请教ManhattanPrep Free Practice Test阅读的一个句子

gksoUID：2188783

The three quarks in each nucleon are bound together by the strong force, which operates only on quarks and on gluons (short-lived particles exclusively existing to “carry” the strong force between quarks) and which unlike the other fundamental forces grows with increasing distance, albeit over only a very short scale, as if the quarks were linked by stiff springs.

句子略长，各位看官莫慌，我先来分析下，文章讲的是物理中五大基础作用力里面的“强相互作用力”，这句话说核子里面的三个夸克因为强相互作用力而束缚在一起，这种强力只作用于夸克和胶子，后面的一个which从句说它和其他基础力不同，从这开始后面就不懂了，求解释~

全文如下：

The so-called strong nuclear force, one of the fundamental physical forces of nature along with gravity, electromagnetism, and the “weak” nuclear force, is responsible for the cohesion of atomic nuclei, which are composed of protons and neutrons, collectively known as nucleons. In contrast to electrons, which circle the nuclei, nucleons are themselves made of smaller constituents dubbed quarks. The three quarks in each nucleon are bound together by the strong force, which operates only on quarks and on gluons (short-lived particles exclusively existing to “carry” the strong force between quarks) and which unlike the other fundamental forces grows with increasing distance, albeit over only a very short scale, as if the quarks were linked by stiff springs. The leakage of the strong force from within each trio to nearby quarks within other nucleons permits two nearly adjacent protons, which at greater distances would mutually repel because of their similar electric charge, to fuse into one nucleus; this process of nuclear fusion powers the Sun.

becomingjaUID：3501996

个人理解：两个which 并列，都指代的是 strong force， 这个strong force 不像其他的fundemental force， 尽管仅仅在短程上，这个strong force会随着距离的增加而增大，好像夸克间用弹簧连接了一样。（说明其他的fundemental force是随着距离增大而减小）
The leakage of the strong force permits two nearly adjacent protons to fuse into one nucleus. 但是at greater distances（not nearly adjacent的情况下） would mutually repel because of their similar electric charge


这是百度上说的背景知识：
最早认识到的质子、中子间的核力属于强相互作用力，是质子、中子结合成原子核的作用力，后来进一步认识到强子是由夸克构成的，强作用是夸克之间的相互作用力。强作用最强，也是一种短程力。

强相互作用力是作用于强子之间的力，是所知四种宇宙间基本作用力最强的，其作用范围在10的-15次方m范围内。强相互作用克服了电磁力产生的强大排斥力，把强子紧紧粘合为原子核。