Nature Abhors a Vacuum – this is a popular term nowadays. It is typically used to express the idea of empty or unfilled spaces. They are considered as unnatural as they go against the law of physics and nature. But who said nature abhors a vacuum?
If you want to know who said this phrase, you will require to keep reading the article. Along with the name of the person who said it, we will also discuss some details about the phrase. So, keep going through the article for further information.
Who Said Nature Abhors a Vacuum?
The phrase Nature Abhors a Vacuum is a postulate attributed by Aristotle. In terms of direct translation, it means that nature hates the vacuum. As a result, there is no empty space anywhere in the world. Imagine, you have an empty bottle. But is it really empty? The answer is no. That is because there is air inside the bottle. With this phrase, Aristotle tried to express that nature doesn’t like a vacuum. As a result, it doesn’t allow anything with the vacuum.
The phrase is also known as horror vacui or plenism. The phrase was later criticized by the atomism of Lucretius and Epicurus. As per him, nature don’t contain any vacuum. That is because whenever there is an incipient void is created, denser surrounding material will immediately fill it.
Does Nature Really Abhors a Vacuum?
As per the explanation of physics, there is nothing truly empty in our environment with the low air pressure. The vacuum cleaner we utilize typically creates lower air pressure inside which allows the high pressure outside to be sucked inside. But that doesn’t mean that empty space has some power to suck. Instead, it is more like the matter of velocity. That is because the vacuum creates a lower density area and the air from higher-density outside escapes to it. That means nature doesn’t like empty space. It fills it immediately with something.
Now you may know that the outside space is like a vacuum. Considering our atmosphere as a non-vacuum, you might be wondering why our atmosphere is not sucked by space. You might think it is because of the lower air pressure. The main reason is gravity. As there is gravity, it cannot suck up the world.
An example can make things easier for you. Imagine you are standing with a glass bottle holding it on the earth. And, if the bottle is completely empty and if you vacuum out all the air inside it and seal the bottle, it should become a vacuum. Now, if you make a hole in the bottle, the air will rush inside it. Can you guess the reason? Well, it is the air pressure inside and outside.
You might not be realizing it always, but we are all on the earth’s surface are standing in an ocean of air. The air goes up for miles and the air molecules standing aside create an air pressure equivalent to 14.7 pounds per square inch at sea level. The higher you rise from the ground, the lower the pressure is. Another thing that prevents the sucking is the solar wind.
The Thought of Ancient Scientist About Vacuum
Aristotle did a lot of work about the vacuum. As Aristotle thought, there is no true empty space in our world. As per him, the vacuum of empty space is completely unnatural and it goes against the law of physics. But if there is nothing like this, then why do things stop once after setting them to motion? Aristotle was not fully incorrect and also not fully correct though.
Later, the idea of Aristotle was explained better with the formation of the theory of general relativity. Newton’s law of motion also helped to enhance it. Even some of the great minds worked on this concept and some of them even contested it. These include Blaise Pascal, Galileo Galilei, Thomas Hobbes, Sir Isaac Newton, Robert Boyle, Gottfried Leibniz, etc.
Is Space a Perfect Vacuum?
People talks a lot about the perfect vacuum. Unfortunately, it is quite impossible to create something equivalent to a perfect vacuum. In case you don’t know, it means a place or state where there is nothing, not even the air. You might be able to create something close to this but it will not be a 100% perfect vacuum. On the other hand, space is often considered a perfect vacuum? But is it so? Keep reading to know.
We will discuss a bit more about whether the space is a perfect vacuum or not. But first, let’s know whether it is possible to create a perfect vacuum or not. Although, it is theoretically possible, creating a perfect vacuum is impossible practically. In a perfect vacuum, there should be no matter particles and no photons. It is not possible to achieve something like this experimentally.
That is because you simply cannot remove all the matter from this as well as all the photons. Even if you do this, there will be virtual particles that will hop into the space and preventing it from becoming a 100% pure vacuum. Now let’s talk about whether the space is a perfect vacuum or not. The answer is the space cannot be a perfect vacuum because of the Uncertainty Principles.
As per these principles, the more precisely you acknowledge the value of the quantum field, the less precisely you would know its changing rate. So, if you take the value of a field completely zero, then its field of location will also be zero. There is another thing in the space known as the Higgs Field where there are particles with masses. As we know, there will be nothing like this in the perfect vacuum. That means the space cannot be a perfect vacuum.
Conclusion
The phrase “Nature Abhors a Vacuum” was said by Aristotle. As per a recent study, some scientists found some differences in it. As per the researchers from Tulane University, nature doesn’t always abhor a vacuum.
