What is Gravity? How Does it Work & What Are Effects?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the nature of gravity, its origins at the atomic level, and its effects on light and matter. Participants explore concepts related to General Relativity, the bending of light by massive objects, and the implications of black holes.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant inquires about the source of gravity at the atomic level and its attraction to other matter, particularly in relation to black holes and light.
  • Another participant asserts that light is bent by any object with mass, though the effect is negligible unless the mass is large.
  • A participant explains that General Relativity describes gravity as a curvature of spacetime caused by mass and energy, leading to attraction between objects.
  • It is noted that gravity is not emitted from a specific point on an atom but rather from the entire atom or its constituent particles.
  • One participant references the historical test of General Relativity involving the bending of light around the Sun during an eclipse.
  • A clarification is made that the eclipse did not change the path of light but made the bending observable.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express various viewpoints on the nature of gravity and its effects, with no consensus reached on the specifics of how gravity operates at the atomic level or the implications of light bending.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes technical aspects of General Relativity and the nature of gravitational attraction, which may depend on specific definitions and assumptions about mass and energy. Some mathematical details remain unresolved.

Nash Su
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How does gravity work? I want to know where gravity comes from on the atom and how it attracts other matter towards it. Also the black hole gravity is so strong that not even light can escape it. Does this mean that light is being lightly bend when it passes another star/planet?
 
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Nash Su said:
Does this mean that light is being lightly bend when it passes another star/planet?

Yes.

Technically, light is bent by ANY object with mass, but of course unless the mass is large, the amount of bend is negligible.

I personally bend light all the time, but like many of my efforts, the effect is negligible.
 
Nash Su said:
How does gravity work? I want to know where gravity comes from on the atom and how it attracts other matter towards it. Also the black hole gravity is so strong that not even light can escape it. Does this mean that light is being lightly bend when it passes another star/planet?

This is a very big subject. Currently our main theory of gravitation is General Relativity. GR says that mass and energy cause a curvature of spacetime which results in objects "attracting" each other. The reason why this results in an attraction is fairly technical and involves a lot of math you most likely have never seen or heard of before. I don't even know it very well myself, so I cannot explain it.

Anything with mass or energy will gravitate, so the force isn't being "emitted" by a specific spot on an atom, but by the whole atom. (Or, if you prefer, from each subatomic particle that composes the atom)

Interestingly, one of the first tests of Einsteins Genral Theory of Relativity was to measure the change in the path of light around the Sun during an eclipse.
 
Drakkith said:
Interestingly, one of the first tests of Einsteins Genral Theory of Relativity was to measure the change in the path of light around the Sun during an eclipse.

Just to clarify a possible misunderstanding for the reader: It's not that the eclipse changed the path of the light. It would have changed anyway, but the eclipse made it observable.
 

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