  Leibniz’s suggestion here is that collisions between perfectly hard,  inflexible atoms would violate the principle of continuity since  – being unable to flex or give – their directions and  speeds would have to change instantaneously upon contact. Tacitly  rejecting the possibility that continuity could be preserved by  action at a distance, Leibniz insists that continuity presupposes  elasticity, and that elasticity in turn presupposes having parts that can move relative to one another. Given that the original argument  can be invoked no matter how small the colliding bodies, Leibniz  concludes that all bodies must be elastic, and must therefore have parts, contrary to the central thesis of atomism. He thus concludes that “no body is so small that it is without  elasticity, and furthermore … there are no elements of bodies  … nor are there little solid globes … both determinate  and hard. Rather, the analysis proceeds to infinity”  (SD.II.45/AG 132–133). 