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LarryOnline
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Question on Passage in "Six Easy Pieces"
I am reading Feynman's Six Easy Pieces. In chapter 2, Basic Physics, he describes electric charge attraction/repulsion.
Here's an excerpt (from the bottom of page 28 in my edition):
"Suppose that we have two unlikes that attract each other, a plus and a minus, and that they stick very close together. Suppose we have another charge some distance away. Would it feel any attraction? It would feel practically none, because if the first two are equal in size, the attraction for the one and the repulsion for the other balance out. On the other hand, if we get very close with the extra charge, attraction arises, because the repulsion of likes and attraction of unlikes will tend to bring unlikes closer together and push likes further apart. Then the repulsion will be less than the attraction. "
My question is this: If electric charges are elemental, with the plus and minus being equal but opposite to the minus, how can the two unlike charges end up attracting another charge? This implies that one charge is slightly different than another, no?
I am reading Feynman's Six Easy Pieces. In chapter 2, Basic Physics, he describes electric charge attraction/repulsion.
Here's an excerpt (from the bottom of page 28 in my edition):
"Suppose that we have two unlikes that attract each other, a plus and a minus, and that they stick very close together. Suppose we have another charge some distance away. Would it feel any attraction? It would feel practically none, because if the first two are equal in size, the attraction for the one and the repulsion for the other balance out. On the other hand, if we get very close with the extra charge, attraction arises, because the repulsion of likes and attraction of unlikes will tend to bring unlikes closer together and push likes further apart. Then the repulsion will be less than the attraction. "
My question is this: If electric charges are elemental, with the plus and minus being equal but opposite to the minus, how can the two unlike charges end up attracting another charge? This implies that one charge is slightly different than another, no?