84 Things That Are Not Matter

John Spacey, August 11, 2022

Things that are not matter are intangible entities that exist. This includes forces and energy that have a physical manifestation that differs from matter. Non-matter things also include human concepts, ideas, emotions, experiences and social constructs. These exist as elements of the human experience and can be built into social systems such as a law or a culture. The following are common examples of things that aren't matter.

Artificial Intelligence	Attitudes
Brands	Character
Cloud Services	Cold
Color	Concepts
Cultures	Data
Digital Experiences	Digital Media
Digital Money	Dreams
Electricity	Electromagnetic Radiation
Emotion	Energy
Entertainment	Errors
Ethics	Events
Freedoms	Gamma-rays
Glitches	Goodwill
Gravity	Heat
Identity	Ideology
Information	Infrared Light
Intangible Value (e.g. the value of an artwork isn't physical)	Intellectual Property
Intelligence	Intuition
Knowledge	Language
Laws	Light
Love	Magnetism
Microwaves	Mindset
Mobile Apps	Morals
Music	Norms
Nostalgia	Nothingness
Opinions	Patriotism
Performances	Personality
Politics	Principles
Radio Waves	Respect
Responsibilities	Rights
Roles	Service
Skills	Social Constructs
Software	Sound
Spirituality	Stories & Myths
Streaming Media	Style
Talents	Taste
Theories	Thoughts
Time	Traditions
Ultraviolet Light	Vacuums
Values	Video Games
Websites	Wifi Signals
Worldview	X-rays

Materialists believe that all things are rooted in physical things. For example, a memory that is constructed from chemical processes, energy and structures in your brain.

There are many worldviews that are non-materialist whereby they view things such as the human experience as extending beyond the physical state of the mind. For example, Plato viewed intuition as access to a system of universal knowledge he called The Forms.

Idealists believe that the physical world is formed by the mind and not the other way around. This is essentially the opposite of materialism.

Some of the items in the list above are can be properties of matter but aren't matter themselves. For example, heat and cold.

In is a myth that rainbows are not matter. Rainbows are largely tangible and physical because they are created by mist in the air. This is analogous to clouds that are also composed of water vapor. Light itself is intangible but there is nothing particularly intangible about a rainbow.

Most of the GDP generated by an advanced economy is considered intangible such that the production of nonphysical things such as services, experiences, consulting, media and software exceeds the production of physical goods.

84 Things That Are Not Matter

Things That Are Not Matter

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