Related papers: From Einstein's 1905 Postulates to the Geometry of…
Einstein's special theory of relativity starts with assumptions about how observations conducted in relatively moving inertial frames must compare. From these assumptions, conclusions can be drawn regarding the laws of physics in any one…
We give a critical analysis of the conceptual foundations of special relativity. We formulate a simple operational criterion for distinguishing between noninertial and inertial frames which is introduced prior to geometry. We associate the…
A century after its formulation by Einstein, it is time to incorporate special relativity early in the physics curriculum. The approach advocated here employs a simple algebraic extension of vector formalism that generates Minkowski…
The Einstein postulates assert an invariance of the propagation speed of light in vacuum for any observer, and which amounts to a presumed absence of any preferred frame. The postulates appear to be directly linked to relativistic effects…
The starting point of this work is the principle that all movement of particles and photons must follow geodesics of a 4-dimensional space where time intervals are always a measure on geodesic arc lengths. The last 3 coordinates (alpha =…
Minkowski space serves as a framework for the theoretical constructions that deal with manifestations of relativistic effects in physical phenomena. But neither Minkowski himself nor the subsequent developers of the relativity theory have…
Einstein based his special theory of relativity on two postulates: (a) physical laws appear the same in all inertial frames, and (b) the speed of light in vacuum is an observer-independent constant. However, it is already known that the…
Understanding the nature of time remains a key unsolved problem in science. Newton in the Principia asserted an absolute universal time that {\it `flows equably'}. Hamilton then proposed a mathematical unification of space and time within…
We present a novel derivation of both the Minkowski metric and Lorentz transformations from the consistent quantification of a causally ordered set of events with respect to an embedded observer. Unlike past derivations, which have relied…
Flat space cosmology spacetimes are exact time-dependent solutions of 3-dimensional gravity theories, such as Einstein gravity or topologically massive gravity. We exhibit a novel kind of phase transition between these cosmological…
A two-dimensional Minkowski spacetime diagram is neatly represented on a Euclidean ordinary plane. However the Euclidean lengths of the lines on the diagram do not correspond to the true values of physical quantities in spacetime, except…
In the Einstein gravity, it is well-known that strictly stationary and vacuum regular spacetime should be the Minkowski spacetime. In the Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet theory, we shall show the similar statement, that is, strictly static(no event…
Einstein distinguished between ``principle'' and ``constructive'' theories in physics, and although he thought the latter were more explanatory than the former, he regarded his 1905 formulation of special relativity theory as a principle…
The four dimensional spacetime continuum, as first conceived by Minkowski, has become the dominant framework within which to describe physical laws. In this paper, we show how this four-dimensional structure is a natural property of…
{This paper is a comparison of the Minkowski, Einstein and Einstein dual theories of relativity. The dual is based on an identity relating the observer time and the proper time as a contact transformation on configuration space, which…
The Einstein's equivalence principle is formulated in terms of the accuracy of measurements and its dependence of the size of the area of measurement. It is shown that different refinements of the statement 'the spacetime is locally flat'…
Besides two fundamental postulates, (i) the principle of relativity and (ii) the constancy of the speed of light in all inertial frames of reference, special relativity uses the assumption about the Euclidean structures of gravity-free…
The starting point of this work is the principle that all movement of particles and photons in the observable Universe must follow geodesics of a 4-dimensional space where time intervals are always a measure of geodesic arc lengths, i.e.…
Special relativity turns out to be more than coordinate transformations in which the constancy of the speed of light plays the central role between two inertial reference frames. Special relativity, in essence, is a theory of…
The nonlinear stability of Minkowski spacetime has been one of the central achievements in the mathematical theory of general relativity and, more broadly, in the analysis of nonlinear geometric wave equations. Since the seminal work of…