system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How do we see objects if the atoms that make it are 99% empty space?

I understand that this might be a very stupid question, but I studied this and I can't believe that I forgot it.
gpt
That empty space is filled with potential electrons. They may not actually be there, but the electric field still interacts with light.

As well, visible light has wavelengths in the hundreds of nanometers. Atoms are much smaller. So the wavelengths are just too large to fit through the empty space. They definitely will interact with the electrons. Or at least, there is definitely the possibility - some molecules are arranged such that the electrons don't interact with the light much anyway, which makes them clear like glass.