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Special relativity
In physics, the special theory of relativity, or special relativity for short, is a scientific theory of the relationship between space and time. In Albert Einstein's 1905 paper, "On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies", the theory is presented as being based on just two postulates:
The first postulate was first formulated by Galileo Galilei (see Galilean invariance).
Special relativity builds upon important physics ideas. The non-technical ideas include:
Two observers in relative motion receive information about two events via light signals traveling at constant speed, independent of either observer's speed. Their motion during the transit time causes them to get the information at different times on their local clock.
The more technical background ideas include:
![{\displaystyle ({\text{interval}})^{2}=\left[{\text{event separation in time}}\right]^{2}-\left[{\text{event separation in space}}\right]^{2}}](https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/media/math/render/svg/bc08db857240cfd077325d7bc3f01d3c079e4206)
Unusual among modern topics in physics, the theory of special relativity needs only mathematics at high school level and yet it fundamentally alters our understanding, especially our understanding of the concept of time. Built on just two postulates or assumptions, many interesting consequences follow.
The two postulates both concern observers moving at a constant speed relative to each other. The first postulate, the § principle of relativity, says the laws of physics do not depend on objects being at absolute rest: for example, an observer on a train sees natural phenomena on that train that look the same whether the train is moving or not. The second postulate, constant speed of light, says observers in a train station see light travel at the same speed whether they measure light from within the station or light from a moving train. A light signal from the station to the train has the same speed, no matter how fast a train goes.
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Special relativity
In physics, the special theory of relativity, or special relativity for short, is a scientific theory of the relationship between space and time. In Albert Einstein's 1905 paper, "On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies", the theory is presented as being based on just two postulates:
The first postulate was first formulated by Galileo Galilei (see Galilean invariance).
Special relativity builds upon important physics ideas. The non-technical ideas include:
Two observers in relative motion receive information about two events via light signals traveling at constant speed, independent of either observer's speed. Their motion during the transit time causes them to get the information at different times on their local clock.
The more technical background ideas include:
Unusual among modern topics in physics, the theory of special relativity needs only mathematics at high school level and yet it fundamentally alters our understanding, especially our understanding of the concept of time. Built on just two postulates or assumptions, many interesting consequences follow.
The two postulates both concern observers moving at a constant speed relative to each other. The first postulate, the § principle of relativity, says the laws of physics do not depend on objects being at absolute rest: for example, an observer on a train sees natural phenomena on that train that look the same whether the train is moving or not. The second postulate, constant speed of light, says observers in a train station see light travel at the same speed whether they measure light from within the station or light from a moving train. A light signal from the station to the train has the same speed, no matter how fast a train goes.