Nuclear Fusion III: Semi-Empirical Mass Formula

Published: Jan. 31, 2019, 7:13 p.m.

There’s a famous saying that’s attributed to the statistician Henry L Box – but it’s one of the most important sayings for thinking about physics, and science in general.

“All models are wrong, but some models are useful.”

What does this mean, and how does it relate to the nucleus of the atom? Can we work out how the atomic energy levels behave... without knowing the first thing about quantum mechanics or the strong nuclear force that binds the atom together? 

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