Time Dilation: Understanding the Formula

[lewis1440]

I do not fully understand the time dilation formula, if the answer is nearer to 1 does that mean time itself under perspection has slowed or increased?

 

[Dale]

I would recommend not using the time dilation formula. It is too easy to misuse. Instead, you should always use the Lorentz transform.

 

[lewis1440]

I would recommend not using the time dilation formula. It is too easy to misuse. Instead, you should always use the Lorentz transform.

ok, thankyou.

 

[JesseM]

I do not fully understand the time dilation formula, if the answer is nearer to 1 does that mean time itself under perspection has slowed or increased?

While it's safer to use the full Lorentz transform, IMO the time dilation formula can give better physical intuition if you're trying to picture how things are behaving in a given frame. It's always true that a clock which is moving in a given inertial frame is running slower in that frame, so for example if gamma=1.25, that means in the frame of the observer who sees the clock in motion, it takes 1.25 seconds for the clock to tick forward by 1 second. So the larger the value of gamma, the slower the clock is ticking in the observer's frame. If gamma=1, then that means the clock is at rest relative to the observer, and it's ticking at 1 second per second of time in the observer's frame (no relativistic time dilation).