prompter: Explain how quantum tunneling works, but in the style of cavemen speak.

assistant: So, imagine you living in cave and you see big rock in front of you. You want to go through rock, but it too thick and solid. You try push rock, but it not move. You try hit rock with stick, but it still not move. Rock too strong!

But, you hear from wise cave person that there way to go through rock without moving it. You need special power called quantum tunneling. You not sure what this mean, but it sound powerful!

You ask wise cave person to explain. They say quantum tunneling like magic power. It happen when tiny thing, like electron, try to go through big thing, like wall. Normally, it can't pass through wall 'cause wall too thick and electron too small. But, with quantum tunneling, electron can magically teleport through wall! It like electron dig hole through wall, but hole too small to see.

You confused. How can electron go through wall without making hole? Wise cave person say it happen 'cause electron no act like normal thing. It act like wave sometimes, and when it act like wave, it can "tunnel" through wall. It like wave go over rock in river. Sometimes, it can go through rock too! It weird and hard to understand, but that how quantum tunneling work.

You still confused, but you excited. If electron can go through wall, maybe you can too! You try to tunnel through rock with your mind, but it not work. You need more practice.

assistant: Me already explained quantum tunneling in cavemen language! Me talk about atoms, waves, and big mountain. Remember? Quantum tunneling is when atom sometimes go through big mountain like magic trick. It happen because atom act like wave and spread out to both sides of mountain. Then, sometimes atom go through the mountain and come out on other side. It's like secret path for atom. Sun use quantum tunneling and some electronics too.

prompter: Me no understand how atom go through mountain,  mountain have big hole?

assistant: No, mountain no have big hole. Mountain very big and very hard. But atom very tiny and sometimes it can go through the mountain without breaking it, like a ghost or a shadow. This happen because atom is not only a tiny particle, but also a wave. And when atom wave spread out, it can sometimes sneak through the mountain, even though it looks impossible. It like when you throw a rock into water and the ripples go around a big rock, but sometimes they go through a small gap in the rock. Same thing with atom and mountain!

assistant: They usually climb, so need large energy kicking them over like balls! But atoms not balls. Atom kinda like bad ghost, go all over the place by chance. So they can plunge in mountain, go weaker and weaker. Usually too weak to go through so they stay back, but sometimes make it! Bigger higher mountain, less ghost through.

assistant: Sorry if me explanation confuse you. Me try to simplify, but maybe me oversimplify too much.

Mountain no have big hole. It still solid, but atoms and their parts, like electrons, can sometimes go through it, like magic. It not because there hole in mountain, but because of something called quantum mechanics, which is a very weird and complicated way that tiny particles behave.

In normal life, we used to seeing things as either solid or not solid, but in quantum mechanics, tiny particles like electrons don't always behave like that. They can sometimes act like waves, and waves can sometimes pass through things that you might not expect.

So, even though it seems impossible for a solid object like a mountain to have a hole for an atom to pass through, quantum mechanics allows for the possibility that the atom's wave-like behavior can sometimes make it "tunnel" through the barrier, like the mountain, even though it seems solid.

assistant: Okay, so think you have a big rock, right? You want to get rock through mountain, but no way around it. So, what do? You try to break mountain with bare hands, but not going to work. So, take the rock and give little push, but no move. You push harder, still nothing. But then, try pushing really, really hard, suddenly, through mountain like not even there! That's like quantum tunneling.

In the world of teeny, tiny things like atoms, sometimes they no go through things, like a mountain. But if have enough energy, they can go through thing, even though it no possible. Like the atom little rock, barrier is mountain, it just pushes through. It's like magic, but it's real!

prompter: How much energy are we talking about? Please stay in character when replying and do not use words not known to cave men.

assistant: It random. Sometimes big energy go through it, sometimes it small. but more go through if mountain thinner, less go through if mountain thicker.

assistant: You know how you push big rock, it take lot of energy? Well, for teeny, tiny atoms, need much, much less energy to go through thing. But still need good energy to go through, like pushing rock really, really hard. If barrier really thick, need even more energy to get through. like if you try punch big rock, you need more energy than if you punch little rock.

assistant: Quantum energy, eh? Hmm. Me think it like magic fire inside tiny, tiny things called atoms. These atoms made of even tinier things called particles, like little pebbles that move around and bump into each other. When these pebbles move and bump, they make energy that we no see with our eyes, but we can feel it if we touch hot fire. This energy can be harnessed by some really smart cavefolk to do amazing things like make big fire for cooking mammoth or make tiny fire for light cave drawings.

It all very strange and powerful, like the spirits of our ancestors. Me still trying to understand it all, but me think it very important for making world go round.