General Question

edmartin101's avatar

We all know atoms have a lot of empty space on the orbiting electrons, so would it be possible for another world to exist right here where we are that we are not aware of?

Asked by edmartin101 (776points) May 19th, 2008

Matter as we know it is solid like a table, but is it really solid based on the fact that atoms have so much free space.

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7 Answers

monsoon's avatar

Isn’t that like string theory?

Grim's avatar

For every action there is an opposite, thus creating the possibility for infinite alternate realities/universes. But an actual link to another world through our own I highly doubt…

nikipedia's avatar

Sure. Maybe each of our cells has a tiny universe inside it. Maybe our universe is one tiny building block of a multiverse. Or maybe we don’t exist at all and we only think we exist. Who knows.

cage's avatar

of course it is.
What I find REALLY intriguing, is that DNA is shaped like a double helix.
It is (scientifically) predicted that if you were to zoom out billions of times, you would see that all the clusters of galaxies of our universe, are also shaped like double-helixes.
Makes you think doesn’t it ;)

cage's avatar

Also, don’t you find it interesting, that if you do think about atoms and matter in that way, that means all that we know that is made of stable matter is 99.99999999999999% nothing!?!?!?

INCLUDING YOU!!!!

lol

breedmitch's avatar

The macrocosm imitates the microcosm. Or is it the other way around?

timothykinney's avatar

When considering light and matter, there is a particular probability that a photon will interact with an atom. This can be thought of as a cross-sectional area of the molecule which interacts with light. Although spatially we like to think of nuclei and electron clouds, when it comes to electrodynamics each atom can actually be thought of as a “solid” cloud of charge. Since the electromagnetic force (transmitted by light) is so strong, it’s reasonable to think of matter as charge components much more than spatial components.

Modern chemistry and quantum mechanics agree that the observed configurations of matter depend primarily on the distribution of charge in the nuclei and electron wave functions (orbitals). The spatial arrangement of electrons can be calculated as a probability, but the charge and symmetry character of the atom is a much better description of its existence (can be calculated exactly).

Although spatially we can think of our bodies and all matter as mostly space (ie, nothing), it’s also true that all matter continuously influences the space around it with an electric field which interacts with other matter (through chemical bonds) and with light (through energy transitions and scattering).

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