Wikijunior talk:Particles/Particle theory

Alcohol?
Perhaps it would be better to suggest another liquid like syrup or glycerine instead of alcohol, as under-12's are not likely to be given quantities of pure alcohol to experiment with in class. Recent Runes (talk) 00:13, 3 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Really? I'm just 12, and we were given alcohol to experiment in class... Kayau ( talk &#124; email &#124; contribs ) 10:42, 3 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Your experience is more up to date than mine - so I concede this point. Recent Runes (talk) 18:23, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

Light particles?
I thought light could behave like a wave or particle - e.g. in solar cells or heat emission from a hot body. What you are really asking is not "what is true?", but "what have we said so far about the particle theory?". Recent Runes (talk) 00:13, 3 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Our teacher says that light is not matter.
 * I've read that photons have no weight.
 * I don't understand what you mean about 'what is true'.
 * Thanks Kayau ( talk &#124; email &#124; contribs ) 10:43, 3 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Well, according to the Wikipedia article on photons, light can be understood both as a wave and as a particle and the question of whether the light photon has any mass is an experimental question which is not finally settled. I suppose I am trying to inject some caution into any hard and fast statements about what we really know for sure about matter and light. Our knowledge may be quite good but it is not perfect, and it probably never will be. This means that anyone reading the book is not really in a position to answer the question "Is it true that light is not made of particles?". The issue is more complicated than the material in the book suggests, so it is unreasonable to expect readers to produce an answer. Recent Runes (talk) 18:47, 3 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Then we shouldn't let the readers take in unverified info... OK, then, let's let it be that way, and ASSUME that light is not made of particles. Kayau ( talk &#124; email &#124; contribs ) 01:11, 4 July 2010 (UTC)

Note that User:Whoop whoop pull up has just replaced "Light is not made of particles" with "Sound is not made of particles", with the slightly glib, but of course cogent (as this thread atests), edit summary "I take it you have never heard of PHOTONS?". An even more glib (perhaps even smart-alecky) response to that question might be "I take it you have never heard of PHONONS?"

The important question seems to be whether a quantum can be said to be "not a particle". (And if the answer is "no", then is there anything that can ever be said to be not a particle?)

Many years ago I took a class on quantum mechanics, and one day in class one of the students (there were only about a dozen of us, I think) asked a question about photons. The professor promised he'd ask around the department faculty lounge. Next week he reported back to us that, to his surprise, he'd gotten as many different answers as he'd gotten answers, and one was a claim that there are no such things as photons. --Pi zero (discuss • contribs) 02:04, 18 April 2011 (UTC)


 * Okay, fine. Light and sound may or may be not be made of particles, but heat definitely is not.  And if it is, I will scream. --Whoop whoop pull up Bitching Betty 13:20, 18 April 2011 (UTC)