The Ultimate Question

MRCHEM

it is said in our book that when matter undergoes changes whether physicaly or chemically, the atoms are merely rearranged. no atom is created nor destroyed. (the law of conservation of mass)

but what if i have a big bomb that can blow up earth and then vanish completely how can be atoms be rearranged if they are destroyed

Universe_Man

Show me a bomb that can destroy matter..... That's the thing right there, matter cannot be destroyed, it can only change form or be rearranged.

Gokul43201

Well, you don't! Bombs do not destroy atoms - they only disperse them.

tieu

oo bombs dont? interesting. disperse means separate? sory for the english

kV the Student

Exactly. =)

WARGREYMONKKTL

how about he has a booms that when it exploded it will make the matter become anti-matter and it means that the atoms will be vanished because we talk about conservation law only applies for matter. can you answer me that antimatter will follow the conservation law too? i am crazy to put that question on, but please have athought of it! :)

Hootenanny

Again, do you know of such a bomb? Conservation of mass holds for anti-matter particles also.

Borek

Just don't forget that mass can be transformed to energy. It is not just conservation of mass, it is conservation of mass AND energy.

Best,
Borek
--
General Chemistry Software
www.pH-meter.info

Hootenanny

Good catch.

h.g.Whiz

Okay lets pretend your bomb can blow up earth, and you are safe some where other than earth when the bomb explodes. And earth is shattered into bits and pieces. Your bomb is no match for earth's gravity. Earth would just form back together. Of course it would be dramaticly altered, but indeed still there.

Riogho

Just because it is anti-matter doesn't mean it's anti mass.

It doesn't mean it negative mass, simply negative matter :P

Kind of like an electron has a charge of -1, it isn't LACKING a charge, it simply has an opposite charge of +1.

So anti-matter isn't lacking matter, it's just got a property that causes it to burst into energy at the acquantance of matter.

And that energy will be equal to E=mc^2 (plus the momentum stuff I don't want to write out).

Thus, the conservation of energy :D

russ_watters

A year and a half old thread that isn't any less pointless today than then. Locked.