(Untitled)

[super_elmo]

Okay, physics-types, help me out. Special relativity is not making it into my brain

Comments

*tears out hair*

[super_elmo]

That's okay; I'm just glad I'm not the only one all that rambling doesn't make sense to. Like, what are "realms" of time? They can't be when two things move at the same speed, because if somebody throws a baseball at me from the bed of a moving pickup truck while I'm standing still, then we're moving at different speeds but the Doppler effect still works then. Is it just that the difference in speeds has to be really really big for there to be an effect? And with force being the derivative of momentum, I follow that, until you integrate it and the gamma shows up in the equation. Where did the gamma come from? (That is a gamma, right?) But even ignoring that, p approaches infinity as v approaches infinity, not c. I mean, what makes light so special that it's the standard for everything else's motion? (No, really, I'm confused about that too.) And then the rest of it gets a bit fuzzy too. And I think the thing with the light clock is bullshit, because it only looks like it's moving faster. Besides, that explanation only makes sense if you stop and think and do some calculations. If I'm looking out the window and seeing light move, I'm not automatically going to think time must be dilating because light is traveling more distance at a constant speed. I'll just be looking at the dudes in the other ship, and they'll only seem slow if I stop and think.

Don't worry; you didn't confuse me more. It made that little sense to me beforehand. Oh dear. Yet again I have failed the gods of science. It will be like trying to place ducks in the water/land/air animal classification system all over again, dammit.

Let's be dumb physics losers together. It's better that way.