guthriedm15's blog

Einstein once said that to solve the most difficult problems in science, “a state of feeling similar to that of a religious person or a lover” is required. This is coming from a man that single-handedly changed the world through the venue of theoretical physics; his theory of special relativity is especially important because of the implications and technological applications that have been found for it. His love and pursuit of physical problems single-handedly changed the culture of physics; it provided evidence that a new and better way of thinking was required to make advancements in the understanding of the physical reality. Einstein’s love and passion for the subject has not only changed the culture of physics, but of civilization as a whole.

For a very long time, Newtonian physics prevailed in the world of science because it seemed to work in all natural situations and it proved to be almost entirely common sense. It has been used to describe the force that acts upon objects, the acceleration that objects experience as they fall to the floor, and speed at which things travel as a result of the forces that are acting upon it. Classical physics works in most situations throughout daily life, even for the common engineer. It remained the standard in science until scientists began to realize its shortcomings.

In 1887, an experiment that is called the “The Michelson-Morley Experiment” was conducted. It was designed to detect small changes in the speed of light while making use of a light beam and a moving mirror. The developers of this experiment were surely surprised to discover that they could not detect a difference in the speed of light, even as they changed the parameters of the experiment. The experimenters struggled with the results for some time, only to find out that the speed of light is constant regardless of the conditions they imposed on the experiment (Serway, 7). This conclusion defied their understanding of physics, but the science community was forced to consider other options.

While the classical understanding is proven to be useful, it was becoming apparent that classical physics was beginning to reach its limits through experiments such as the Michelson-Morley experiment. It failed to explain some of the phenomena that scientists had discovered throughout the late 19^th century. It failed to explain to true nature of light, describe objects with exceptionally high velocity, and take into account true relativity between different reference frames. As these problems began to become more and more apparent, the need for a new theory arose; Einstein’s theory of special relativity has come to be accepted as the more truthful theory about physical reality because it has shed light on physical phenomena and has more been proven to provide more accurate descriptions.

The theory of special relativity assumes two fundamental logical truths: the speed of light is constant to all observers in a vacuum and that the laws of physics will hold constant to all observers. With these two assumptions made, Einstein went on to make many different predictions about the world that have been proven to be valid. For example, time dilation is principle that Einstein predicted and it states that clocks in relative motion to an observer will appear to be slowed down. The mathematical relationship is shown below:

The  term of this equation is the time interval measured by an observer who is constant motion with respect to the clock and the ’ term is the time interval according an observer who is stationary in relation to the clock . The  term is the relative velocity of the observer, and the c term is symbol for the speed of light. Notice that as the relative speed increases, the time interval difference grows. It predicts that time appears to slow down as velocity increases; this prediction seems to defy logic and certainly defies personal common sense and the natural intuition of most individuals.

This important concept has proven to be useful in everyday life through global positioning systems. Because satellites orbit around the surface of the earth at a very fast pace, they are subject to time dilation. Without the adjustment for time dilation given in the theory of special relativity, GPS systems would not be capable of providing the accurate results that they provide for human civilization (“Real-World Relativity…”).

Imagine a rod of a certain length that is travelling at a speed that is very close to the speed of light. How would you expect the length to change as you measure it while it is in motion and when you measure it at a stationary state? The theory of special relativity predicts that the rod actually contracts in the direction of motion as it move through space; furthermore, the magnitude of contraction depends on the rod’s velocity. This concept is commonly referred to as length contraction. It is yet another example of the proven physical reality that was discovered because of Einstein’s theory that seems to defy logic but catch the attention of the inquisitive mind.

Among other intellectual achievements, Einstein’s special theory of relativity has earned him a place in nearly every facet of American culture. He seems to be mentioned all of the time in popular culture. He has certainly become a personal intellectual hero. His achievements have shed light on the world of science. He represents a culture that is determined to make developments in understanding so that humankind can continue to progress. The manifestation of scientific understanding has come through innovation that has benefitted much of mankind.

Bibliography

1. “Real-World Relativity: The GPS Navigation System”. Accessed 5 December 2014. Website. http://www.astronomy.ohio-state.edu/~pogge/Ast162/Unit5/gps.html
2. Serway, R.A. Moses, C.J., Moyer, C. A. Modern Physics. Third Edition. Belmont. David Harris, 2005.