High school physics teacher Mark Swaim explains that there are two parts to Einstein’s Theory of Relativity.
The first part, Special Relativity, was published in 1905. The second one, General Relativity, was presented a decade later. The theory challenged centuries of scientific thinking when it came out.
Special Relativity
Special relativity is based on two important concepts:
1. As long as there is no acceleration, the laws of physics will stay constant for all. Think of two vehicles that are traveling on a parallel line at the same speed with no acceleration. To a person on one of the trains, it is impossible to tell which vehicle is moving.
2. Light travels at an unvarying speed. It does not matter how fast a light-emitting object is traveling; the light will always travel at 186,000 miles/ second.
Mark Swaim explains that using those two concepts as starting points, Einstein came up with some experiments that demonstrated how space and time are connected in ways that were not realized before. For example, if you are traveling on a vehicle and another person is on a similar but slower vehicle, you would see his watch ticking at a slower rate.
Special relativity also resulted in the realization that matter and energy are interchangeable, coming up with the most famous equation of all time, E = mc2.
General Relativity
General relativity can be explained as a theory about gravity. Instead of an unseen force that pulls objects, gravity is explained as warping of space.
Mark Swaim says that according to this theory, the sun is not just pulling the planets towards it. Instead, it warps the space surrounding it, which causes the planets to revolve around it. Since space and time are interconnected, time too can be warped by gravity.
While the Theory of Relativity may seem too esoteric and without any practical applications in life, it has made a significant impact on human civilization. Mark Swaim notes that the theory opened up the way for the development of nuclear weapons and nuclear energy.
The first part, Special Relativity, was published in 1905. The second one, General Relativity, was presented a decade later. The theory challenged centuries of scientific thinking when it came out.
Special Relativity
Special relativity is based on two important concepts:
1. As long as there is no acceleration, the laws of physics will stay constant for all. Think of two vehicles that are traveling on a parallel line at the same speed with no acceleration. To a person on one of the trains, it is impossible to tell which vehicle is moving.
2. Light travels at an unvarying speed. It does not matter how fast a light-emitting object is traveling; the light will always travel at 186,000 miles/ second.
Mark Swaim explains that using those two concepts as starting points, Einstein came up with some experiments that demonstrated how space and time are connected in ways that were not realized before. For example, if you are traveling on a vehicle and another person is on a similar but slower vehicle, you would see his watch ticking at a slower rate.
Special relativity also resulted in the realization that matter and energy are interchangeable, coming up with the most famous equation of all time, E = mc2.
General Relativity
General relativity can be explained as a theory about gravity. Instead of an unseen force that pulls objects, gravity is explained as warping of space.
Mark Swaim says that according to this theory, the sun is not just pulling the planets towards it. Instead, it warps the space surrounding it, which causes the planets to revolve around it. Since space and time are interconnected, time too can be warped by gravity.
While the Theory of Relativity may seem too esoteric and without any practical applications in life, it has made a significant impact on human civilization. Mark Swaim notes that the theory opened up the way for the development of nuclear weapons and nuclear energy.
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