Related papers: On Controversies in Relativity Theory
We look afresh at the deduction of the "Lorentz contraction" of a "rod" from the Lorentz transformation equations of the special theory of relativity. We show that under special conditions, which include acceleration of the "rod", length…
While adhering to the formalism of Special and General Relativity, this paper considers the interpretation of clock rates and the rating of clocks in detail. We also pay particular attention to the crucial requirement of reciprocity between…
An overview of the experimental and observational status in gravitational physics is given, both for the known tests of general relativity and Newtonian gravity, but also for the increasing number of results where these theories run into…
For a newcomer, paraconsistent logics can be difficult to grasp. Even experts in logic can find the concept of paraconsistency to be suspicious or misguided, if not actually wrong. The problem is that although they usually have much in…
In this pedestrian approach I give my personal point of view on the various problems posed by dark matter in the universe. After a brief historical overview I discuss the various solutions stemming from high energy particle physics, and the…
We discuss scientific realism from the perspective of modern cosmology, especially primordial cosmology: i.e. the cosmological investigation of the very early universe. We first (Section 2) state our allegiance to scientific realism, and…
The search for a new scientific theory is typically prompted by an encounter with something in the world that cannot be explained by current theories. This is not the case for the search for a theory of quantum gravity, which has been…
It is known that action is invariant in special relativity. The goal of this note is to show that the reverse statement is also correct, that special relativity follows from the postulate that action is invariant under the transformation…
In this paper I highlight a few selected topics on strange particle production in heavy-ion collisions. By studying the yield and spectra of strange particles we hope to gain understanding of the conditions reached in, and the ensuing…
Lorentz invariance is a well known fundamental concept of special relativity but its violation is predicted by some variations of quantum gravity, string theory, and some alternatives to general relativity. We study neutrino oscillation at…
Although information theory resolves inconsistencies (known under the form of famous enigmas) of the traditional approach of thermostatistics, its place in the corresponding literature is not what it deserves. This article supports the idea…
Some studies interpret quantum measurement as being explicitly non local. Others assume the preferred frame hypothesis. Unfortunately, these two classes of studies conflict with Minkowski space-time geometry. On the contrary, in Aristotle…
In this paper, we argue that there are foundational dilemmas in theoretical physics related to the concept of reality and the nature of mathematics in physics. Physical theory is treated as a conceptual organism which develops under the…
There is no doubt that both the special and general theories of relativity capture the imagination. The anti-intuitive properties of the special theory of relativity and its deep philosophical implications, the bizzare and dazzling…
The era of high precision Cosmology has shown our ignorance about the composition of the Universe. In this context, there has been a renewed interest on Alternative Theories of Gravity. Through the experience of a graviton measured by the…
In this paper we discuss Internal Relativity, a recent program to address the problem of quantum gravity. In our approach we change the relationship between spacetime and matter. Currently we view matter as propagating on spacetime.…
New varying speed of light (VSL) theories as alternatives to the inflationary model of the universe are discussed and evidence for a varying speed of light reviewed. Work linked with VSL but primarily concerned with deriving Planck's black…
Unlike the relativity theory it seeks to replace, causal set theory has been interpreted to leave space for a substantive, though perhaps 'localized', form of 'becoming'. The possibility of fundamental becoming is nourished by the fact that…
An alternative approach towards quantum theory is described, and tentative attempts to connect his approach to special and general relativity are discussed. Important concepts are gauge groups and information/entropy connected to some…
The idea that quantum gravity manifestations would be associated with a violation of Lorentz invariance is very strongly bounded and faces serious theoretical challenges. Other related ideas seem to be drowning in interpretational…