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Consequences Of A

Spring-And-Loop Theory 7:

The Atom

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by Floyd Maxwell, BASc


The Atom


"The more important fundamental laws and facts of physical science have all been discovered, and these are so firmly established that the possibility of their ever being supplanted in consequence of new discoveries is exceedingly remote."
- Michelson, 1903

Can be restated as:

The more dominant theories trying to describe the fundamental laws and facts of physical science have all been agreed upon, and these are so firmly locked in that the possibility of their ever being supplanted in consequence of new discoveries is exceedingly remote. Thank goodness!

When, in reality:

It is the nature of the scientific process that alternative theories are developed in order to account for new observations.
- Ed Stone, Voyager Project Scientist

 

Where to start

Spring-And-Loop Theory began life as a quest to figure out how gravity -- an "attractive" force -- worked. Across "empty" space.

The incompleteness and even abject lunacy of other theories meant something new was needed. Spring-And-Loop Theory was the result of holding out for something better.

COASALT 7: The Atom finds itself trying to answer the same question, but in the nucleus.

How does a proton "attract" an electron?

The conventional physics explanation of "positive attracts negative" simply can not be what is happening at the lowest levels. For one thing, if it was true, the nucleus and the electron would attract each other...until they touched. But not only do they not do this, they increasingly strongly repel each other.

So, "positive attracts negative...until it does the opposite"?

But who am I to express such blasphemy?

 


Science progresses when a good theory is superseded by an even better theory, and the most direct route to building a better theory is to be confronted by data that simply don't fit the old one.

- Sean Carroll

 

Lineage

My father began life with nothing. The British Air Force brought him everything, including training with the early instruments found in planes of that era. Flight instructor was the title on his discharge paperwork.

Going on to work in process control industries, Jayce was always one to take the first tenure perk and move on. Ever the self-made man, he knew that happiness came from a position of independence and freedom.

Eventually he found himself tasked with creating the BCIT instrumentation department. Interesting times followed. But, once again tenure-rejecting pop took early retirement. And bought an orchard.

 


Every scientist knows that the real fascination of research lies in the totally unexpected development, the revelation that tears the fabric of supposedly sacred theory.

- Julian Schwinger

 

Home life

Growing up was everything a kid could hope for. Trees to climb, sports to play (our basement stored gear for every sport, and six bicycles) and two parents that loved and supported us completely. The joy of working as a family came together around the massive oak kitchen table.

Jayce had his "peasant" wine, mom made homemade bread but dinner conversations were invariably state-of-the-art.

A science lover til his last breath, my father would start off with an innocent question or comment. My genius older brother would nod sagely, or weigh in with a new consideration. I was just happy to share the same table with them.

 


"Einstein's gravity will never be proven wrong."
- Brian Koberlein


The quality that dominated Einstein's personality was a very great and genuine modesty.  When anybody contradicted him he thought it over and if he found he was wrong he was delighted, because he felt that he had escaped from an error and that now he knew better than before.
- Otto Frisch


 

Formative years

Luckily my father never pushed me to "get good grades".

Memorizing was particularly frowned upon by the former flight instructor. I think dad enjoyed thinking more than anything, so shunning the regurgitative approach was just good form.

Gradually it became clear to me that theories were liberating.

 


A knowledge of the historic and philosophical background of science gives independence from prejudices from which most scientists are suffering.  This independence created by philosophical insight is the mark of distinction between a mere artisan or specialist, and a real seeker after truth.
- Albert Einstein

 

Orchard life

In 1975 the family moved from the city to a small orchard.

Sounding like a great idea, it quickly dawned on everyone that there was a lot of work to be done.

The tractor, a 1939 Ford Ferguson, had a hand crank. There was a well in the basement. And 350 fruit trees needed year-round care.

 


The crippling of individuals I consider the worst evil of capitalism. Our whole educational system suffers from this evil. An exaggerated competitive attitude is inculcated into the student, who is trained to worship material success as a preparation for his future career.

- Albert Einstein

 

Missing a leg

The vehicle of an orchard is the ladder. That has just three legs.

Yikes!

Naturally we had never seen such a beast. Up to 14 feet tall, the intimidation factor was substantial. But in proportion to our age.

The youngest couldn't wait to start climbing...and eating. A ladder, any ladder, would do the trick. Let's go!

 


It is in fact nothing short of a miracle that modern methods of instruction have not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry; for this delicate little plant, aside from stimulation, stands mainly in need of freedom; without this it goes to wrack and ruin without fail.
- Albert Einstein

 

The don'ts...

Our parents were way ahead of us. They had seen the hills in the orchard, and had already tried climbing the ladders. Visions of us falling were enough to prompt a series of rules.

1) We were barred from using the 14 foot ladder. Fine with us. Couldn't lift it, anyway.

2) We had to "take it easy". Easily ignored.

3) We had to bear the indignity of parental inspection after each ladder placement. Rats, a non-maskable interrupt.

 


One can organize to apply a discovery already made but not to make one. Only a free individual can make a discovery.

- Albert Einstein

 

Eureka!

Then I discovered a better way.

It involved a simple principle:
a) looking through your ladder from the step side
b) position yourself so that the third leg is evenly spaced between the two step-side supports
c) if the third leg is vertical from that viewpoint, you're golden.

And that was it.

 


There is no money in a new theory, especially one better than an old one.

The United States has a government controlled to a large extent by financiers, the mentality of whom is near to the fascist frame of mind.

- Albert Einstein

 

Hard sell

Once realized, ladder setting became a trivial exercise. Even on the steepest slopes, or narrowest gaps into the tree. I would just throw the middle leg forward, then pick up and move the other two legs until the third leg was centered, and vertical.

Except my parents didn't get it.

Ladder setting would take 5 seconds. Parental inspection would take 2 minutes. All the while I would be explaining that I knew the ladder was safe.

Wasted words.

 


 

Fast forward forty years

Today we have one seriously complicated universe. Or maybe an infinity of them.

     Or a very simple universe.

Particle families. Spin, color & flavor. Shape-shifting neutrinos.

     Or springs and loops.

Four forces. Five if you count quintessence.

     Or just variations on one force.

 


It must be remembered that there is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, nor more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things. Because the innovator has for enemies all those who have done well under the old conditions, and lukewarm defenders in those who may do well under the new.

- Niccolo Machiavelli

 

Solar system science

Spring-And-Loop Theory has replaced:

"The planets orbit the Sun
because space is curved."

with:

The Universal Matrix of springs
is contracted by matter loops.

Sub-atomic system science

The same concept holds true at atomic scales.

"Electrons orbit a nucleus because
they are attracted to the nucleus."

is replaced by:

Electron spring-loop systems follow
nucleus-curved pathways amidst the springs.

Collision avoidance, redux

COASALT 5: Gravity said that:
"collisions do not occur because each spring-loop system is saturated.  Think of each like a ball of duct tape that has been used as a soccer ball for a week -- it ain't got no stickum left in it."

"The two spring-loop systems still "attract" each other (by contracting spring space) but do not stay together because there is too much "fluff" (i.e. springs) stuck to them, to the point where they have no sticky left."

"In fact, this is the most powerfully repellant "fluff" in the Universe.  Hence the reason that the electron-nuclear repulsion goes toward infinite strength as the two get closer together."

Is this the dawning of...?

This is where things either get very clear and simple.

Or.

The "heh, what abouts" come to town.


A theory is the more impressive the greater the simplicity of its premises, the more different kinds of things it relates, and the more extended its area of applicability.
- Albert Einstein

Heh, what about...

...all those different quarks?

...hadrons, baryons, mesons and muons?

...bosons and fermions?

 


Of all the communities available to us, there is not one I would want to devote myself to except for the society of the true searchers, which has very few living members at any one time.

- Albert Einstein

 

First stage - two types of "stuff"

There are particles

and

there are bumps.

An electron is a particle.

A photon is a bump.

A proton is a particle.

An x-ray is a bump.

A muon is an unstable particle.

A wave is a series of bumps.

 

 


As a boy of twelve years making my acquaintance with elementary mathematics, I was thrilled in seeing that it was possible to find out truth by reasoning alone, without the help of any outside experience. I became more and more convinced that even nature could be understood as a relatively simple mathematical structure.
- Albert Einstein

 

Second stage - admit defeat

This might hurt a little but...

We know a lot less than we think we do.

It is as if we have been busily cataloging smoke signals.

We assumed that once we had enough different signals, we would be able to crack the code and actually know the mind of smoke.

In reality we needed to discover the message behind the signals.

 


Nobel Laureate David J. Gross says physics is in need of a revolution


 

Third stage - models and sims

Once you have the message, the smoke no longer matters.

The "smoke" of our universe is being propagated by springs, and loops, of energy.

Once we know that, the next step is to build a feature-complete simulation.

 


The money spent by television documentaries on "blinding explosion" graphics should about cover it.  Or one-tenth of 1% of the LHC's operating budget for this year, or next.

 

Fourth stage - sayonara, quantum mechanics

QM is a placeholder. Like "dark matter", it is ignorance named.

"Probability" explains nothing. "Can't know" is a cop out.

Yes, there is a quantum world.
No, quantum mechanics doesn't explain it.

 


A physical theory can be satisfactory only if its structures are composed of elementary foundations.
- Albert Einstein

 

Picking a basis

Engineering calculations begin with a basis. One thing the atomic basis is not? The "nucleus".

Presently we think a hydrogen atom is "a flea in the center of a stadium, with another flea going around the outside of the stadium."

This is a wonderful analogy. And intuitively reasonable as it roughly mirrors the planets orbiting the Sun. All that it leaves for us to figure out is what the other 99.999% is.

 


This man loved mysterious Nature as a lover loves his distant beloved. In Faraday's day there did not yet exist the dull specialization that, through horn-rimmed glasses and arrogance, destroys the poetry.
- Albert Einstein

 

Giving the Standard Model a chance

To the question "What's the Energy Density of the Vacuum?", John Baez gives five answers:
	1. VERY CLOSE TO ZERO
	2. INFINITY
	3. ENORMOUS BUT FINITE
	4. ZERO
	5. NOT DETERMINED

 


Geometry is the most ancient branch of physics. Without it I would have been unable to formulate the theory of relativity.

- Albert Einstein

 

Giving Planck a chance

Planck's constant defines our basis: the spring size.

This is the true "atomic unit".


The central mystery in quantum theory involves Planck's constant.  Its value has been calculated from measurements using different quantum phenomena.  The question is: "why do the different methods agree? Why is the "grain size" of our slightly fuzzy universe a universal constant?
- Edward Speyer*

Touring the Planck world

Planck gives us the building block size.

What else do we know or can we reasonably infer about the atomic world? That it must be geometrical.

COASALT 6: 222 Answers stated this. This paper elaborates.

 


Describing the physical laws without reference to geometry is similar to describing our thoughts without words.
- Albert Einstein

 

Components of an atom

Spring-And-Loop Theory creates an atom with just two components.

Given the complexity of the Standard Model, it can be a bit daunting to try to visualize an atom, in its entirety, with such minimal building blocks. But consider Einstein's thought on the subject:

Although it is true that it is the goal of science to discover rules which permit the association and foretelling of facts, this is not its only aim.  It also seeks to reduce the connections discovered to the smallest possible number of mutually independent conceptual elements.  It is in this striving after the rational unification of the manifold that it encounters its greatest successes. - Albert Einstein

Spring-And-Loop Theory is irreducible, both in scale, and in number of components. This doesn't, by itself, make Spring-And-Loop Theory correct. But it does make it the simplest possible "theory of everything".

 

Reminder

Relativity (a) breaks at endpoints, (b) doesn't work with quantum mechanics and (c) doesn't unify the four forces.

Quantum mechanics is (a) incomplete at best, (b) not fundamental, opting instead for a probability approach, (c) could be called a "best guess" approach, (d) could also be filed under "correlation is not causation".

We need what chemistry has -- a simple model of the things we study. Given that physicists study everything, we need a simple model...of everything.

Enough with the particle smashing. Enough with looking for the oldest galaxy, or the heaviest black hole. And take the CMB and Big Bang out to the shed for a good whooping.

Look beyond any theory that breaks. There simply has to be something better, because life is not broken.

 


If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.
- Nikola Tesla

 

First the fleas

The nucleus and the orbiting electrons are the easy part. Let's define them first before looking deeper.

The Universal Matrix of Planck-scale ultra energetic springs is everywhere. Any time there is a matter loop, there is automatically a spring-loop interaction.

Spring-loop systems behave differently than the springs-only Universal Matrix. Specifically, spring-loop systems contract spring space. Or, in old fashioned terms, "mass bends space".

First and second fleas

The electron is a spring-loop system.

The nucleus is also a spring-loop system.

The difference between them is more scale than anything else. As a simplification, think of "quantity of mass" as "number of loops".

Cloning Barnum & Bailey

So what brings the electron and nucleus together?

Spring-And-Loop Theory says it is exactly the same force that brings planets and the Sun "together". Gravity.

Gravity "warps" space. Curving it. Causing a circular orbit to be the "straightest" distance between two points.

 


Newton's laws are wrong in the world of atoms because things on a small scale behave nothing like things on a large scale.
- Richard Feynman

 

Not an exact copy

Spring-And-Loop Theory says gravity holds things together at the atomic scale as well.

As an analogy, think of the atomic nucleus as the Sun, and the electron like the planet Mercury, or maybe a comet.

Where the analogy breaks down is when it comes to contact.

House rules: no rough stuff

A comet can hit the Sun but an electron can't hit the nucleus.

Why the difference?

Scale is the key to conceptualizing this.

At the Solar System scale, Planck-scale springs are vanishingly small. Other than being part of (spring-loop) bent space, they have little to no effect on planets.


When we say that we understand a group of natural phenomena, we mean that we have found a constructive theory that embraces them.
- Albert Einstein

Nuclear battlefield

At the Planck scale of the nucleus, springs are a more substantial influence.

Springs not bound to a loop are still mainly space-benders. But they are also more noticeable randomizers; causing those "quantum jitters". Though Spring-And-Loop Theory prefers to think of them as cement vibrators.

As evidenced by the "less than one part in 100,000" variance of the cosmic microwave background, spring energy is highly uniform. Not random, just independent and on an extremely small scale.

Springs bound to loops (i.e. "sub atomic particles") are like Abrams tanks on the battlefield. Rough riding, but rarely dismembered.

Tank ballet

Spring-loop systems are tightly bound -- high test steel.

Spring-loop systems have springs on their outer layer that are partially bound -- repulsive armor.

Spring-loop systems are self-contained -- quantum tanks.

Spring-loop systems are "pseudo random, with a common purpose" -- autonomous units, within a galactic fighting force.


When two theories are available and both are compatible with the facts, then there are no other criteria to prefer one over the other except the intuition of the researcher. So one can understand why intelligent scientists, cognizant both of theories and of facts, can still be passionate adherents of opposing theories.

- Albert Einstein

The rest of the squadron

In comparing the known properties of protons and neutrons, Spring-And-Loop Theory imagines that a proton simply does a better job of attracting an electron.

Possibly by being less repulsive.

Given that a neutron decays to a proton plus an electron**, Rutherford's intuition that a neutron was

"a neutral double consisting of an electron orbiting a proton"
is similar to what Spring-And-Loop Theory thinks as well.

The difference between them probably comes down to how the springs interact with the loops. Two different ways to knot a rope, or alternate hand holds on a merry-go-round. [More]

Stability is harmony

Atomic stability can also be surmised.

There are regions of the Solar System where things are stable enough to support a planet, and others where things are not.

Classically defined as the electron degeneracy pressure, the Standard Model decrees that electron (or in general fermion) spin sets a limit.

Spring-And-Loop Theory says it more simply: sub-atomic particles don't like to be crowded, and some more so than others.

 


In living through this "great epoch", it is difficult to reconcile oneself to the fact that one belongs to that mad, degenerate species that boasts of its free will.  How I wish that somewhere there existed an island for those who are wise and of good will!  In such a place even I should be an ardent patriot!
- Albert Einstein

 

Politics already has enough spin

Rather than a property of "spin", it is more a matter of how springs interact with loops.

Like the difference between a neutron and a proton, different sub-atomic particles have:

  • different quantities of loops (i.e. relative sizes),
  • different ratios of springs to loops (i.e. relative stability),
  • and different degrees of attachment of the outer layers of springs (i.e. relative degrees of reactivity).

In the lowest electron orbital -- 1s -- the nucleus-electron system is only happy with two electrons. A third one doesn't enter because (a) increased electron-electron interaction immediately drives one of them away or (b) the degree of spring curvature prevents a third from entering 1s in the first place.

Diminishing effects

As the atomic orbitals increase, their distance from the nucleus grows. Low Earth orbit supports a smaller number of satellites than Geostationary orbit does. But at some point, the orbits are so distant that edge effects easily break up the party.

Where the Earth-Moon system is a single "atom", most materials contain atoms numbering in the trillions, or quintillions.

Springs are both ultra energetic and ever present, and are attached to each atom. At the highest orbital levels, the jostling with other atoms can easily drive electrons away. With the outer electrons gone, the stability of the nucleus is affected, and it splits into two or more smaller sizes.

 


Quantity does not make up for quality.

- Albert Einstein
Quantity of LHC collisions recorded does not make up for the lack of quality in the Standard Model, or quantum mechanical, theory.

 

Turning away the talent

The Standard Model endlessly accumulates particles, in families, sorted by properties. It also endlessly accumulates conundrums.

Spring-And-Loop Theory continues to discard unneeded parts. Simplifying...and unifying.

But not to worry. Those parts are not truly gone. They'll be CGI'd into place at a later date.

 


When I was young I found out that the big toe always ends up making a hole in a sock.  So I stopped wearing socks.
- Albert Einstein

 

Finish work is for subtrades

Spring-And-Loop Theory is just a framework.

A model. A notion. A thought.

It is not trying for a famous equation, nor ingratiation.

Just simplicity, and something that doesn't break.

 


I still struggle with the same
problems as ten years ago.

- Albert Einstein


 

Ode to freedom

The building won't rise quickly.
   It'll take twenty years or more.
Young bodies, if not young minds,
    will be needed to build each floor.

 


Older people who have scarcely anything to lose ought to be willing to speak out on behalf of those who are young and who are subject to much greater restraint.
- Albert Einstein

 

Demo suites now showing

Space is available!
 


 


 

Footnote:

* - More from Edward Speyer's "Six Roads From Newton":

"Quantum mechanics exists in at least four different formalisms:
- Schrodinger's wave equations,
- Heisenberg's matrices,
- Dirac's postulational approach using complex vectors,
- Feynman's path integrals (least action).

In each of these quite different formulations, h is introduced arbitrarily, empirically. Planck's constant enters into almost every quantum calculation.

Sometimes it cancels out, and remains hidden, but it is always lurking nearby. Quantum electrodynamics (QED) centers on incorporating h into formulation of Maxwell's equations.

If the value of h is taken as zero, the equations of classical physics appear; that is, quantum phenomena approach classical cases as h is reduced in value.

This proposition is called the Correspondence principle of quantum theory.

But the ultimate significance of h, or whether it even has such a significance, remains a mystery.

Many physicists think such speculation is a waste of time. h is there; use it, don't ask foolish questions.

But some of us insist: predictions without explanations are not enough; there must be more."

pp. 147-149 [green emphasis added]

 


 
** - A neutron decays to a proton plus an electron plus an electron antineutrino.

Neutrinos continue to challenge Spring-And-Loop Theory.

Best guestimate?
The various neutrinos are spring-dominated systems.

Wildest guestimate?
Neutrino liberation is one of, if not the, direct cause of the expansion of the Universe.


 


 

COASALT

Introduction

The Speed Of Light   Black Holes   Einstein's Equation   The Ether   Gravity
222 Answers   The Atom   Quantum World   Neutrino   Black Holes Revisited
The Comedy Of Science   et=mc3   Comparing Physics Theories
Diffuse Interstellar Bands   Einstein's Ether Talk   No Strong Force
The Electron   Relativity   Unification   Assumptions   Modeling   The Greatest Story  
 

My Theory
 

Physics Quotes & Thoughts

Big Bang   Dark Matter/Dark Energy   Dogma   Forget The Fields   Math Sucks   Particle Physics   Peer Review   Standard Model   Star Gazing   String Theory   tEmP Theories/Theorists   The Control System   Trolls  
 


 


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