Abstract
This chapter outlines the special theory of relativity from a modern as opposed to historical perspective. It follows the approach promoted by Hermann Bondi, in which measuring rods and rigid frames of reference take second place to an exploration of the geometry of spacetime through thought experiments involving light signals and clocks in uniform motion. The theory is developed up to the point of demonstrating that Maxwell’s equations and the principle of relativity are compatible within the framework of Minkowski space.
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- FPTL:
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future-pointing timelike
- GPS:
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global positioning system
- ISS:
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International Space Station
- PGL:
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projective general linear
References
N.M.J. Woodhouse: Special Relativity (Springer, London 2003)
E.A. Milne: Relativity, Gravitation and World-Structure (Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford 1935)
H. Bondi: Assumption and Myth in Physical Theory (Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge 1967)
R. Penrose: The apparent shape of a relativistically moving sphere, Proc. Camb. Phil. Soc. 55, 137–139 (1959)
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© 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Woodhouse, N.M.J. (2014). Relativity Today. In: Ashtekar, A., Petkov, V. (eds) Springer Handbook of Spacetime. Springer Handbooks. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-41992-8_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-41992-8_3
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