Messages in this thread |  | | Date | Sat, 25 May 1996 09:20:47 -0600 (MDT) | From | Mike Wangsmo <> | Subject | Re: Relativity [was incorrectly: Quantum Mechanics] |
| |
On Sat, 25 May 1996, Steve VanDevender wrote:
> Light doesn't speed up or slow down when it passes through a > gravitational field. It may gain energy or lose energy or change > direction, but it doesn't change speed. You can arrange to emit two > photons in different directions from the same point and have them both > pass through another point at different times by having one pass through > a region of greater spacetime curvature, but that doesn't mean one > photon traveled faster than the other -- it means one traveled farther > than the other. Both traveled at the same speed, and all observers will > measure the same speed for both photons. >
Based on the fact that a light beam exhibits properties of both waves and particles, it is clearly obvious that a particle is accelerated or decelerated by the affects of gravity.
> You need to read and understand a good book on relativity theory. I > suggest _Spacetime Physics_ by Taylor and Wheeler for an introduction. > If you are then able to understand _Gravitation_ by Misner, Thorne, and > Wheeler you will be doing better than I am. >
Most of what I'm talking about was presented in a Physics presentation here some years a go by a visiting professor, I don't recall the name. I also jsut recently saw a show on the Discovery channel last week and a part of it was discussion this exact phenomenom, theoretically. I think the show was Beyond 2000 or some such thing, anyway they were talking about the possiblity of time travel. THis thoery about the speed of light *not* being constant was the basis for the time travel discussion.
I wish I could take credit for such creative thinking, but, alas I'm only restating some things I've heard over the years from other theorists.
_______________________________________________________________________ Mike Wangsmo, Graduate Student wanger@fubar.cs.montana.edu Dept. of M&IE, MSU http://www.cs.montana.edu/~wanger Bozeman, MT 59717 (406) 586-0690 "May the Force be with you, always"
|  |