Related papers: On the concept of relativistic mass
A goal of physics is to understand the greatest possible breadth of natural phenomena in terms of the most economical set of basic concepts. However, as the understanding of physics has developed historically, its pedagogy and language have…
Recent developments in foundations of physics have given rise to a class of views suggesting that physically meaningful descriptions must always be relativized to a physical perspective. In this article I distinguish between strong physical…
The harmonic oscillator plays a central role in physics describing the dynamics of a wide range of systems close to stable equilibrium points. The nonrelativistic one-dimensional spring-mass system is considered a prototype representative…
A modification of the accepted relativistic energy momentum relation is suggested. The new relation allows massive particles to have a maximum velocity c(m) greater than the velocity of light c. The effect of the modification suggested here…
In this note, we discuss the significance of the general principle of relativity for a physical theory that abandons the newtonian concept of force and, hence, uses an entirely different conception for the ``cause'' behind motions of…
Although its practical efficiency is unquestionable, the thermodynamic tool presents a slight inconsistency from the theoretical point of view. After exposing arguments, which explain this opinion, a suggestion is put forward to solve the…
Mass-superselection rule (MSR) states that in the non-relativistic quantum theory superpositions of states with different masses are unphysical. While MSR features even in textbooks, its validity, physical content and consequences remain…
The particle effective mass is often a challenging concept in solid state physics due to the many different definitions of the effective mass that are routinely used. Also, the most commonly used theoretical definition of the effective mass…
Several attempts to construct theories of gravity with variable mass are considered. The theoretical impacts of allowing the rest mass to vary with respect to time or an appropriate curve parameter are examined in the framework of Newtonian…
A major consequence of special relativity, expressed in the relation $E_0 = m c^2$, is that the total energy content of an object at rest, including its thermal motion and binding energy among its constituents, is a measure of its inertia,…
The existence of vacuum fluctuations leads to reconsider the question of relativity of motion. The present article is devoted to this aim with a main line which can be formulated as follows: ``The principle of relativity of motion is…
Being mathematics a natural language to Mankind and to physics, it must be constantly adapted to our necessities and our natural perception. Then, mathematical concepts are not absolute to reality. Although mathematical theories are…
In Minkowski spacetime, we consider an isolated system made of two pointlike bodies interacting at a distance, in the nonradiative approximation. Our framework is the covariant and a priori Hamiltonian formalism of "predictive relativistic…
The center of mass and spin for isolated sources of gravitational radiation that move at relativistic speeds are defined. As a first step, we also present these definitions in flat space. This contradicts some general wisdom given in…
This thesis aims to review the cosmological mass function problem, both from the theoretical and the observational point of view, and to present a new mass function theory, based on realistic approximations for the dynamics of gravitational…
We show that the rest mass of a system consisting of two photons is a relativistic invariant having the same magnitude in all inertial reference frames in relative motion. A scenario which starts with two photons where theirs frequencies…
Since the 1930s, astronomical observations have accumulated evidence that our understanding of the dynamics of galaxies and groups of galaxies is grossly incomplete: assuming the validity of Newton's law of gravity on astronomical scales,…
The tight connection between mass and energy unveiled by Special Relativity, summarized by the iconic formula $E = mc^2$, has revolutionized our understanding of nature and even shaped our political world over the past century through its…
While speed is an ubiquitous concept in physics, its inverse - known as slowness - sometimes proves more relevant. We discuss some case studies within classical physics where such a notion is fruitful, before exploring how it can be…
We try to understand how particles acquire mass in general, and in particular, how they acquire mass in the standard model and beyond.