Girl Reaches 99.9% of Train's Speed Despite Time Slowing Down

  • Context: Graduate 
  • Thread starter Thread starter Grimstone
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Confused Time
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the concept of relativistic speeds, specifically addressing a hypothetical scenario where a girl runs inside a train moving at 99.9% the speed of light (C). Participants explore the implications of time dilation and length contraction on the girl's ability to reach the speed of light relative to an outside observer.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant notes that while the girl's speed is added to the train's speed, time dilation affects her ability to reach C.
  • Another participant explains that from an outside observer's perspective, distances within the train are contracted, preventing the girl from reaching C.
  • Several participants discuss the perspective of an insider, suggesting that everything appears normal from within the train, including the girl's running speed.
  • A participant mentions that the addition of speeds is non-linear at relativistic speeds, indicating that the formula for combining velocities changes as they approach the speed of light.
  • There is a comparison made to a sidewinder missile fired from a fast-moving aircraft, illustrating how relativistic effects alter expected outcomes.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on how speed addition works at relativistic speeds and the implications of time dilation and length contraction, indicating that multiple competing views remain without consensus.

Contextual Notes

Some assumptions about the nature of speed addition and the effects of relativity are not fully explored, and there are unresolved questions regarding the insider's perspective and its implications for speed measurement.

Grimstone
Messages
66
Reaction score
0
I was watching a vid with Mr Hawking talking about a train (fictional) that gets to 99.9 C.
and the little girl gets up and runs forward. "as time in the train has slowed down. her momentum is not added to that of the trains speed. So she never reaches C"

A. trains %99.9 of C
B. time inside the train slows down.
C. the girls speed IS added to the trains but because time slowed down Even more? she can't hit C?

Tomcat does mach2 fires a sidewinder that does mach2. for a short bit. that winder IS doing mach4.
so why is Suzie's speed not added to the trains and thus she is moving faster than the train.

PLEASE KEEP THE ANSWER SIMPLE. I'M STUPID.
 
Space news on Phys.org
It' because not only does the girl's clock run slower, but also, for an outside observer, all distances within the train are contracted. Such she can never reach c.
 
Markus Hanke said:
It' because not only does the girl's clock run slower, but also, for an outside observer, all distances within the train are contracted. Such she can never reach c.

but from a insiders view?
 
Grimstone said:
but from a insiders view?

From the insiders view, everything is normal, everything is moving at appears to be normal speed, light is still measured to be moving at c, and the little girl is running at normal little girl running speed.
 
Grimstone said:
but from a insiders view?

From an inside view the train is not moving at all, it is at rest. So the little girl would be running at 5-10 MPH.
 
Grimstone said:
C. the girls speed IS added to the trains but because time slowed down Even more? she can't hit C?
Correct; her speed is added to the train's, but non-linearly. I.e. v \neq v_\textrm{train} + v_\textrm{suzie}

Grimstone said:
Tomcat does mach2 fires a sidewinder that does mach2. for a short bit. that winder IS doing mach4.
The sidewinder would actually be going very (very very) close to mach 4, but not quite. At very small velocities, the effects of relativity are very (very very) small, and thus v \approx v_\textrm{tomcat} + v_\textrm{sidewinder}

Grimstone said:
so why is Suzie's speed not added to the trains and thus she is moving faster than the train.
The closer the velocities get to the speed of light the less effectively they add together.
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
5K
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
2K
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
15K
  • · Replies 56 ·
2
Replies
56
Views
9K
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
3K
Replies
5
Views
3K
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
3K