If I cut a thing in two, are the two pieces together exactly the same size as the original?
Or to rephrase it: does a knife/scissors/etc just split something or does it remove something?
If I cut a thing in two, are the two pieces together exactly the same size as the original?
Or to rephrase it: does a knife/scissors/etc just split something or does it remove something?
I’m pretty sure that generally some particles break off from either side whenever you cut something in half. When I cut paper with scissors I get a distinct smell, that’s clearly paper particles that have escaped into the air. Under the right conditions you may even see some dust.
When using a saw it is very explicitly removing material to create a gap between the two sides. You can see this clearly in a lot of woodworking videos on YouTube. For other tools like a knife, it’s not as obvious, but I still think some material will inevitably be lost no matter what you do.
Maybe some extremely specialized nano-scale methods can cut things without losing material, but I doubt that’s something you can do on an everyday life scale.
Disclaimer: I’m not an expert and I did 0 research, just giving my opinion and personal knowledge (which may be wrong).
This is pretty much what I was going to say. You always lose material, but the amount lost varies drastically based on the method. Even when using a knife or shears in a purely straight motion (no sawing or sliding), the material has to deform to make room for the cutting device. It may rip apart, it may bulge into itself, it may crumble, it may do it all. Try cutting a thin slice off a nice block of cheese and you’ll see nearly all the deformation go to the slice, while the knife will be coated in cheese
Came here to say this but you covered it pretty well! So I’ll just leave this image of steel being “cut” under an electron microscope. You can see the deformation and change in structure.
That looks like my cheddar! That’s why, without the aid of an industrial shearing rig, I have to hold the knife at about 15 degrees off vertical, cutting edge towards the block. The cut goes straight down. I’ve accepted the superiority of using a small santoku knife and having to hand wash. I really should get a wire slicer
+1
You can smell cut paper? 🫨
Cut paper makes a ton of dust and fiber. Ever empty out a shredder? It’s a significant maintenance issue for print shops
I think so, but if I’m honest, there’s a chance I’m just imagining it 😅
Really depends on the kind of paper. Used to habe to do technical drawings, and there is indeed a distinct smell to certain kinds of paper, but not your usual copy-grade sheets.