Timothy Burger, age 12, of Northhampton, Pennsylvania, for his question:

What does E=mc squared really mean?

This equation is as simple as it looks. However, your brain would be strained by at least two factors behind the scenes. First, that neat little equation results from a most involved and intricate statement in mathematical terms    way beyond either the old or new math that most ordinary folk can cope with. Second, it was based on the astonishing theory that, under certain conditions, matter and energy are interchangeable. Physicists have since demonstrated this to be true. Hence, E=mc squared has graduated from a theory to a proven fact.

Mathematicians insist on reducing wordy concepts to precise, economical figures and symbols. This explains why math is the language of science. It states the bare, bald facts of a problem    with no chance of fooling anybody. Sometimes this results in a simple equation that states a stupendous problem. The best example of this sort of thing is the equation E=mc squared. The translation of each of its symbols is easy. But when first it was stated, man's entire concept of the cosmos had to be remodeled.

The E stands for energy. The m means mass, the amount of matter in a given volume. The c squared means the velocity of light multiplied by itself. So    energy, mass and the speed of light are easy to grasp as separate items. But that equal sign in the equation is a block buster. It boldly states that energy is the same as mass, or matter. What's more, it defines this relationship in terms of how much energy equals how much matter.

Before Albert Einstein stated this equation, scientists assumed that the cosmos had a fixed quota of energy and a fixed quota of matter. Two statements    the conservation of matter and the conservation of energy    expressed the assumption that the total amounts were unchangeable. After Einstein's mathematical logic had been digested, the two terms were united and became the conservation of mass energy.

Einstein based his math on the theory that matter and energy are merely two aspects of the same phenomenon    and are interchangeable under certain conditions. Scientists wasted no time in proving his theory true. They soon proved that, under certain conditions; matter can be converted into energy. This was demonstrated with the first A bomb experiment.. The material selected was a fissionable, radioactive substance having large, unstable atoms. When triggered to explode, a small portion of the matter was converted into forms of dynamic energy. Later, more difficult experiments demonstrated that under other conditions, certain energies can be converted into particles of matter.

From our point of view, nuclear energy is downright astounding. However, the concept of mass energy conversion is far more astounding when we extend it out into the cosmos. The infinite universe has enormous amounts of matter and seething energies, The interrelation of the two is a prime factor when scientists probe the nuclear emissions of the sun, the formation of stars and even the structure of our small, solid planet. At present, we have barely begun to trace the role of E=me squared in these and all other cosmic activities.