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2024-11-11

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Protons inside, electrons outside. But why not the other way around? (self.science)

submitted 9 months ago by netvor to c/science

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Every time I try to understand how forces which hold atoms and molecules together work, I find myself wanting to ask this question: why not the other way around? Could there be an atom which has electrons and neutrons inside, and protons outside?

It feels like a silly question, but is there something we know about the universe we live in that implies that this is not possible?

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[–] bjg13 2 points 9 months ago (1 children)

If anything, the universe seems to indicate that anything is possible in the multiverse, and that everything that is possible happens somewhere, mayhaps just in a locality we dont have access to. That being said, swapping an elementary particle like the electron for a proton made of quarks would involve corresponding changes to the way the forces worked, which might require a different spacetime geometry, or extra dimensions to make the math of the vibrational modes work. So, that's the most complex way I could think of to say there is no way to prove a negative. And those are all the words I know.

[–] netvor 5 points 9 months ago

Thing is, trying to do a complete swap, there's a point when the thought experiment kinda eats itself: you end up with a universe which is exactly the same, except the words "proton" and "neutron" are swapped.

The logic of it is fascinating in itself.