News Story: Twin Paradox Solved

In summary, this article is about a professor who has solved the twin paradox and it's not a paradox.
  • #1
Alkatran
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News Story: "Twin Paradox Solved"

This makes me even sadder than the 0/0 story a few months ago:
http://www.physorg.com/news90697187.html

edit: mirror: http://duggmirror.com/general_sciences/LSU_professor_resolves_Einstein_s_twin_paradox_2/
 
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #2
Comment on website said:
Uhhhh... what? In relation to distant stars? Sounds like the sort of ad hoc b.s. an engineer would come up with.

:rofl: mumble mumble curse words...
 
  • #3
What a load of crap.
 
  • #4
Well at least the comments sum it up, it's not a paradox you monkeys:tongue2: :biggrin:

Sloppy journalism probably. Or an engineer who hasn't got his head round the idea of SR.

Only the fast moving twin experiences time slowdown. That is why there is no paradox.

The fast moving twin would always see the stay at home twins clock going fast. You cannot have both clock"s going slower than the other.

Relativistic effects are not reciprocal. The application of the reciprocity of relativistic effects is the problem.
On 14-Feb-2007 by chaunce
Uhhhh... what? In relation to distant stars? Sounds like the sort of ad hoc b.s. an engineer would come up with. I obviously haven't read his paper, but it sounds ignorant to me, mostly for the reason that there is no paradox, in that the assymetry created by the fact that only one twin undergoes an acceleration resolves this "paradox."
On 14-Feb-2007 by tcamps
As Chaunce said, the resolution of the "paradox" lies in the fact that you can't compare the amount of time that's passed for each of them unless you bring them both to rest in the same inertial reference frame. So one or both of them needs to be accelerated, violating the "special" part of special relativity.
Someone's b.s.-ing it--either the professor, or the reporter.
On 14-Feb-2007 by Indurance
The way I understood it was that since no state of motion is unique or can be considered "real" you could say that the earthbound twin was accelerating away from the traveling one. The non constant bit which resolves the problem is when the space traveling twin turns around to return - different frame of reference. As as been said there is no "paradox" here it is explained by the theory. I'm no expert, but I thought I'd grasped that much at least.
On 14-Feb-2007 by Nick
The paradox only exists if you insist on ascribing motion to things that have not actually accelerated. Only the twin moving fast through space will experience the transverse Doppler effect or the time slowdown.

You simply cannot have both clocks going slower than one another. The fast moving twin will always have the slower clock and the stay at home the faster (clock.)
 
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  • #5
Yeah, the twin paradox has been resolved for years, that is, decided not to be a paradox. This story was even retracted on some websites (it has been appearing on a lot of strange websites).

Science needs to strike back against idiots like that with (a) force. Not as in inviting them to equal-based scientific discussion, but to, for a lack of better words, go Richard Dawkins on them.
 
  • #6
Moridin said:
Yeah, the twin paradox has been resolved for years, that is, decided not to be a paradox.

More like resolved for almost a century.
 
  • #7
I don't get it, why make a fool of yourself? What does electrical engineering have to do with relativity anyway?!
 
  • #8
user299792458 said:
I don't get it, why make a fool of yourself? What does electrical engineering have to do with relativity anyway?!

Because for crackpots, any publicity is good publicity. This is because they have no other means of getting "recognized", so even bad publicity is good publicity. Besides, considering how bad the general public's literacy on science is, and how many suckers are born every minute, there's bound to be hordes of people who would buy into it.

It is why they are so annoyed with PF, because we are cutting off one of their means of publicity.

Zz.
 
  • #9
The funniest was a reply I read somewhere in those forums :

"So a journalist and a student get drunk in a bar..." :rofl:

The least funny replies where those people actually taking this crap seriously and debating the merits (or lack thereof) of the article. Total craziness.
 
  • #10
He got something on this topic published in the "International Journal of Theoretical Physics". Temple University Library no longer subscribes to it, and I won't pay the $32 to read it online so I can't say what's in it. However, this sounds worse than the Sokol hoax.
 

What is the "Twin Paradox"?

The "Twin Paradox" is a thought experiment that explores the concept of time dilation in special relativity. It involves two twins, one of whom stays on Earth while the other travels through space at high speeds. When the traveling twin returns, they have aged less than their twin who stayed on Earth.

What is the solution to the "Twin Paradox"?

The solution to the "Twin Paradox" involves understanding the effects of time dilation on the traveling twin. According to special relativity, time moves slower for objects in motion relative to objects at rest. Therefore, the traveling twin experiences less time during their journey, causing them to age less than their twin on Earth.

How does the "Twin Paradox" relate to Einstein's theory of relativity?

The "Twin Paradox" is a thought experiment that helps illustrate the concepts of time dilation and the relativity of simultaneity, which are key principles in Einstein's theory of special relativity. It highlights the idea that time is relative and can be affected by factors such as motion and gravity.

Is the "Twin Paradox" a real phenomenon?

While the "Twin Paradox" is a theoretical scenario, it has been experimentally proven through the use of atomic clocks. In fact, the effects of time dilation on astronauts have been observed in space missions, providing evidence for the validity of special relativity.

Are there any limitations or exceptions to the "Twin Paradox"?

The "Twin Paradox" is a simplified thought experiment and does not take into account factors such as acceleration and deceleration, which can affect the aging process of the traveling twin. Additionally, it only applies to objects moving at constant speeds, not those accelerating or changing direction. These factors can complicate the scenario and may lead to different outcomes.

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