# Increased mass of compressed springs [closed]

Based on the idea that mass is an emergent property of fundamental particles with potential energy bound in a restricted space, I want to make a macroscopic analogy. I want to put compressed springs in a very light box and see if the mass of the entire system is greater than the components. I know mattresses exist, so I would be making a small, cubic "mattress".

My question is: do the angles between the compressed springs matter (no pun intended)? If I place them haphazardly, would the springs still diffuse their potential energy to the entire box system? Of course I would need to use something to keep the springs compressed, such as the walls of the box, more springs, or tape.

## closed as off-topic by G. Smith, GiorgioP, Yashas, Jon Custer, ZeroTheHeroApr 30 at 21:40

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• have you tried performing the calculation of mass increase with energy yourself? – niels nielsen Apr 28 at 19:51
• What restricted space? The space we live in does not seem to be restricted. Even if there are compact “hidden” dimensions, the three obvious spatial dimensions are either infinite or huge. – G. Smith Apr 28 at 21:10
• @nielsnielsen I have done a lot of conservation of energy but I am a bit new with using Einstein's equations so I have only seen it being calculated and not done the calculation by myself. I suppose it does require the speed of light, which means this whole experiment I'm thinking of wouldn't really work on my macro scale. – Shadowfax Apr 30 at 0:05
• @G.Smith sorry, I meant that the quarks are confined to the Higgs field. – Shadowfax Apr 30 at 0:06
• Why do you think that quarks are confined to the Higgs field? Confined where? The Higgs field is everywhere. Physicists think that quarks are confined inside protons and neutrons by the gluon field, but I have never heard anyone suggest that the Higgs field confines them to a region of space. – G. Smith Apr 30 at 0:50

A remarkable achievement of special relativity is the famous equation $$E = m c^2$$, to be intended in the rest frame of an object, stating the equivalence between mass and energy. That means the rest mass of an object is given by the rest masses of its constituents plus their kinetic energy plus the interaction energy.
• @Shadowfax Try solving for $m$ in $E=mc^2$ with the potential energy $E$ you plan on storing in the springs; and then compare this to any scale you might have, and how sensitive the scale is. – JMac Apr 30 at 0:46