Transcript: The nucleus of the atom contains a prodigious potential energy source. Mass and energy are related by Einstein’s famous equation E = mc2. Since c is a very large number, three hundred thousand kilometers per second, c2 is an even larger number. So a tiny amount of mass is equivalent to a huge amount of energy. When you plug the numbers in you can see how dramatic this is. The mass-energy equivalent to the tip of a pencil lead is sufficient to run a family home for a day. The mass-energy equivalent to an adult person is sufficient to provide ten to the nineteen Joules which is the energy requirement of the United States for a year. The inefficiency of chemical energy is also clear. The Saturn V rocket that took astronauts to the moon had ninety percent of its mass in the form of fuel that had to be burned up to launch the projectile. Ten grams of mass energy would have provided the same energy source. For a final every day example, consider a quarter pounder hamburger. This provides the average person who eats it two hundred and fifty calories or a million Joules, but the mass-energy in that amount of material is ten to the sixteen Joules. Thus we only extract one part in ten to ten of the total energy of the hamburger in the form of chemical energy.