Re: Proof for atoms?

[John Mallinckrodt <ajmallinckro@CSUPOMONA.EDU>]

On Wed, 17 Apr 2002, John S. Denker wrote:

> ... I was however impressed by how big the oil slick was.
> Atoms are pretty darn small!

One of my favorite illustrations of this very hard to
overemphasize point is to consider the length of the line that
would be formed if you took all of the atoms in the tip of your
little finger (i.e., beyond the last joint) and (somehow) set them
side by side. Compare your result to some well known length and
explain why your answer necessarily means that atoms are REALLY
small.

John Mallinckrodt      mailto:ajm@csupomona.edu
Cal Poly Pomona          http://www.csupomona.edu/~ajm