MadSci Network: Physics |
Hello Tim. As odd as it seems, a photon being emitted by one electron and absorbed by another does not repel the electrons away from one another. In classical physics, if I were to toss you a baseball, there would be a repelling effect. My body would experience an equal but opposite reaction to the baseball when I threw it. Your body would experience it when you caught it. But the photon's effect on an electron isn't the same as a baseball's effect on you or I. The photon doesn't add to the mass of the electron that absorbs it, nor does it diminish the mass of the electron that emits it. It only changes the electron's state of activity. This is kind of a korny analogy, but imagine that instead of tossing a baseball toward you, I e-mail you a joke instead. The joke is a funny one, and it changes your state of excitement. You were just sitting down and reading, but now you're rolling on the floor and laughing until your sides hurt. You've absorbed the joke I emitted, and your level of activity raised because of it, but it didn't push you away from me. Layne Johnson. p.s. So there's this cowboy, and he walks into a saloon....
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