What Matter Is Made Out Of?

Good explanations are hard to come by because every part of the explanation must have a functional role that cannot be easily swapped out for any other phenomena. This stands in stark contrast to mythology where events are explained in terms of whimsical and arbitrary actions of supernatural beings. While our scientific explanation of the cause of thunder is lightning, itself a consequence of a scream of electrons leaping like a huge spark from the ground to the clouds or vice versa. The good explanation that solves the question of what matter is made out of consists of our understanding of particle physics.