Chapter 2 Special Relativity 1
In Which We Learn That Everything Depends On How You Look at it
Setting the scene for special relativity
Introducing the concept of relativity in classical physics
Light in a vacuum always has the same velocity - even if the observer is moving relative to the source. Evidence from binary stars.
Starting to explore the consequences of the constancy of the speed of light. Events occur at different times depending on movement of the observer.
Key consequence of special relativity: a clock moves more slowly for a moving observer than for a static one.
Experimental evidence lends powerful support to the Special Relativity theory.
Another weird consequence of special relativity: distances are contracted for a moving observer, compared to those measured by a static one.
Appendix to Chapter 2