy elements like uranium.

Also it's more energetic.

It's fusion that takes place in stars.
 
hydrogen bonds is another... which is why water is liquid at room temperature! (was thinking just incase you had a glass in your room)
 
Yes they taught it at school LOL but I was never good at physics.

Anyway, I was wondering, I remember watching a guys theory of they universe on YouTube (LOL) that someone posted here about the universe not actually being empty space but full of atoms, and then I got wondering that if atoms are just. Held together by electromagnetic/static etc that, are we just electromagnetic charges that just transfer through atoms making the things we see?

a dumb question based on a dumb theory but still, sitting in wonder
 
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