What is Nothing? Is it empty space? Is it the number ZERO? Is it when you just sit and be quiet?

NOW… PUT YOUR HEAD DOWN ANDDO NOTHING C’mon…Try really hard… be very still…can you do it?

Is it possible to… DO NOTHING? Is your brain still working? Is your heart still beating?

Aren’t you thinking… ABOUT SOMETHING

But, how do you get something… FROM NOTHING?

Ex nihilo This is a Latin word; it means: “OUT OF NOTHING”

Think about making something… OUT OF NOTHING

IMPOSSIBLE YOU SAY?? MAYBE NOT

LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT THE ATOM

Atoms are made of teeny tiny particles called protons, neutrons, and electrons. The green and orange dots in the in the middle are called the nucleus of the atom. The electrons spin (really fast) around the nucleus. Everything in the whole Universe (planets, stars, people, animals, plants) is made of Atoms.EVERYTHING!!

But this picture is not exactly how real atoms appear. We can imagine the atom a lot bigger to get an idea of what it actually looks like.

If the protons and neutrons were as wide as the tip of your finger, and the electrons were the diameter of one human hair… Then the whole atom would be wider than the length of fifteen football fields! (no way…YES WAY!!)

SO WHAT…DOES THIS MEAN? (DO YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW?) THIS WILL FREAK YOU OUT (I PROMISE)

ARE YOU READY?

IT MEANS THAT THE ATOM IS 99.9% EMPTY SPACE…

IT MEANS THAT… THE ATOM IS: NOTHING!

IT MEANS THAT… EVERYTHING IS MADE OF… NOTHING!

TOLD YOU… IT WOULD FREAK YOU OUT

BUT… HOW CAN THIS BE TRUE?

IT IS TRUE BECAUSE, WHEN THESE ZILLIONS AND CABILLIONS OF ATOMS HOOK UP (LINK ELECTRONS) TOGETHER THEY MAKE WHAT WE SEE AS SOLID OBJECTS.

SO… WHEN CONNECTIONS (between electrons) ARE MADE SOMETHING IS CREATED.

YOUR ASSIGNMENT: GO HOME AND DO NOTHING (SIT QUIETLY FOR AT LEAST 15 MINUTES)

THEN… TRY NOT TO THINK OF ANYTHING…BUT AT THE SAME TIME PAY GENTLE ATTENTION TO WHAT POPS INTO YOUR MIND

AND FINALLY IF SOMETHING INTERESTING HAPPENS… WRITE IT DOWN…AND… COME BACK AND TALK ABOUT IT

SO, NOW YOU KNOW THAT, SOMETHING IS REALLY NOTHING (and) NOTHING IS REALLY SOMETHING

SO YOU CAN MAKE SOMETHING (A PAINTING, STICK CASTLE, DRESS, PAPER BIRDS, RUBBERBAND FANS, WOODEN CHICKENS, CARS, POSTERS, STORIES, ROBOTS, HOUSES,… ANYTHING YOU CAN IMAGINE!!) OUT OF NOTHING

THE END (OF NOTHING)

Many thanks to… Thomas and Tony for wanting to learn about.. NOTHING.