I don’t think there’s anything necessarily wrong in simplifying a subject and allowing that simplified answer to be the one the public knows
I think it’s acceptable to simply say that magnets of the same polarity repel each other, and not going to the explanation as to why. It’s up to people if they want to understand that, and they can seek that information out themselves.
Also I think it’s perfectly acceptable to explain gravity as a force that pulls things down. Trying to go into the whole area of space time and light cones is unnecessary for the casual explanation.
I would not think any less of a political leader if their understanding of magnets was simply the basic one that everybody else knows. But I absolutely would think less of my leader if he appeared not to even have a high school level understanding of magnetism. It would make me worry about what other things everybody else knows, that apparently he does not.
Yep. And for the most part the answer you’ll get is just that "these are universal forces. Excepted as observably true, but the why is seemingly unknown beyond “it’s a universal force.”
We can mostly know what magnets are doing, but answering why it’s a universal force that just is, is a different matter. We just know electrons really don’t wanna touch each other, and I’m assuming if they did, matter wouldn’t exist.
I think you may have taken me too seriously, but if so that’s a very dismissive response. I think your reply would be improved by describing at least one (nigh-universal, so it applies to “things” in general) force and saying why it exists.
On the other hand… ”why do things fall down?” Now THERE’S a rabbit hole.
I don’t think there’s anything necessarily wrong in simplifying a subject and allowing that simplified answer to be the one the public knows
I think it’s acceptable to simply say that magnets of the same polarity repel each other, and not going to the explanation as to why. It’s up to people if they want to understand that, and they can seek that information out themselves.
Also I think it’s perfectly acceptable to explain gravity as a force that pulls things down. Trying to go into the whole area of space time and light cones is unnecessary for the casual explanation.
I would not think any less of a political leader if their understanding of magnets was simply the basic one that everybody else knows. But I absolutely would think less of my leader if he appeared not to even have a high school level understanding of magnetism. It would make me worry about what other things everybody else knows, that apparently he does not.
Yep. And for the most part the answer you’ll get is just that "these are universal forces. Excepted as observably true, but the why is seemingly unknown beyond “it’s a universal force.”
We can mostly know what magnets are doing, but answering why it’s a universal force that just is, is a different matter. We just know electrons really don’t wanna touch each other, and I’m assuming if they did, matter wouldn’t exist.
“down” is “just” a name for the direction everything falls.
Why do things fall? What happened to “a body at rest stays at rest”?
If no net forces are applied to that body. That’s what.
I think you may have taken me too seriously, but if so that’s a very dismissive response. I think your reply would be improved by describing at least one (nigh-universal, so it applies to “things” in general) force and saying why it exists.
So they can learn to pick themselves up?