Critical mass

Have you ever tried to push a really heavy ball alone? It's hard work, right? But, have you ever tried to push that same ball with a bunch of friends? It becomes much easier, doesn't it? This is kind of like what happens when we talk about critical mass.

Critical mass is when we have enough of something to make a really big change. Imagine you want to throw a party. If you only invite a few friends, it might be a small and quiet party. But, if you invite lots and lots of people, you'd have a big and loud party, and it would be really fun! This is because you have reached critical mass, where you have enough people to make a big, noticeable difference.

This is the same idea for other things too. For example, in science, we talk about critical mass when things like atoms become powerful enough to have a big effect. And in cities, when enough people start using new transportation like bikes or electric cars, it becomes easier and more normal for others to use them too, creating a critical mass.

So, critical mass is when we have enough of something to make a big difference or to have a big effect. It's like when you have enough people to make a party really fun or when you have enough things in science to make something really powerful.