chinglu1998 said:
I do not understand why you are doing P and Q.
I thought it was physically obvious, since you want to talk about an elapsed time you need
two events, and since you are talking about the event where a clock at x' = -7/8 light-seconds intersects something else at x = 0, that gives Q as the unique intersection.
Since you insist on calling the thing at x = 0 "the origin" (as if the "rest frame" was privileged) we can O to label its world-line, and like I did with P, I can with a single parameter on t, t' or x' express all the events on that worldline.
Event O(b) has
t = 7/6 seconds - (4/3) b
x = 0
t' = 35/24 seconds - (5/3) b
x' = a c -7/8 light-seconds
The choice b = 7/8 seconds gives the conventional origin:
Event O(7/8 seconds) has
t = 0
x = 0
t' = 0
x' = 0
Event P(a) has
t = 7/6 seconds - (5/3) a
x = -a c
t' = 35/24 seconds - (4/3) a
x' = -7/8 light-seconds
The choice a = 7/10 seconds gives the t=0 choice:
Event P(21/30 seconds) has
t = 0
x = -7/10 light seconds
t' = 21/40 seconds
x' = -7/8 light-seconds
The equally valid choice a = 35/32 seconds made by grav-universe gives the t'=0 choice
Event P(35/32 seconds) has
t = -21/32 seconds
x = -35/32 light-seconds
t' = 0
x' = -7/8 light-seconds
But Q = O(0) = P(0) is where "the origin" meets "the clock".
So the elapsed time on "the clock" is given by the Δt' of Q - P(a) which has
Δt = (5/3) a
Δx = a c
Δt' = (4/3) a
Δx' = 0
chinglu1998 said:
LT is for events after the co-location of the origins in the standard configuration.
The homogenous Lorentz transformation works for all events in the space-time, event if they happen "before" the origin or with a space-like separation. If you want you can even compose Lorentz transformation with a translation in space and time to get the inhomogenous Lorentz transformation, so co-location of the origins is not strictly necessary. Since the Lorentz transformation is a linear transformation of coordinates, it is also a valid transformation of coordinate
differences:
LT(t2) - LT(t1) = t2' - t1' = Δt' = LT(Δt)
And this means that the location of the origin is of no physical significance. There is no preferred origin or rest frame.
chinglu1998 said:
Does that mean this all built into LT? does LT calculate the elapsed times since the origins were co-located.
The Lorentz transformation does indeed calculate elapsed time between any two events, but you are responsible for clearly identifying the two events in both space and time. Here the co-located origin is an event O(7/8 seconds), but does not have physical relevance to the clock which is on the line P(a).
Nor does the t or t' coordinate of the starting point of the clock have physical significance -- they are choices that have to be made by the one asking the question.
chinglu1998 said:
But, your way OK with x' = -7/8 and then want to know when origin of unprimed frame reaches (x',0,0). Is this t' = -x'/-v = (-7/8)(-5/3) = 35/24s
The clock at x' = -7/8 light seconds meets the "origin" at x = 0 at the event Q = O(0) = P(0).
"When" has no meaning until you specify whose clock you are using and when that clock was started. Choose P(21/30 seconds) with t = 0 or P(35/32 seconds) with t' = 0.
Q - P(35/32 seconds) gives:
Δt = 175/96 seconds
Δx = 35/32 light-seconds
Δt' = 35/24 seconds
Δx' = 0
So the proper time (the time measured by a clock moving from P to Q) is √((Δt)²-(Δx/c)²) = √((Δt')²-(Δx'/c)²) = 35/24 seconds.
chinglu1998 said:
Now, I have space-time coordinate [ 35/24s, -7/8,0,0 ] and apply LT matrix for standard configuration. Is this correct?
That is the coordinates of Q in the moving frame.
chinglu1998 said:
[ 35/24s, -7/8,0,0 ] LT = [7/8s, 0, 0, 0] If this false, then what good LT is for this? In short, I want to translate the event/coordinate of [ 35/24s, -7/8,0,0 ] in the primed to the unprimed frame using LT.
Then you need to apply the Lorentz transform with v = -3/5 c.
As it turns out, it's [7/6 s, 0, 0, 0] which you could have also figured out with:
t² = (t²-(x/c)²) = ((t')²-(x'/c)²) = ((35/24 seconds)² - (-7/8 seconds)²) = 49/36 seconds²
In 1908 it was shown that Special Relativity makes as much sense as Euclidean geometry. But you have to think about space and time at the same time.