Philosophy
If you're riding a train and you shoot a gun in the same direction, the total speed of the bullet, relative to the ground, would be the speed of the bullet relative to the gun plus the speed of the train relative to the ground. There's nothing mysterious about that concept.
But what if you decided to shoot your photon torpedo gun (aka, your flashlight, or your torch if you're in England or Australia) under the same conditions? Intuitively, you'd think the speed of the light leaving the flashlight would equal its speed relative to the flashlight plus the speed of the train train relative to the ground, except you'd be wrong.
At the end of the 19th century, and especially thanks to the work of James Clerk Maxwell, there was plenty of evidence to conclude that the speed of light is constant, no matter how fast or in what direction you move relative to it, but no one could understand how this could possibly be so... until Albert Einstein developed his special theory of relativity with an intuition would that would forever revolutionize our understanding of physics: while the speed of light is constant, time and space are relative.
One of the weird consequences of that idea has come to be known as the twin paradox, about which you get to learn in the following funny animation:
Actually, GPS is one of the few applications that combines both special and general relativity in order to work because the Earth's gravitational pull also messes with the curvature of space-time.
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"...this book goes well beyond the scope of physics. Each new concept of time raises new questions in the realms of psychology, ethics, and metaphysics." Physics Central... Einstein's Dreams Review... Although Albert Einstein’s ideas ultimately...
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This is an old philosophical problem involving an ethical issue. It goes something like this... Given: 1.) Car "A" with six occupants [not lawyers or politicians] has stalled on some railroad tracks. 2.) Car "B" with one occupant [not Obama] has stalled...
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A left over chocolate bar from Valentine's Day may be used to measure the speed of light. "Mid Morning Experiment: Speed of Light" by Mark Steer Null Hypothesis: TheJournal of Unlikely Science Einstein realised that the speed of light was one of...
Philosophy
The Twin Paradox
But what if you decided to shoot your photon torpedo gun (aka, your flashlight, or your torch if you're in England or Australia) under the same conditions? Intuitively, you'd think the speed of the light leaving the flashlight would equal its speed relative to the flashlight plus the speed of the train train relative to the ground, except you'd be wrong.
At the end of the 19th century, and especially thanks to the work of James Clerk Maxwell, there was plenty of evidence to conclude that the speed of light is constant, no matter how fast or in what direction you move relative to it, but no one could understand how this could possibly be so... until Albert Einstein developed his special theory of relativity with an intuition would that would forever revolutionize our understanding of physics: while the speed of light is constant, time and space are relative.
One of the weird consequences of that idea has come to be known as the twin paradox, about which you get to learn in the following funny animation:
Actually, GPS is one of the few applications that combines both special and general relativity in order to work because the Earth's gravitational pull also messes with the curvature of space-time.
- Happy Birthday, Albert Einstein
Today is the 128th anniversary of the birth of Albert Einstein and I propose we dub this international science day, a holiday dedicated to thinking about science and the role science and scientists do and ought to play in our society. Einstein left a...
- Einstein's Dreams...thought Process Novel
"...this book goes well beyond the scope of physics. Each new concept of time raises new questions in the realms of psychology, ethics, and metaphysics." Physics Central... Einstein's Dreams Review... Although Albert Einstein’s ideas ultimately...
- Neutrino Speed Must Be Subjected To The "scientific Method"
"Not so fast, neutrinos" MIT physics professors examine the subatomic speed limit controversy by Stephanie Holden October 14th, 2011 The Tech On Sept. 23, European scientists announced that they had observed neutrinos, a class of subatomic particles,...
- Ethical Choice
This is an old philosophical problem involving an ethical issue. It goes something like this... Given: 1.) Car "A" with six occupants [not lawyers or politicians] has stalled on some railroad tracks. 2.) Car "B" with one occupant [not Obama] has stalled...
- Chocolate Physics Experiment
A left over chocolate bar from Valentine's Day may be used to measure the speed of light. "Mid Morning Experiment: Speed of Light" by Mark Steer Null Hypothesis: TheJournal of Unlikely Science Einstein realised that the speed of light was one of...