Navy Astronaut Mark Kelly's space worn CONA Breitling auction begins...

[yakboyslim]

It slows down for someone looking from the outside in, not for the person at that speed. Hence the "relative" part of "relativity!"

Exactly. Each watch thinks it is the "slow watch" and that the other is the one moving really fast. Hence the problem appears opposite depending on which watch is used as the reference. But both are equally right. Watch A says watch B went :55 in his 1:00 and Watch B says Watch A went :55 in his 1:00.


That's also why noone except cosmologists need to care, because we are always the "slow watch."

If you want to really confuse things you can think of length contraction (objects going very fast appear shorter) in this paradox. A 33 ft T-6A going near the speed of light can appear to fit in a 20 ft garage. But inside the T-6 the pilot would say the garage appears to be only 12 ft long and the T-6 is normal size. Both are correct.

BTW, excuse my nerd-gasm thread jack here. I busted out my textbook, I'm really bored, and I need this...

 

[scoolbubba]

So what all you nerds are saying is that this 32000 dollar watch will be wrong....and right?

 

[Harrier Dude]

What happens if you put the shuttle on a treadmill?

 

[insanebikerboy]

What happens if you put the shuttle on a treadmill?

The universe implodes!

 

[Jim123]

What happens if you put the shuttle on a treadmill?

An African or European shuttle?

 

[Harrier Dude]

An African or European shuttle?

Makes no difference as long as they're both falling at 0 G.

 

[Jim123]

Makes no difference as long as they're both falling at 0 G.

An African shuttle, maybe, but not a European shuttle.

 

[wlawr005]

Makes no difference as long as they're both falling at 0 G.

I would initially suspect that it's nearly impossible to fall at 0 G. Orbits are a 1 G freefall with a sufficiently large tangential velocity.

 

[Harrier Dude]

I would initially suspect that it's nearly impossible to fall at 0 G. Orbits are a 1 G freefall with a sufficiently large tangential velocity.

Really? What does the G-meter read while doing a ridgeline crossing, inverted, in a space shuttle on a treadmill, approaching the speed of light.

That is the true question.

 

[KBayDog]

Really? What does the G-meter read while doing a ridgeline crossing, inverted, in a space shuttle on a treadmill, approaching the speed of light.

That is the true question.

42

 

[TheBubba]

42

42 is the wrong answer, as evidenced by the fact that we still exist. If it were the correct answer, then the question and answer would be known simultaneously, causing the known universe to wink out of existence and be replaced my something even more bizarre and inexplicable.

 

[wlawr005]

C'mon, everyone knows treadmills can't go inverted.

 

[EODDave]

No really man, it was inverted. It was a great move.

 

[Uncle Fester]

NERD VORTEX!

 

[wlawr005]