My high school chemistry teacher said that there is no such thing as a “vacuum,” it’s just a difference in air pressure. But you always hear about the “vacuum” of space, or when something is “vacuum-sealed.” I am not scientifically inclined, so I don’t even know where to begin. Im also not sure if “physics” is the correct flair lol. I was wondering if it could be explained from either side of the argument.
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> My high school chemistry teacher said that there is no such thing as a “vacuum,” it’s just a difference in air pressure.
When people say this, what they usually mean is that there is no region or substance that ‘sucks’ the way we intuitively think of a vacuum as doing. Rather, a vacuum is an area of lower pressure, and anything being ‘pulled’ in is actually being pushed by the high pressure fluid on the other side.
So there is such a thing as a vacuum, but the vacuum in and of itself does not have an effect on its surroundings. Instead, it is the high pressure non-vacuum fluids that exert forces.
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