What Is the Rod's Slope in Frame S'?

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around the transformation of the slope of a rod as observed from two different reference frames in the context of special relativity. The original poster presents a scenario where a rod moves in the x direction with a certain speed, and they seek to understand how its slope changes when viewed from a moving frame.

Discussion Character

  • Conceptual clarification, Assumption checking, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants explore the implications of relative motion between frames and the effects of length contraction on the slope of the rod. Questions arise regarding the algebraic manipulation of the expressions for slope and velocity, as well as the interpretation of the frames' motion.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants questioning the original poster's understanding of the frame definitions and the implications of relative velocities. Some guidance has been provided regarding the nature of rest and motion in special relativity, but no consensus has been reached on the correct transformation of the slope.

Contextual Notes

There appears to be confusion regarding the definitions of the frames S and S', particularly in terms of their relative velocities and the implications for measurements of length and slope. The original poster references an answer key that presents a different expression for the slope, which has led to further questioning and attempts at clarification.

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A rod. having slope m relative to the x-axis of S, moves in the x direction at speed u. what is the rod's slope in the usual second frame S'? (S is at rest realtive to S' which moves along the x direction with velocity v).
well obviously the horizontal length of the rod is contracted or lengthened, depends on your frame:
i think that if L is the length of the rod, and [tex]u'=\frac{u-v}{1-\frac{uv}{c^2}}[/tex] then we have: L'_x=Lcos(theta)/gamma(u')
and the slope in S' is: m'=m*gamma(u') cause the vertical portion of the rod doesn't get change.

the problem is that in the answer key we have:
m'=m*gamma(v)*(1-uv/c^2)
but i don't get this, even with some algebraic manipulations, so i guess I am wrong here, can someone help here?

thanks in advance.
 
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S is at rest realtive to S' which moves along the x direction with velocity v

:confused:
 
S is at rest relative to S', where S' moves with horizontal velcoity compared to S, what's not understood here?
 
loop quantum gravity said:
S is at rest relative to S', where S' moves with horizontal velcoity compared to S, what's not understood here?
(1) S is at rest relative to S'
(2) S' moves with a horizontal velocity compared to S

Sounds contradictory to me! You might want to reword your problem statement.
 
what's wrong here?
one frame is stationary the other one moves with constant speed, what's wrong with this?
 
In SR, you cannot say that something is at rest in an absolute sense. It has to at rest with respect to/relative to something. So if S' is at rest with respect to S, then the relative velocity between the two is 0. If, on the other hand, S' has a velocity of v as measured by S, then S' measures the velocity of S to be -v(assuming standard configuration).
 
yes i see your point, i meant that S' has velocity v as measured by S.
 
loop quantum gravity said:
yes i see your point, i meant that S' has velocity v as measured by S.
Now that we have taken care of that, back to the problem...

I don't really see how to manipulate your answer, which is correct, to the form given in the book, and I also don't see how it is simpler than just having gamma(u').
 

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