Chemistry question!

[la_belle_laide]

I know that among my flist I am lucky enough to have people of biology, chemistry and physics training and I am thankful for that. Once again I am calling on you guys, and on anyone else who can answer my question.

This isn't a question on a test or anything and it's nothing I really need to know in order to pass, but it's bugging me. And please bear in mind that this is an ignorant question: it comes from someone who didn't even bother to try in high school chemistry, which was back in '88 or something. O_O So!

Okay, first we have the laws of the conservation of energy and mass, right? This is one of my favorite things ever, you guys know the one: Mass / Energy is neither created nor destroyed. Okay, great, so far, so good.

But then we came to atomic mass, where it says that the mass of a single atom is less than the sum of its parts, if you will, because some of the mass is lost when the atom's different components came together.

Okay, so WTF? On one hand, mass is never lost, but when an atom forms, mass is lost?

I asked the professor that today but it was all rushed and towards the end of class etc. and a lot of other people were talking and stuff and I think all I got from around the entire classroom was a group of "I dunno's" and shrugs.

Can anyone explain this to me?

Also, do you just adore my icon? I made it. ^_^

Comments

[shonagonchan.livejournal.com]

It does make sense (as does the example,) but when I asked "where does the mass go?" the answer was, "I don't know."

I wonder if anyone does?

[reanimated.livejournal.com]

well, i don't know that there's necessarily one answer to that. could just be free-floating, or stick to something else.

trying to remember how static works...you basically have a negative charge built up from friction, and when you touch something, the electrons try to jump to it to balance out the positive charge, and spark!