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In physics, energy in the very small world of atoms does not pour like water. It comes in little packets. One packet is a quantum. You cannot have half a packet: you have one, or two, or none.
In physics在物理學裡，energy in the very small world of atoms原子這種非常小的世界裡的能量 does not pour like water不是像水一樣用倒的。It它 comes in little packets是一小包一小包出現的。One packet一包 is a quantum就是一個quantum。You你 cannot have half a packet不能只有半包：you have one, or two, or none你有一包、兩包，或完全沒有
Light comes in quanta too — we call those . School books often put this under nuclear physics, because the energy of the nucleus comes in these steps, though actually the idea belongs to a bigger field, quantum physics, which looks at all very small things, not only the nucleus.
Light光 comes in quanta too也是一quanta一quanta地出現──we call those photons我們把那些叫做photons。School books學校課本 often put this under nuclear physics常常把這個放在核子物理底下，because the energy of the nucleus comes in these steps因為原子核的能量也是以這種一階一階的方式出現，though actually the idea belongs to a bigger field, quantum physics不過事實上這個概念屬於一個更大的領域，quantum physics，which looks at all very small things, not only the nucleus它研究所有非常小的東西，不只是原子核
The word is rather formal and technical. In ads and newspapers people stick “quantum” on anything they want to sound clever, and “a quantum leap” means a big sudden change — which is almost the opposite of the science meaning, where a quantum is the smallest possible step.
The word這個詞 is rather formal and technical算是滿正式、專業的。In ads and newspapers在廣告和報紙裡 people stick 'quantum' on anything they want to sound clever人們會把quantum貼在任何想讓它聽起來很厲害的東西上，and 'a quantum leap' means a big sudden change而「a quantum leap」意思是巨大又突然的改變──which is almost the opposite of the science meaning這幾乎跟科學上的意思相反，where a quantum is the smallest possible step在科學裡quantum指的是最小可能的一步
組成From Late Latin quantum, the noun use of the neuter form of Latin quantus (“how much”) — a “how-much” of energy.
同家族的字
- quantitysame Latin quantus: how much of something
- quantifyto say how much, from the same root
- quantitativeabout amounts, from the same root
原始詞典資料14 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
quantumnoun/ˈkwɒntəm/
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lawThe total amount of something; quantity.
- The reader will perhaps be curious to know the quantum of this present, but we cannot satisfy his curiosity.
- A certain quantum of power must always exist in the community, in some hands, and under some appellation.
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lawThe total amount of something; quantity.
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lawThe total amount of something; quantity.
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The amount or quantity observably present, or available.
- Each man has only a quantum of compassion, he argued, and mine is used up for the day.
- The dream of flying, according to Strümpell, is the appropriate image used by the psyche to interpret the quantum of stimulus [translating Reizquantum] proceeding from the rise and fall of the lungs when the cutaneous sensation of the thorax has simultaneously sunk into unconsciousness.
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natural-sciencesphysical-sciencesphysicsThe smallest possible, and therefore indivisible, unit of a given quantity or quantifiable phenomenon.
- The quantum of light energy was later called a photon.
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computingengineeringmathematicsThe amount of time allocated for a thread to perform its work in a multithreaded environment.
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medicinesciencesThe minimum dose of a pathogen required to cause an infection.
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economicssciencesAmount of goods produced or demanded.
另外 1 個記錄的用法
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mathematicssciencesA definite portion of a manifoldness, limited by a mark or by a boundary.
- Defined parts of a manifoldness are called Quanta
quantumadj/ˈkwɒntəm/
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Of a change, sudden or discrete, without intermediate stages.
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informalOf a change, significant.
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natural-sciencesphysical-sciencesphysicsInvolving quanta, quantum mechanics or other aspects of quantum physics.
- Some of the most beautiful and thus appealing physical theories, including quantum electrodynamics and quantum gravity, have been dogged for decades by infinities that erupt when theorists try to prod their calculations into new domains. Getting rid of these nagging infinities has probably occupied far more effort than was spent in originating the theories.
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computingcomputing-theoryengineeringInvolving quanta, quantum mechanics or other aspects of quantum physics.
這個拼法也被記錄為下列字的變化形：
資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。