Understanding Minkowski Space-time: An Explanation of Time as a Dimension

  • Context: Graduate 
  • Thread starter Thread starter calebhoilday
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Minkowski Space-time
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the understanding of Minkowski space-time and the interpretation of time as a dimension in the context of special relativity. Participants explore the implications of space-time on the simultaneity of events and the mathematical representation of these concepts through four-vectors.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses confusion about the nature of space-time, suggesting that events are not only separated by spatial dimensions but also by time, which they find indistinguishable from spatial length.
  • The participant presents a mathematical formulation for space-time intervals, questioning the application of the formula in different scenarios involving a supernova and its recognition.
  • Another participant challenges the clarity of the first participant's event definitions and suggests that events should be represented as four-tuples, raising questions about the implications of spatial and temporal separation.
  • There is a discussion about the concept of simultaneity and how it is affected by spatial distance, with some participants asserting that simultaneity is not as straightforward as suggested.
  • One participant attempts to clarify their understanding of space-time, indicating that they believe events can be simultaneous in a three-dimensional sense but not in the four-dimensional space-time framework.
  • Another participant corrects misconceptions about the nature of events and their representation in space-time, emphasizing that events occupy specific positions in space-time and cannot be simultaneously located if they are distinct events.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants exhibit disagreement regarding the interpretation of simultaneity and the correct application of four-vector coordinates in space-time. There is no consensus on the understanding of these concepts, and multiple competing views remain present in the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Some participants express confusion over the definitions and implications of space-time coordinates, indicating that assumptions about simultaneity and spatial separation may not align with the mathematical framework of Minkowski space-time.

  • #31
calebhoilday said:
As this interval separates events
As evidenced by the fact that S2 can be positive, zero or negative, and the fact that it can be zero without the two events being equal, it's not a measure of how "big" the separation is.

calebhoilday said:
Considering event A to be the take off and event B to be the deceleration, does the difference in duration between event A and event B, for the spacecraft (1 year) and the space station (2 years), hold any significance?
Yes. To see this clearly, have the spaceship do the same thing again, but in the opposite direction. When it gets back to the space station, everyone on the station have aged 4 years, and everyone on the ship has aged 2 years. This is because human bodies can be thought of as really crappy clocks, and a clock measures the proper time of the curve in spacetime that represents its motion. (Note that there are lots of threads about this scenario already. This is a recent one).
 
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #32
I get the twins paradox. I was wondering if Lorentz transformations affect the co-ordinates. Event A say happens in 2010 to both the the spaceship and the space station, when does event B happen? Would the spacecraft consider it to be 2011 and the space station consider it to be 2012?
 
  • #33
calebhoilday said:
I get the twins paradox. I was wondering if Lorentz transformations affect the co-ordinates. Event A say happens in 2010 to both the the spaceship and the space station, when does event B happen? Would the spacecraft consider it to be 2011 and the space station consider it to be 2012?
The space station would. To the people on the spacecraft , 1 year has passed since 2010. If they would say that the year is 2011 is another matter. It wouldn't make much sense to say that, because then they should also say that it's 2012 when they get back home and meet all the people who live in 2014.
 

Similar threads

High School Traveling through space at zero km/s
  • · Replies 11 ·
Replies
11
Views
941
Undergrad Teaching Minkowski diagrams effectively
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
3K
High School Relativistic simultaneity and effects on time
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
530
Undergrad Spacetime expansion - time dimension expansion
  • · Replies 48 ·
2
Replies
48
Views
4K
Undergrad Trying to understand space-time diagrams
  • · Replies 61 ·
3
Replies
61
Views
6K
Undergrad Understanding Relativity of Simultaneity in Resnick, Part II
  • · Replies 20 ·
Replies
20
Views
2K
Undergrad Question about the Minkowski diagram
  • · Replies 14 ·
Replies
14
Views
2K
Undergrad Understanding Relativity of Simultaneity in Resnick, Part I
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
2K
Undergrad Relational event horizons?
  • · Replies 11 ·
Replies
11
Views
1K
Undergrad Michelson & Morley in Space-Time Diagram: Can't Make it Work
  • · Replies 18 ·
Replies
18
Views
2K