Since when are evolutionary biologists supposed to be experts in
physics? 1/12/2007 3:05:33 AM Because electrons in a potential
well can only exist in a limited number of quantized states,
none of which can be described as \"stuck to the nucleus\".
Here's the \"can't be arsed to learn physics beyond 8th grade\"
version: electrons are not spitballs. 1/12/2007 3:12:08 AM Don't
a proton and an electron become a neutron when they collide? I
read that neutrons have a slightly higher mass than protons, so
I figure that's how they form. 1/12/2007 5:14:13 AM Yankee: Such
a reaction, if it ever occurred, would emit no energy. If it
happened, how would we know? 1/12/2007 6:59:19 PM The reaction
does emit something. A proton and electron combine to produce a
neutron and a neutrino. Though, neutrinos are extremely hard to
detect. Luckily, protons and electrons combine most often (I
believe) in a process called electron capture. This happens when
a large atom has too many protons but not enough energy to
radiate properly.