There are two main theories about the persistence of objects through time. Endurantists hold that objects are three-dimensional, have only spatial parts, and wholly exist at each moment of their existence. Perdurantists hold that objects are four-dimensional, have temporal parts, and exist only partly at each moment of their existence. We argue that endurantism is poorly suited to describe the ...

2 Fundamentals of special relativity 80 2.1 Einstein’s postulates and insights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 2.2 Time out of joint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 2.3 Spacetime and Lorentz invariance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 2.4 Special relativistic dynamics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...

Q. Does the Lorentz transformation reduce to the Galilean transformation when the ratio v /c is small? A. No. At least two routes are available to substantiate the negative response. I will first give a direct, algebraic route and then a more sophisticated indirect route. Consider the usual pair of inertial reference frames, the primed frame moving with speed v along the x axis of the unprimed ...

The appearance of fast moving objects can be calculated according to the Theory of Special Relativity. In addition to the Lorentz contraction the e ects of nite light speed and aberration play an important role. These phenomena were rst discovered and described correctly in 1959 by Penrose and Terrel. Concerning the visualization of the phenomena there already exist systems with relativistic ra...

Special relativity is no longer a new revolutionary theory but a firmly established cornerstone of modern physics. The teaching of special relativity, however, still follows its presentation as it unfolded historically, trying to convince the audience of this teaching that Newtonian physics is natural but incorrect and special relativity is its paradoxical but correct amendment. I argue in this...

It is discussed whether some of the consistency problems of present–day physics could be solved by replacing special relativity, whose underlying kinematics is ruled by the Poincaré group, by de Sitter relativity, with underlying kinematics ruled by the de Sitter group. In contrast to ordinary special relativity, which seems to fail at the Planck scale, this new relativity is “universal” in the...

I compare the matrix representation of the basic statements of Special Relativity with the conventional vector space representation. It is shown, that the matrix form reproduces all equations in a very concise and elegant form, namely: Maxwell equations, Lorentz-force, energy-momentum tensor, Dirac-equation and Lagrangians. The main thesis is, however, that both forms are nevertheless not equiv...

An interpretation of special relativity is presented with alternative principles that treat an appearance of simultaneity as physically real. This implies instantaneous propagation of incoming light, but maintains light’s invariable propagation rate of c by using an alternative measure of speed. The relativistic Doppler effect is derived from physical principles based on the direct appearance o...

This review is concerned with a discussion of numerical methods for the solution of the equations of special relativistic hydrodynamics (SRHD). Particular emphasis is put on a comprehensive review of the application of high-resolution shock-capturing methods in SRHD. Results obtained with different numerical SRHD methods are compared, and two astrophysical applications of SRHD flows are discuss...