Actually Jed, the mass change can be measured. Of course this is not
done using a laboratory scales. However, if the mass and energy of the
individual particles resulting from the nuclear reaction are measured,
the numbers add up correctly.
Ed
On Sep 30, 2013, at 12:19 PM, Jed Rothwell wrote:
H Veeder <[email protected]> wrote:
Does it necessarily follow that every mass-energy conversion must
have a nuclear _origin_? The answer is no
because if the principle of mass-energy equivalency is applied
rigorously to chemical reactions, some mass-energy conversion will
occur although it can be safely ignored because the amount converted
is vanishingly small.
All sources and forms of energy always convert mass to energy,
always in the same ratio. That includes all mechanical, chemical and
nuclear energy.
As far as I know, it is not yet possible to measure the lost mass
from any energy system. Even a reaction with Pu-238 lasting many
years would not produce a measurable change in mass.
Other tiny relativistic effects have been measured, such as the time
change in an atomic clock moved 20 meters down closer to the earth.
This is caused by increased gravitational force.
- Jed
