The subtleties and densities of physics (Igly & Maelinhon)

– Why are you pretending to eat chicken?

– I apologize, this chicken is very real to me.

Rick and Morty

The other day one of the authors of Archaic Heart project received a strong statement that “you’re lying”. Like, inferns can’t fall down stairs because they’re non-dense (stairs or inferns – you’ll have to guess for yourselves). Our gray-haired friend Grassar technically reasoned that this statement does not coincide with his observations and experimental data. Therefore, our tandem of a more subtle engineer and a more dense engineer decided to enlighten the audience on the subject of subtle and dense physics, because it seems that Archaic readers have forgotten them a bit.  Today we will tell you about why the subtle is so subtle, why magic is not visible to the eyes and why demons so suddenly slippin’.  Let’s go!

From physics to metaphysics

We’ll start with the basics from our high school physics course. We will talk about what properties matter has on a dense level and what it is made of. The first property we have already come across is density. This is a value that shows how much mass of a substance is in a certain volume. That is, how much matter is in a certain fraction of space. Imagine water vapor or fog. What happens to it if we compress it? It will get denser, its density will increase. But this will not continue indefinitely. At some point, we will reach a threshold after which water droplets will form in the mist. They will increase in number until the mist completely disappears. The substance will undergo a radical transformation and become water. This is the second important property of matter known as its state of aggregation.

The state of aggregation significantly affects the other properties of a substance, particularly its inertness to external influences. Its importance also lies in the fact that it introduces significant adjustments to the interaction between substances. Substances in different states of aggregation have more difficulty coming into contact with each other, slowing down their reactions and reducing the extent of their impact on each other. Mixing a gas with a liquid, in general, is quite challenging, whereas two gases tend to “blend together” without external assistance. It’s difficult for a stone to fall through the air, but it will easily land on a larger boulder. Chemical reactions are also slowed down by the difference in the states of aggregation of the media, as the particles are spatially separated and exhibit different mobility and activity in such cases.

From this foundation, we will dive deep into the modern understanding of the structure of the universe. Don’t be too alarmed because butterflies are in the same boat. Imagine an elementary particle, any one of them, be it a quantum or a boson. If you’ve conjured up a tiny microscopic ball in your imagination, then, my dear folks, you’ve lost. That’s because nowadays, physicists envision elementary particles as minuscule perturbations in homogeneous quantum fields permeating all of space. It’s somewhat analogous to the first water droplets forming in a compressible cloud of mist. 🙂 Larger droplets emerge because these tiny perturbations come together, and big droplets merge into puddles. In a similar manner, albeit through different mechanisms, protonettes, atoms, molecules, tissues, organs, and our dear reader are formed.

And now it’s time to break through the window into the realm of the marginal and take a step forward. So far, we’ve only touched on questions related to increasing the density of something. But what happens if we attempt not to compress a substance harder but, on the contrary, try to radically expand it? If we take the water that was compressed and actively reduce the pressure, a phase transition will occur in the opposite direction, and we’ll get vapor again. And if we “expand” the quantum fields full of perturbations, we’ll also discover an intriguing phase transition and… end up with what marginal metaphysics calls elemental cross-sections forming the subtle plane. 🙂

So, dense and otherworldly worlds are nothing more than a set of elements and their combinations in different aggregate states, so distinct from each other that even dense light doesn’t reflect off subtle-plane objects. A fireball is surely subtle in these terms. That’s why you can’t see magic with dense eyes. At the same time, with a subtle Ajna, you’ll notice it without difficulty because its subtleness predisposes it to such interactions. For the same reason, a subtle-plane staircase (yes, they exist) is quite solid for any infern, and an immobilized demon can easily fall off it, somersault, meet the edge of the last step with its teeth, and experience other unpleasant consequences of close contact with subtle architecture. And if you were to place your dense body on it, you would successfully fall through the steps and keep falling until you land on another, denser one. Therefore, I strongly recommend starting your fall somewhere in the upper realms; at least that way, the process will have finite and expected consequences. 😉

Fun facts for dessert

1. The phase transition from subtle to dense changes some elements beyond recognition. For example, when the Element of Shadow is compressed, it transforms into Wood, Death becomes radiation, and Air turns into the Metal sub-element.
2. The density of subtle dimuts and objects is not the same and is not uniform. A subtle creature is denser than an infern, and a demon is denser than, for example, Tengri. These differences also affect physiology: it is easier for a more subtle being to control and modify its body, but it becomes a significant challenge for them to digest denser food than themselves.
3. Elemental cross-sections also vary in density, with the Void being the most subtle element in the universe.
4. The most dense subtle-level entities (dalrams) can sometimes be captured in photos or even seen with the naked eye because their density is closest to ours.
5. The density of worlds, including our own, has not always been as it is now. The dense world is the result of Ygweh’s deliberate experiment to compress matter to the limit. Fortunately, it has been discontinued, and now, albeit slowly, our reality is returning to its natural aggregate state.

We will tell you about how matter behaves in the subtle aggregate state and the mechanics of the subtle world in the following articles. And that’s all for today, guys! Thanks for reading, we’re looking forward to your questions and feedback.  Learn physics, math, all x2+(y2-x3/2)2=1, and may the force equal to mass multiplied by distance and divided by acceleration be with you.

       Tsemra Igly and Largsamyel Maelinhon (с) Archaic Heart

      Illustration by Tserma Igly