In another thread Ros has made reference to a situation where two ships (I guess traveling at or near c) pass in the night, which I felt warranted still another discussion, mainly for benefit of the visitor or newcomer
http://able2know.org/topic/306767-1#post-6089713
Quote:...two relativistic ships passing in the night
Yea Ros it's pertinent you should describe the typical situation I envision in support of my insane theory. Using two very fast vehicles and as few words as possible, of course all clocks everywhere had been synchronized by conventional means
...It's midnight the instant I take off for a visit with Marty, though unbeknownst to me, he had earlier departed home and is just passing by; and as he does so he informs you it's 11:55 back home, which makes sense to you since it's supposedly five light minutes distant
...as an instant later I encounter his Better Half Martina whose clock reads 12:05. So the moment I'd reached for my stick here we have three people at the same place in disagreement about the reading on Martina's clock: You say it's midnight, Marty says 11:55, and I say 12:05
The traditional embarrassingly unspoken assumption being that you're right but Marty and I are five minutes off 'cuz we're movin', 'cuz we accelerated, 'cuz we're moving with respect to a stationary ref, etc, etc, etc, etc, ad hominem forever
So my uncommon approach rejects the assumption, making my reading just as valid as youall's. It really was 12:05; resolving both the Twin Paradox with its puzzle of slowing clocks and the recent problem of simultaneity, and possibly the existence (or not) of the "stationary ref"
....though, sorry, it does render the speed of light also as a relative matter. Not that Al was wrong, mind you, but only that he had provided a somewhat limited viewpoint. Thus do I introduce Relative Relativity
Yes you freshie, several q's jump into your mind, be glad to address 'em