Re: Mass/Energy

[Rick Tarara <rtarara@SAINTMARYS.EDU>]

Jim,

Just one question--over there, in your little corner of the universe, just
what IS REAL?  ;-)

Rick

*********************************************************
Richard W. Tarara
Professor of Physics
Saint Mary's College
Notre Dame, Indiana
rtarara@saintmarys.edu
********************************************************
Free Physics Educational Software (Win & Mac)
NEW: Animations for PowerPoint
         Animation updates
         International Energy Management Simulator
www.saintmarys.edu/~rtarara/software.html
Energy 2100--class project
www.saintmarys.edu/~rtarara/ENERGY_PROJECT/ENERGY2100.htm
********************************************************
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jim Green" <JMGreen@SISNA.COM>

> Properties
> Many of our topics in physics have "properties" associated with them.
> Some
> of which we have a tendency to reify.  Consider an arbitrary system --
> maybe one of Dick's blocks:  It has a temperature, shape, color, density,
> etc., etc.  We would never say that temperature flows or that blue
> flows --
> we might notice that blue ink smears, but it is the ink that moves not
> blue
> per se.  We have also invented other properties of a system: e.g., mass,
> momentum, work, energy, entropy, etc., etc.  (And while we are at it note
> that we have also invented the idea of photons, which are not real.  But
> because my synapses are still warped, electrons may be.)  Some properties
> have special characteristics:  e.g., energy seems to be conserved.  But
> NONE of these  properties should be reified; None of them moves,
> transports, converts, etc., etc.
>
>
> Jim