Re: Is "malfunctioning" absolute or relative?

On Oct 14, 6:23 pm, "harry" <harald.vanlintelButNotT...@xxxxxxx>
wrote:
"Uncle Ben" <b...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message

news:535fef37-ef6a-4d68-bb1e-2889d94026b0@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
On Oct 14, 7:12 am, papa_r...@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote:> On 14 oct, 02:23, Uncle Ben <b...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

[...]

: This is so simple.  An even simpler example: distance.  Can we say
: that Chicago is really "farther"?  No, it depends on the reference
: point.  "Fartherness" is not absolute. Chicago is farther than Buffalo
: w.r.t. Albany. It is not farther w.r.t. Evanston. Both distances are
: real, not illusory, but they are relative to a point of reference.

: It seems not so clear when we turn to rates of clocks, because for all
: of human history since clock have existed, we have thought of time as
: absolute.  Now Einstein tells us that time is not absolute;  it, too,
: is defined only w.r.t. a frame of reference.  This defies our common
: sense, but SR tells us that it is just as real as distance being
: defined relative to a point of reference.

Why do you say that it "defies our common sense"? When one is clueless about
possible models it would be appropriate. Contrary to QM that defies common
sense as no plausible model has been proposed (so far, AFAIK), people did
come up with different models that can help to make sense of SRT, even while
SRT was developed.

Regards,
Harald

I can agree about length contraction, since we have experience with
magnetic forces that are velocity-dependent and can exert stresses,
but as for time being frame dependent, I have no clue as to how to
make that appeal to common sense.

Do you? If so, I'd love to hear about it.

Cheers, Harald,

Uncle Ben
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Hey Mr. Hyde!
    ... >> their common sense of gravity because the Earth and the Moon do so ... > The common centre of gravity is about 1700 kms below the Earth's surface, ... > Can you give a reference here? ... subject matter and hoping the reader will forget this as well. ...
    (alt.lang.asm)
  • Re: [OTish] Units question for Americans
    ... for long distances, I tend to measure in hours. ... bog-standard reference is 60mph, or a mile-a-minute. ... time difference & some latitude difference probably cancel out. ... Full names may contain any printing ASCII characters from space through tilde, ...
    (rec.arts.sf.written)
  • Re: Vote for the generally accepted what is physically going through both slits in the Double Slit E
    ... you need to specify frames of reference. ... The distances involved depend ... upon the frame of reference from which they are measured. ... Since the train is traveling towards B at 1/3rd the speed of light, ...
    (sci.physics)
  • Re: Cyclist hit and runs - what is the answer?
    ... was no wiggle room. ... >>> The stopping distances referred to relate to distances ... Rule 105 makes no reference at all to moving cars. ...
    (uk.rec.cycling)
  • Re: Please fix your clock (was Re: No Audio Device)
    ... Hi - you're writing from the future. ... didn't set his reference to GMT.) What I'm curious about is that some places get it wrong. ... For instance Skype has me at GMT-4 with the right time, other sites have me at GMT-5 but a hour off. ... "Common sense is anything but common". ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
Loading