Page 66 - The Creation Of The Universe

64 THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE

So far, so much basic chemistry. However there is a point in this seem-
ingly simple structure that is overlooked by many. A proton is much big-
ger than an electron in terms of both size and weight. If an electron were
the size of a walnut, a proton would be about the size of a man. Physically,
they are quite dissimilar.
But their electrical charges are the same size!
Although their electrical charges are opposite (electrons negative, pro-
tons positive) they are also equal. There is no obvious reason why this
should be so. Conceivably (and "logically") an electron ought to carry a
much smaller charge because it is so much smaller.
But if that were true, then what would happen?
What would happen is that every atom in the universe would be posi-
tively charged instead of being electrically neutral. And because like
charges repel, every atom in the universe would try and repel every other
atom. Matter as we know it could not exist.
What would happen if it suddenly became true now? What would hap-
pen if every atom were to start repelling every other?
Quite extraordinary things would happen. Let us begin with the changes
that would occur in your body. The moment this change occurred, your
hands and your arms holding this book would shatter at once. And not just
your hands and arms but also your body, your legs, your eyes, your
teeth–every part of your body would explode in a split second.
The room you sit in and the world around you would explode in a mo-
ment. All the seas, mountains, the planets in the solar system, and all the
stars and galaxies in the universe would shatter into atomic dust. And there
would never again be anything in the universe to observe. The universe
would become a mass of disorganized atoms pushing each other around.
By how much would the sizes of the electrical charges of protons and
electrons have to differ in order for this dreadful thing to happen? One per-
cent? A tenth of one percent? George Greenstein addresses this question in
The Symbiotic Universe:
Small things like stones, people, and the like would fly apart if the two
charges differed by as little as one part in 100 billion. Larger structures