May 11, 2016 the impossible barber and other bizarre thought experiments. Instead, this thought experiment should be thought of as an early example. In short, the equation describes how energy and mass are related. Imagine firing a light beam along a railroad embankment just as a train roars by. The paradox involves two particles that are entangled with each other according to quantum mechanics. May 05, 2007 einstein tells us that both are correct, within their own frame of reference. But he did devise a simple thought experiment that told us something profound about gravity. One of einstein s most defining qualities was his remarkable ability to conceptualise complex scientific ideas by imagining reallife scenarios. Einstein took a first, important step toward a general theory of relativity in 1907 with what we now call the elevator thought experiment, by means of which einstein uncovered a deep connection between accelerated frames of reference and gravitation. Book 2 the universe series what einstein told his cook. How i created the theory of relativity the nose as a reservoir for thoughts cartoon by ippei. Sutter is also host of ask a spaceman and space radio, and leads astrotours around the world.
Consider a tower on earth send a photon from bottom to top. This is a fundamental result of special relativity. Einstein s thought experiment involved two particles that have collided or which have been created in such a way that they have properties which are correlated. Season 23 episode 11 3m 12s watch visualizations of ideas that helped einstein devise his theories of relativity and of the equivalence principle. Paul sutter is an astrophysicist at the ohio state university and the chief scientist at cosi science center. Imagine firing a light beam along a railroad embankment just as a train roars by in the same direction at, say, 2,000 miles a. It fails to generate serious problems for an ether. These 5 crazy thought experiments show how einstein formed. Train thought experiment the future already exists. Einsteins 1905 paper on the photoelectric effect cantor. Famous as it is, it has proven difficult to understand just how the thought experiment delivers its results. A hallmark of albert einsteins career was his use of visualized thought experiments german. First and foremost, unlike them, it is entirely unclear how this thought experiment works. The einstein podolskyrosen argument in quantum theory first published mon may 10, 2004.
Thought experiments what i call thought experiments is a smaller class than that which usually goes under that name in the literature. Pdf on einsteins relativity of simultaneity thought. In any case thought experiments can result in a revision of belief, thereby demonstrating their significance for. One of einstein s thought experiments had to do with quantum entanglement, which einstein liked to call spooky action at a distance. Studying scientific thought experiments in their context. Einstein inherited from his parents the jewish intellectual tradition with a deep respect for learning. Herein we consider an absolute time and an absolute space but no ultimate speed, and we call it. Gedankenexperiment as a fundamental tool for understanding physical issues and for elucidating his concepts to others. They shine the beam of the torch across the carriage and time how long it takes to return to them. Bells theorem can be displayed with a simple, nonmathematical thought experiment suitable for a physics course at any level. Albert einstein famously used thought experimentsexperiments carried out in the mind onlyto work out complex ideas. Oct 09, 2015 you can download my overview publication in pdf format a sign post to a series of publications revealing the existence of multiple flawed contemporary parad. I will explain einstein s thought experiment presently, but i would like to discuss a similar, but simpler thought experiment which also demonstrates the relati. So i got this from an article on wikipedia that covers einstein s train thought experiment.
We concede, of course, that the thought experiment was not an invention of einsteins. We do know, however, that the train and embankment thought experiment was the preferred means whereby he chose to teach this concept to the general public. Thought experiments, einstein, and physics education by art stinner and don etz more than two decades ago, clifford swartz wrote an edi tol. Einsteins tower the equivalence principle the theory of general relativity tests of gr i. The epr paradox or the einstein podolskyrosen paradox is a thought experiment intended to demonstrate an inherent paradox in the early formulations of quantum theory. Einsteins stubbornness 10 einstein thought that scientific greatness was primarily a matter of character, the determination not to compromise or accept incomplete answers. The ten deadliest snakes in the world with steve irwin real wild documentary duration. We present a simple thought experiment in which a beam of light of a. What he imagined is this scenario you are in a vacuum, pursuing a beam of light at the speed of light. Einstein s theory of special relativity is sometimes confusing.
The einstein podolskyrosen paradox epr paradox is a thought experiment proposed by physicists albert einstein, boris podolsky and nathan rosen epr, with which they argued that the description of physical reality provided by quantum mechanics was incomplete. A thought experiment on time dilation schoolphysics. Einstein s theory of special relativity explained by gedanken thought experiments. Atomic physicists repeat the mantra of emc2, as if that formula had emerged from einsteins head as an iso lated idea quantum physicists. For special relativity, he employed moving trains and flashes of lightning to explain his most penetrating insights. In his 1917 treatise, einstein described the following thought experiment. The total wave function for the pair links the positions of the particles as well as their linear momenta. Einstein s trainembankment experiments, for example, involve a train presumably a steampowered train since einstein devised the thought experiments around 1916 and earlier that travels at about thirty or forty percent of the speed of light. If i was simplifying them, the paper shouldnt have been more than 2 pages long. Bells theorem and einsteins spooky actions from a simple.
We revisit this thought experiment from a modern point of view and. Gedankenexperiment, gedankenexperiment, or gedankenerfahrung considers a hypothesis, theory, or principle for the purpose of thinking through its consequences. The impossible barber and other bizarre thought experiments. Thought experiments stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. It is perhaps the simplest experiment to understand and clearly shows the difference between reference body and frame of reference. The first three experiments to be explained here are versions of the trainembankment thought experiment described by albert einstein in his book relativity.
A hallmark of albert einstein s career was his use of visualized thought experiments german. We redo einstein s thought experiment with atomic clocks from the special theory of relativity. At age 16, he tried to picture in his mind what it would be like to ride alongside a light beam. In this paper we consider a thought experiment involving the effect of gravitation on an ideal scale containing a photon. His life, his theater, his dance from lava to life. The result of einsteins experimental elevator experiment was nothing less than the principles underlying the general theory of relativity. In 1930 einstein argued against consistency of the timeenergy uncertainty relation by discussing a thought experiment involving a measurement of mass of the box which emitted a photon. Thought experiment and equivalence principle misleading 2. By my stipulation, thought experiments have four characteristics that distinguish them from intuition pumps.
For example, einstein described how at age 16 he watched himself in his. Another thought experiment in special relativity arxiv. According to quantum theory, under certain circumstances two electrons separated by huge distances would have their properties linked, as if by an umbilical cord. However, einsteins lightclock thought experiment does not deal with the mechanism that generates the photon. Here are a few thought experiments that demonstrate some of einstein s most groundbreaking discoveries. The thought experiment is unlike einstein s many other thought experiments in two ways.
He sensed that his thought experiment created a difficulty to the ether theory, even if these thought experiments could not yet be formulated in terms of words. Dec 14, 2016 in 1907, physicist albert einstein devised what we now call the elevator thought experiment, in which he dreamed up the idea of having an entire physics laboratory inside a falling elevator. Einsteins unique way of thinking contributed to his genius duration. It is not part of einstein s original 1905 paper where relativity of simultaneity is explained mathematically which i treat here. Perhaps the most famous equation of all time is e mc 2. Upon encountering the thought experiment, most readers likely find the.
But it simplifies the experiments by going through them step by step and performing the same experiment in different ways so that the results can be compared and analyzed. Einstein thought experiments season 23 episode 11 nova. If the tidal forces inherent to a gravitational field are neglected, then. The einsteinpodolskyrosen argument in quantum theory. It has always been the true scientific method of the great thinkers from plato of the ancient greeks to bernard riemann of nineteenthcentury germany. Some thought experiments are so convincing in their results that an execution seems unnecessary. Einsteins thought experiments wikimili, the best wikipedia. Simultaneity albert einstein and the theory of relativity. We concede, of course, that the thought experiment was not an invention of einstein s. It is known that when albert einstein was awarded the nobel prize for physics in 1922, he was unable to attend the ceremonies in stockholm in december of that year because of an earlier commitment to visit japan at the same time. For more on epr and solvay 1930 see howard, 1990 and ryckman, 2017, pp.
May 16, 2017 einstein later explained the problem with another thought experiment. The following paper will discuss the historical and social background of his speech in kyoto, and provide analysis of einsteins thought experiment in connection with the michelson experiment. Relativity the special and general theory albert einstein digital reprint elegant ebooks. Philosopical criticisms of the einstein thought experiment. Thought experiments and intuition pumps in philosophy. Imagine a ray of light sent by the sun in a certain direction. Increasing professional isolation and death quantum theory led to the epr einstein podolskyrosen thought experiment. His life and ideas with 21 activities and thought experiments for kids series jerome robbins. The train experiment at times it appears to follow inconsistent reasoning. In japan, einstein gave a speech entitled how i created the theory of relativity at kyoto university on 14.
Light and gravity einsteins tower experiment another classic thought experiment suppose that light is not affected by gravity. Einstein called this thought experiment the germ of the special relativity theory. Pdf in this publication the core information about einsteins flawed relativity of simultaneity thought experiment paradigm was specifically. I refer readers to the thought experiment described in albert einstein s book, now published online, at. This is about einstein s famous train thought experiment gedankenexperiment proving relativity of simultaneity. Einsteins mistakes einstein was the greatest genius of the twentieth. The description of the epr experiment instead of the thought experiment described in the original epr paper we will formulate the problem for a more realistic spincorrelation experiment suggested by bohm and aharonov in 1957. Very simply it is just the distance the light travels twice the width of the carriage d divided by the speed of light c. From different reference frames, there can never be agreement on. What he imagined is this scenario you are in a vacuum, pursuing a beam of light at the speed of light basically going as fast as light. Relatively speaking, a complicated life biographer walter isaacson has turned his attention to the 20th centurys scientific poster boy, whose family life was as difficult as his career. Einsteins totally flawed relativity of simultaneity. Yes, his great breakthroughs came from visual experiments performed in his head rather than the lab. The equation is a direct result of the theory of special relativity, but what does it mean and how did einstein find it.
Scientific thought experimentsespecially those in physicsare the clear cases, so my primary goal is to establish true and interesting generalizations about them. This is the simplified logic of einsteins key thought experiments. About einsteins train and lightning thought experiment, i. It is among the bestknown examples of quantum entanglement.
We revisit this thought experiment from a modern point of view at a level suitable for undergraduate readership and. Have there been any philosophical criticisms of this thought experiment and its conclusions. Einstein and the elevator thought experiment einsteins. Some science is too big, dangerous, or weird to happen in the lab.
An artists concept of twisted spacetime around earth. The rereading of einsteins thought experiment as providing objections to emission theories will be given in the concluding section. We therefore do not know just how important clock synchronization and the train and embankment thought experiment were to einstein s development of the concept of the relativity of simultaneity. Einstein later explained the problem with another thought experiment. A popular picture for understanding this idea is provided by a thought experiment similar to those suggested by daniel frost comstock in 1910 and einstein in 1917. And a simple, semiclassical derivation of the quantum theory result can be given for.
In this publication the core information about einstein s flawed relativity of simultaneity thought experiment paradigm was specifically extracted from section 12. Einstein illustrates the discrepency by imagining a cavity with perfectly reflecting walls, filled with freely moving electrons and gas molecules. This thought experiment answered einstein s old question about what he would see if he traveled along with a beam of light. Imagine you have a twosided coin that can easily be split in. In that situation, einstein thought, that light should appear stationary or frozen. Einstein recalled how, at the age of 16, he imagined chasing after a beam of light and that the thought experiment had played a memorable role in his development of special relativity. Bohr seemingly triumphed over einstein by arguing that the einstein s own general theory of relativity saves the consistency of quantum mechanics. Many of the crucial thought experiments einstein later reports confirm the existence. The arguments put forward have not led to a change in the authors conclusion in this post, which, if correct, undermines einsteins concept of time dilation that arises from his lightclock thought experiment. The einsteinpodolskyrosen argument and the bell inequalities.
Success here will radiate to my secondary goal of understanding philosophical thought experiments. The einsteinpodolskyrosen paradox epr paradox is a thought experiment proposed by physicists albert einstein, boris podolsky and nathan rosen epr, with which they argued that the description of physical reality provided by quantum mechanics was incomplete. Here are a set of thought experiments that help to explain special relativity. This translation of a lecture given in kyoto on 14 december 1922 sheds light on einstein s path to the theory of relativity and offers insights into many other aspects of his work on relativity. Albert einstein made a mistake in his thought experiments. Scientific thought experiments especially those in physicsare the clear cases, so my primary goal is to establish true and interesting generalizations about them. He called these scenarios gedankenexperiments, which is german for thought experiments. The thought experiment is unlike einsteins many other thought experiments in two ways. Real science einsteins method of the thought e xperiment.
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