4 ms·
energy != mass; e=mc^2 declares there is a proportional relationship between energy and mass while the speed of light, c, squared is the constant of proportiona
by smithza 5y ago
energy != mass; e=mc^2 declares there is a proportional relationship between energy and mass while the speed of light, c, squared is the constant of proportionality.
- carlob 5y agoYou can set c to 1 if you want, then energy == mass. As a matter of fact this is pretty common in particle physics where all masses are given in electronvolts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geometrized_unit_system https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geometrized_unit_system
- PeterisP 5y ago"there is a proportional relationship between energy and mass" -> exactly. the mass of the system is strictly proportional to its total energy, and changes in the energy of a system will have a corresponding proportional effect on its mass. If you split the system into two components and release X energy, then the two components will weigh X/c^2 less than the whole system did; if splitting the system consumed X energy, then the separate components will weigh X/c^2 more than the original thing.