Our bodies are constantly moving, even if we don’t understand it. We run through the wobbling planetary solar systems, confronting structural plate shifts, thrilling day and night in symphonies of autonomous and somatic function. You may feel dizzy, but life is constantly moving, leading to its basic components: molecules.
A molecule can be thought of as atoms that share electrons. They form visualizable electron bonds, like springs, and swing at a rate that corresponds to exposed thermal energy. Molecules are neither alive nor dead, but even when scientists try to do their damn damn things to take away their energy, they never stop moving. To unlock the reasons why molecules don’t stop moving, we must first clarify something a little easier before we get lost in the fundamental oddity of quantum mechanics. What is temperature?
In everyday life, the fierce weather may cool you down to the bones, and a drink of tea can warm your lips. When we talk about temperature, we often do so by referring to our own comfort levels, temperature regulation, or climate change. However, at the microscopic level, temperature measures the average kinetic energy of a molecule or particle of an object or matter. The hotter they are, the more they move. So, to “stop” them, you need to take away all the thermal energy to achieve absolute zero or zero Kelvin.
However, he said, “You can never completely separate a molecule from its environment.” Justin CaramAssociate Professor of Chemistry at the University of California in Los Angeles over the phone Popular science. “It’s always interacting with its environment, whether it knocks on other molecules in the air, or an atom, etc. — or whether it absorbs and re-radiates light.” Caram says, “You can temporarily cool things down and do very, very, very little movement. That’s how you define very low temperatures. But the principles of quantum mechanics cannot completely eliminate all movements in a system.”
but why?
Let’s start with the classically familiar factors of theatre here: Observer Effect. In this case, simply trying to measure something’s temperature can affect that temperature. He explained, “Molecules can interact with other things, including measuring devices.” AFJ LeviProfessor of Engineering, Physics and Astronomy at the University of Southern California; Popular science. But things become much more strange in quantum mechanics. The principle of uncertainty Each Levi will be included in the photo. Incidentally, we call our broader question about molecular movement “seemingly simple.”
When talking about how molecules move, this movement can be “separated into relative motion between the center of mass and the atoms,” explained Levy. “Because molecules are made up of bonded atoms, it is assumed that at least one lowest energy bond state exists (the idea that the lowest energy “ground state” exists is a very important assumption justified by experiments). ”
Levi proceeded to: “The mathematics of quantum mechanics can be thought of as linear algebra of non-conventional operators, which leads directly to the principle of uncertainty.
Levi’s reaction initially blurred my brain, so I spoke Caram again on the phone. That’s when he provided an explanation of Heisenberg at 101 level Chemistry The principle of uncertainty.
“The principle of uncertainty says that their position and momentum aren’t. Well, there’s a mathematical term. They say they don’t go to work. But what really means is that they can’t measure them at the same time.” The more accurate way to put it, column by column, has little to do with measurements. Essentially, he explained that “an object cannot own both properties at the same time.”
This is because quantum theory teaches you. Everything is wavesContains particles when you look closely enough.
When I began to exist Waves – Particle duality On the phone, Caram offers words of comfort. “This is just one of the fundamental, truly upsetting oddities about quantum mechanics,” Caram says. “[We] Matter should be described as waves. Likewise, that’s odd. Just thinking about it doesn’t really mean much to you or me, but mathematics and observation work. ”
I ask Caram if he thought about the constant movements happening within our bodies at the molecular and macro level, and he tells me he’s trying to make sure he doesn’t think about it. “It’s a bit uneasy to think about everything our bodies are doing. Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t know how to answer that.
Understood! sufficient! Beyond philosophical things, molecular motion also leads to the realm of sometimes buzzy quantum computing.
At UCLA, Caram said, “One of the areas of research we work in is related to the development of molecules that move as much as possible.” He proceeded as follows: “Obviously, like I said, there are fundamental limitations to it – basic limitations – but the more you slow down those molecules and control the state, the better you can do quantum algorithms and make quantum computers better.”
Humans can’t stop molecules from moving completely, but we are good at slowing them down very slowly. In fact, “we achieved a colder place on earth than anywhere else in the deep sea,” Caram said, “the deep sea always has what is known as microwave background radiation, so there is a temperature.” 2.7 Kelvin. )
Compare this to the coldest temperatures ever recorded in the lab. Kelvin’s 38 trillion – Or about -273.15 degrees Celsius. German scientists achieved this feat for just a few seconds in 2021. They were only seconds when they trapped zero gravity in a vacuum at the University of Bremen drop tower.
The universe itself is cooled when humans reach considerable length to push the limits of cold. It cites “kinetics, chemistry, nuclei, anything,” “born in all kinds of forms with a given amount of energy,” citing the Big Bang theory and the process by which things exchange heat with the environment, Thermal. Callum indulged in me, and his “very philosophical” view said, “As the universe expands, on an infinite, infinite timescale, you know – we will move slowly as things move less and less.” Still, the notion that everything has been widespread since the “early kick” of the Big Bang suggests that our lives on Earth are deep and unique activities. (Unless there’s space, uh… it starts contract Something. )
“What we’re really doing is kind of extreme fluctuations, and things just happen to move a little more to create complexity,” Callum said before everything falls apart. “But like I said, you can’t really stop moving, so it never stops moving completely.”
This story is part of popular science Please listen to any serieswe answer your most strange and awakened questions from normal to off-wall. Do you always have something you want to know? Ask us.
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