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 Originally Posted by CoccoBill
When I measure the width of a poker chip, should I do it at the edge of the outermost atomic nuclei, or at the farthest trajectory point of their electrons?
Also, how hard do I need to squeeze the chip to force the electrons to clump together with the nuclei, and is this observed in nature? Neutron stars, black holes?
There's a thing called electron degeneracy pressure - it's loosely electron's tendency to not occupy the same space in the same time. You pretty much need a supernova to squeeze atoms so close their electron shells break and you're left with just clumped neutrons - ie neutron stars.
The electron shell is what holds everything up, except for when it's defeated - neutron stars and black holes. It's neutron degeneracy pressure which holds up neutron stars. Which leads me to my question, MMM, what holds up black holes?
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