Feynman 2-2.2: The Machinery of Interaction

Chicago rap, soulful hip hop, spoken word, profound, deep voice

[Intro: Warm Piano Loop - Vinyl Crackle]
[Drums kick in - Crisp and Laid back]
(The Machinery...)
(Of Interaction...)

[Verse 1: The Question]
The next part of the problem was...
What are the short-range forces?
Why does carbon attract one oxygen?
Or perhaps two oxygens... but not three oxygens?
What is the machinery of interaction between atoms?
Is it gravitation?
(The answer is no.)
Gravity is entirely too weak.

[Chorus: The New Force]
But imagine a force analogous to gravity.
Varying inversely with the square of the distance.
But enormously more powerful!
And having one difference...
In gravity... everything attracts everything else.
But now imagine... that there are two kinds of "things."
(Two kinds...)
Likes repel.
But unlikes attract.
(Unlikes attract.)
The "thing" that carries this strong interaction...
Is called Charge.
(Electric Charge.)

[Verse 2: The Balance]
Then what do we have?
Suppose that we have two unlikes that attract each other.
A plus and a minus.
And that they stick very close together.
Suppose we have another charge some distance away.
Would it feel any attraction?
(Practically none.)
It would feel practically none.
Because if the first two are equal in size...
The attraction for the one... and the repulsion for the other...
Balance out.
(They balance out.)

[Bridge: Seeing Inside - Swirling Keys]
Therefore... there is very little force at any appreciable distance.
But if we get very close with the extra charge...
Attraction arises.
Because the repulsion of likes... and attraction of unlikes...
Will tend to bring unlikes closer together.
And push likes farther apart.
They can "see inside" each other.
(See inside...)
And rearrange their charges.
The ultimate basis of an interaction between the atoms...
Is electrical.
(It is electrical.)

[Verse 3: The Accident]
Since this force is so enormous...
All the plusses and all minuses will normally come together.
In as intimate a combination as they can.
All things... even ourselves!
Are made of fine-grained... enormously strongly interacting plus and minus parts.
All neatly balanced out.
(Neatly balanced.)
Once in a while... by accident...
We may rub off a few minuses... or a few plusses.
And in those circumstances... we find the force of electricity unbalanced.
And we can then see the effects... of these electrical attractions.

[Outro: The Scale - Music Swells]
To give an idea of how much stronger electricity is than gravitation...
Consider two grains of sand.
A millimeter across.
Thirty meters apart.
If the force between them were not balanced...
If everything attracted everything else...
How much force would there be?
(How much force?)
There would be a force...
Of three million tons!
(Three. Million. Tons.)
Between the two.
So few particles are involved...
That they hardly make a difference in the weight.
(Three million tons...)
[Fade to silence]

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[Intro: Warm Piano Loop - Vinyl Crackle] [Drums kick in - Crisp and Laid back] (The Machinery...) (Of Interaction...) [Verse 1: The Question] The next part of the problem was... What are the short-range forces? Why does carbon attract one oxygen? Or perhaps two oxygens... but not three oxygens? What is the machinery of interaction between atoms? Is it gravitation? (The answer is no.) Gravity is entirely too weak. [Chorus: The New Force] But imagine a force analogous to gravity. Varying inversely with the square of the distance. But enormously more powerful! And having one difference... In gravity... everything attracts everything else. But now imagine... that there are two kinds of "things." (Two kinds...) Likes repel. But unlikes attract. (Unlikes attract.) The "thing" that carries this strong interaction... Is called Charge. (Electric Charge.) [Verse 2: The Balance] Then what do we have? Suppose that we have two unlikes that attract each other. A plus and a minus. And that they stick very close together. Suppose we have another charge some distance away. Would it feel any attraction? (Practically none.) It would feel practically none. Because if the first two are equal in size... The attraction for the one... and the repulsion for the other... Balance out. (They balance out.) [Bridge: Seeing Inside - Swirling Keys] Therefore... there is very little force at any appreciable distance. But if we get very close with the extra charge... Attraction arises. Because the repulsion of likes... and attraction of unlikes... Will tend to bring unlikes closer together. And push likes farther apart. They can "see inside" each other. (See inside...) And rearrange their charges. The ultimate basis of an interaction between the atoms... Is electrical. (It is electrical.) [Verse 3: The Accident] Since this force is so enormous... All the plusses and all minuses will normally come together. In as intimate a combination as they can. All things... even ourselves! Are made of fine-grained... enormously strongly interacting plus and minus parts. All neatly balanced out. (Neatly balanced.) Once in a while... by accident... We may rub off a few minuses... or a few plusses. And in those circumstances... we find the force of electricity unbalanced. And we can then see the effects... of these electrical attractions. [Outro: The Scale - Music Swells] To give an idea of how much stronger electricity is than gravitation... Consider two grains of sand. A millimeter across. Thirty meters apart. If the force between them were not balanced... If everything attracted everything else... How much force would there be? (How much force?) There would be a force... Of three million tons! (Three. Million. Tons.) Between the two. So few particles are involved... That they hardly make a difference in the weight. (Three million tons...) [Fade to silence]

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