Is it theoretically possible for time to be absolute. For a light clock to tick at a constant rate irrespective of motion?
2
-
$\begingroup$ Not possible :)) $\endgroup$– PaulCommented Jan 27, 2017 at 3:44
-
$\begingroup$ Would it be possible to construct a clock that received info from a speedometer and adjusted for any change in speed? $\endgroup$– LambdaCommented Jan 27, 2017 at 4:08
Add a comment
|
2 Answers
$\begingroup$
$\endgroup$
No. This is what special relativity explicitly forbids -- a grid of initially synchronized clocks will only stay syncronized in one reference frame.
answered Jan 27, 2017 at 3:39
$\begingroup$
$\endgroup$
4
No, this is not possible. Any light clock is in a certain reference frame, moving with a certain velocity at a certain position. The principle of relativity states that the laws of physics should behave exactly the same in all inertial frames - so if you make a measurement using a light clock in one frame, it should return the same result as an identical measurement made using a light clock in another frame.
Your scenario violates such a principle. Time dilation is a law of physics, and should be observed to act the same in all inertial frames.
answered Jan 27, 2017 at 3:40
-
$\begingroup$ Is the distance a light clocks mirrors are apart, the same in both frames? $\endgroup$– DACCommented Jan 27, 2017 at 5:36
-
$\begingroup$ Is the distance a light clocks mirrors are apart the same in both frames? $\endgroup$– DACCommented Jan 27, 2017 at 5:39
-
$\begingroup$ @DAC In frames where the clocks are moving parallel in a direction perpendicular to their separation, yes. $\endgroup$ Commented Jan 27, 2017 at 19:18
-
$\begingroup$ So if the mirrors are one metre apart, we can say for the stationary frame, either of t0 things. The clock ticks every time the light hits the mirrors, or every time the light travels one metre. And as one metre is the same in both frames, the clock should tick every one metre travelled by the light irrespective of the frame. Obviously this contradicts S.R.. Paradox? $\endgroup$– DACCommented Jan 28, 2017 at 1:38