Clips and Strips
An educational supplement for understanding the eternal relationship between atoms and energy.
An educational supplement for understanding the eternal relationship between atoms and energy.
Matter can change, but atoms are forever.
Energy can change, but the number of energy units is forever.
When matter and energy interact, both are changed – but the atoms and number of energy units are forever.
Since atoms are forever, we’re not running out of aluminum atoms. The aluminum atoms we mined from the Earth to use in making soda cans still exist in the soda cans – whether the cans are in the landfill or a recycling facility. We recycle soda cans because it takes a lot more energy (and thus money) to mine aluminum atoms from Earth than to re-use aluminum atoms at a recycling center.
Since energy units are forever, we can’t run out of energy. Energy can change forms, though, so the electrical energy from a power plant changes into light energy in light bulbs and then changes into heat in the environment. We still have the same amount of energy – it’s just not in the form we want any more.
Since atoms and energy units are forever, they can’t change into each other. Once an atom, always an atom; once an energy unit, always an energy unit. Exercising changes food molecules in your cells into carbon dioxide water molecules which you breathe and urinate out. All the atoms are still there – just not in your body any more so you weigh less.
These three examples deal with important societal and personal issues which we all have to make decisions about. BUT, the logic of the common reasoning is wrong for each example.
It’s not hard to correct your understanding of these issues if you apply the three foundational big ideas to them. Using this Clips and Strips module will help you gain a simple and clear understanding by using paper clips to represent atoms and paper strips to represent energy units.