Speed of Light Constant

[pgrmdave]

How is the speed of light able to remain constant independant of the motion of the observer?

[Tim_Lou]

its a very complicated general relativity questions.

moving objects experience time dilation relatively to other frames...
also length contraction.

i suggest you to search some info on google....

and a constant C does not come from theory, it comes from observation, its just the way nature is....

and GR is based on this constant C.

[gpdone]

Originally Posted by pgrmdave

How is the speed of light able to remain constant independant of the motion of the observer?

If my question below seems not to be related to what you are trying to say please clarify.

You seem to be implying that the motion of an observer should have some effect on the constant C. This would mean that you would assume that a machine set to fire one ping pong ball per second at you, and was in fact doing so, that if you run towards it you would believe that the rate of fire has actually increased instead of only feeling like it has increased.
??

Lee

[TINNY]

how does length contraction play its role in keeping the C constant?

[pgrmdave]

Originally Posted by gpdone

If my question below seems not to be related to what you are trying to say please clarify.

You seem to be implying that the motion of an observer should have some effect on the constant C. This would mean that you would assume that a machine set to fire one ping pong ball per second at you, and was in fact doing so, that if you run towards it you would believe that the rate of fire has actually increased instead of only feeling like it has increased.
??

Lee

It is exactly like that, actually. The ping pong balls would be moving faster relative to a body moving towards them than away from them. The rate of fire has nothing to do with it, at least, I don't think it does.

[gpdone]

Originally Posted by pgrmdave

It is exactly like that, actually. The ping pong balls would be moving faster relative to a body moving towards them than away from them. The rate of fire has nothing to do with it, at least, I don't think it does.

How about this one then...you are running north on Main St at 25 MPH and you run head on into a car going 5 MPH...Irrespective of the 30 MPH amount of damage to your body, how fast was the car moving? How is it that a car moving only 5 MPH can do 30 MPH damage to a human?

Lee

[pgrmdave]

But that example makes logical sense, the car was moving 30 MPH relative to the person hit, what wouldn't make sense would be if it had only done 5 MPH damage. Assume that the car represents light, your example is what makes sense to me, one can change it's speed relative to themselves by motion towards or away, but light does not change it's speed. The car would only have hit me at 5 MPH.

[gpdone]

Well sort of....You would be correct to believe that the rate of the ping pong machine would not have really changed either, though GR would like you to believe it and use their formula to 'prove' that' a mathmatical possibility is also possible in the real world. This is what length contraction and time dilation are..ways of explaining mathmatical soultions to a real world dilema but at its best for real world applications it is only an illusion which serves to satisfy our need to understand while we figure out how the same results arrise actually. Optical effects account for most GR proofs and other possiblities are still open to explain degrading rotation of some Pulsars. Our own Sun could give us a strong clue soon! So NOW YOU KNOW..I R a Crack pot too! One who believes in the tooth fairy and 'only' three spacial dimentions.

Lee

[Tim_Lou]

the thing is, experiements show that C is always constant regardless of whatever frame it is,
thats just experiment data, and theories must be made to explain...

if C wasnt constant, then considering that the earth is moving relatively to the sun, and relativity to the galaxy.. the C would be all messed up. In one direction, it might be .5C, in other direction, it might be 2C, then there would be great disgreement on scientific experiements...

also, if C wasnt constant, then there must be an absolutely frame with zero velocity which measures the right C, it was assumed that this thing (ether) existed, but.... no one had ever found it.

[Tim_Lou]

for TINNY's question... well i dont know much..

considering someone measuring the length of an object, he msut mark the both ends of the object at the same time.

but time isnt the same to frames that move relatively to each, therefore, the "marks" they make do not aggree with each other, thus measurments in both frames do not agree with each other... but they apply the proper measuring method, so both must be right.....

(i dont know if it makes sense or not... i dont fully understand it either, well...)

we cant say whatever's roles on keeping C constant,
in fact, these assumptions are based on the constant C.