- 3156 - CONSTANTS - in Nature’s particles? Understanding astronomy, the Universe, and the Big Bang all depend on the structure of atoms and the forces that interact with atoms. All things are as they are because Nature has constant relationships between atoms and forces. Constants that remain the same anywhere in the Universe over all space and time.
- ----------------------- 3156 - CONSTANTS - in Nature’s particles
- We call them “Natural Constants“. They include the speed of light, the force of gravity, and the fine structure constant that defines the orbits of electrons around nuclei in atoms.
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- Energy always seeks the lowest energy levels and at the low energy levels in which we live there are only 6 Constants and 4 Forces. For us in our normal lives all matter is composed of electrons, protons and neutrons. All forces are either electromagnetic, weak or strong nuclear forces or gravity.
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- In 1964 we discovered that protons and neutrons were actually were made of up-quarks and down-quarks. The proton is made of 2 up-quarks and 1 down-quark. ( uud). The neutron is made of 1 up-quark and 2 down-quarks, (udd).
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- At higher energy levels more particles and more Constants are introduced. There are 28 Constants in all. You need cosmic rays and particle accelerators and high energy to get to the other 22 Constants.
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- The down-quark was found to be slightly heaver, slightly more energy than the up-quark making the neutron slightly heavier than the proton.
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---------------- up-quark ------------- 2 million electron volts
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--------------- down-quark ------------ 3 million electron volts.
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-------------- electron ---------------- 0.511 million electron volts.
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- Physicists measure mass in electron volts always with the understanding that:
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--------------------- mass = energy / c^2.
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- They simply ignore the c^2 realizing it is always there. The table below shows mass in kilograms as well as MeV / c^2. MeV is million electron volts.
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-------------------- proton ------------- 938.272 MeV
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-------------------- proton ------------- 1.660540*10^-27 kilograms
-------------------- neutron ------------- 939.565 MeV
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-------------------- neutron ------------- 1.67492*10^-27 kilograms
-------------------- electron ------------- 0.51099906 MeV
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-------------------- electron ------------- 9.1093897*10^-31 kilograms
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- The mass of the electron and the mass of the quarks are considered “Natural Constants“. Their mass is the same everywhere in the Universe. But, no one has ever derived their numbers from theory. We have learned the values of mass only from experiments and measurements.
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- To make the values unitless we take the ratio of the mass of the electron to the proton and we get 1/1839. This ratio is always and everywhere Constant, but, why it is that particular number we do not know. However, if it was even slightly different life would not exist. The Universe would be totally different from what it is.
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- Next there are the 4 forces that hold mass together. The quarks are held together in the nucleus of the atom by the strong nuclear force. The neutrons are held together by the weak nuclear force. The electrons are held in orbit around the nucleus by the electromagnetic force. And, matter that is made up of atoms are attracted by the force of gravity.
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- At higher energy levels we find that there are two additional members to the electron family. Called “Leptons” we and “Muons” as heavier electrons and “Taus” as heavier still.
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- To the up-quarks we add the charm-quark and the top-quark. To the down-quark we add the strange-quark and the bottom quark. 3 leptons and 6 quarks in all.
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- For all three leptons that are 12 Natural Constants. For all 6 quarks there are 10 Natural Constants. Plus the Natural Constants of the 4 forces for a total of 26 Constants. To get to 28 Natural Constants we add the mass of the W-boson and the mass of the Higgs Boson.
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- The photon is the force carrier for the electromagnetic force and it is massless. All massless particles must move at the speed of light. They can not stand still.
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- The W-Boson is the force carrier for the weak nuclear force and it has a lot of mass. The Higgs Boson is the force carrier for mass itself and it is so heavy we have just recently discovered. The Higgs Boson comes out of the theory of the Standard Model for Particle Physics.
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- There are three more leptons that are nearly massless and these are the three neutrinos. Putting all these particles together according to mass produces a matrix of Natural Constants. Unfortunately, we can not explain why they are what they are. This is what experiment and measurement tells us:
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---------------------- LEPTONS
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------ neutrino ----------- 0.13*10^-9 GeV --------------- electron ------- 0.00511 GeV
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------ muon neutrino ---- 0.13*10^-9 GeV --------------- muon ---------- 0.106 GeV
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------ tau neutrino -------- 0.14*10^-9 GeV --------------- tau ------------ 1.777 GeV
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------------------ QUARKS
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---------- up-quark ----------------0.002 ------------ down-quark ---- 0.005
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---------- charm-quark ------------1.3 ---------------- strange-quark ---- 0.1
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---------- top-quark -------------173 ------------------ bottom-quark ---- 4.2
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-------------- FORCES
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-------------- photons -------------- massless
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-------------- W-Bosons------------ 80.39 GeV
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-------------- Z-Bosons-------------- 91.188 GeV
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-------------- Gluons----------------- massless
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-------------- Higgs-Bosons--------- 120 GeV ????
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-------------- Graviton--------------- massless ?????
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- The constant force of gravity depends on the force carrier called the Graviton, but we have never discovered this particle. It only exists in theory.
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------------- Constant Gavity = G = 6.67259 * 10^-11 meters^3/kilogram / second^2
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- All of these constants can get defined in many different ways. For example the ratio of mass of the electron to the mass of the proton is 1 / 1838.683662
- The fine structure constant is defined as = e^2 * 4pi / h*c
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------- where: h = Planck’s Constant = 6.6260755 * 10^-34 kilogram*meter^2/second
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------- where: c = 2.99792458 * 10^8 meters / second
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-------- where: e = charge of electron = 1.60217733 * 10^-19 coulombs.
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- The attempt here is to define the Natural Constants without units. The electron/proton ratio is unitless, 1/1839. The units kilograms, meters, and seconds are all arbitary and man-made. A unitless definition means that an alien on another planet would get the same number. The ratio of the electron on Mars to the proton on Mars is still 1/1839. The fine structure constant is always 1/137.
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- If we set the Natural Constants G = c = h = k = 1 where k is the Boltzman’s Constant = 8.617385 * 10^-5 eV / Kelvin, then the Planck Units as they are called for mass, length, and time become:
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--------------- mass^2 = h * c / G
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--------------- Planck mass = 5.56*10^-5 grams ( about the mass of a bacterium)
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------------- length ^2 = G*h / c^3
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------------- Planck length = 4.13*10^-35 meters
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-------------- time^2 = G*h/c^5
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------------- Planck time = 1.38 * 10^-43 seconds.
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- These measurements represent units that depend on other fundamental Natural Constants They should be the same everywhere in the Universe. However, with all this discussion there are a couple 800 pound gorillas in the room that we have not mentioned so far.
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- First, for every particle there is an anti-particle. We have discovered these anti-particles and we can easily reproduce and even use them. Whenever and anti-particle meets a particle they annihilate each other into pure energy, gamma radiation, according to E = mc^2
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- For the Conservation of Energy the Universe must have equal amounts of particles and anti-particles. But, where are the anti-particles? We do not know. Then, there is the fact that all the particles listed so far in the Standard Model only represent 4.6% of the mass-energy of the total Universe. What is the other 95%? We do not know. We call them Dark Energy and Dark Matter, but, what is it?
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- Lastly we believe that the Natural Constants are truly constant. But, are they? Have they changed over time since the Big Bang? Will they change in the future? Are they slightly different in other parts of the Universe?
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- We have not proof either way. We have no theory that can derive the fundamental constants from fundamental concepts. The weights and energies all seem arbitrary to us. We just know we need them to be what they are in order to have the Universe we have.
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- This investigation started in 400 B.C. when Democritus, a Greek philosopher, wrote that “ nothing exists ….. Except atoms and space.” In 500 B.C. Anaxigores had determined that the world was made from only 4 basic elements, earth, water, air and fire.
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- It was not until 1920 Einstein defined photons as quantum of energy and energy and mass the same thing. Energy is bigger than mass by a multiplier of 90,000,000,000,000,000, which is the speed of light squared.
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- In 1970 quarks were first defined in the Standard Model of Particles. The model was derived from mathematical laws and underlying symmetries that exist in our Universe.
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- The Large Hadron Collider in CERN, Switzerland, the largest energy particle collider ever built. Hopefully, some new particles are discovered and more understanding of the Natural Constants.
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- The Higgs particle is discovered for us to understand what is mass? Maybe, what is gravity? It is the most incomprehensible thing that we are in in a Universe reading and trying to comprehend it.
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--------------------------------- Other Reviews available:
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- 3015 - CONSTANTS - light to fine structure? The strangest thing about the Universal Constants is that if any were even slightly different we would not be here. If the Fine Structure Constant were to change even 4% carbon would not be produced in stellar fusion. If it were 1% instead of 0.7% all fusion would not take place in stars. Universal Constants are strange numbers but you can thank your lucky stars they are what they are.
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- 2651 - NATURAL CONSTANTS - are they changing? The constants in Nature are very interesting. We depend on them being constant in all our mathematical calculations and scientific understandings of how nature works. But, we do not know where the constants came from, how they are what they are, they just are. Now, questions are being asked, have they always been constant and are they changing?
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- 2487 - CONSTANTS - Are our Natural Constants Changing? The constants in Nature are very interesting. We depend on them being constant in all our mathematical calculations and scientific understandings of how nature works. But, we do not know where the constants came from, how they are what they are, they just are. Now, questions are being asked, have they always been constant and are they changing?
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- 1995 - The Natural Constants. How our physical world depends on constants in nature that are unchangeable throughout the Universe. How can we measure or derive these constants mathematically? How can we learn what they mean? Change just slightly and our Universe would not exist and you would not be reading this.
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- 1802 - The Natural Constants. How our physical world depends on constants in nature that are unchangeable throughout the Universe. How can we measure or derive these constants mathematically?
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- 1772 - Fine Structure Constant. A new standard for mass could be energy from atomic Cesium, E = h*f / c^2. Mass of an electron is 9.10938188*10^-31 kilograms. How accurate is the kilogram?
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- 1336 - Mystery of the Fine Structure Constant.
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- 938 - Gravity has by far the weakest coupling constant which is its strength of interaction.
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- 1108 - Forces of Nature: Strong = 1, , Electromagnetic = 1/137 = Alpha? = 0.007 . Weak = 10^-6 , Gravity = 10^-39.
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- 406 - Absolute zero temperature. T^2 = G * h / 2*pi*c^5
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- 368 - Time comes to us in particles 10^-43 seconds each.
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- 6 - Big Bang’s first creations.
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- May 14, 2021 CONSTANTS - in Nature’s particles? 1094 3156
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--------------------- --- Friday, May 14, 2021 ---------------------------
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