Selected Extracts form the Research Activity
The
Lorentz
transformation
lies
at
the
core
of
the
modern
space-time
theory
–
the
special
theory
of
relativity
(STR).
The
STR
plays
an
instrumental
role
in
modern
physics.
And
yet,
teaching
this
theory
is
an
uneasy
task.
The
difficulty
arises
from
the
inherent
obscurity
of
one
of
its
cornerstones
–
the
second
postulate.
At
some
stage,
the
lecturer
is
forced
to
say,
“Remember
and
repeat or you will fail the final exam.”
The
developed
electrical
model
is
derived
using
clear,
easy-to-demonstrate
principles
and
allows
to
derive
the
two
key
conclusions
of
the
STR
–
the
time
dilation,
and
the
length
contraction.
In
addition
to
confirming
the
key
conclusions
of
the
STR
to
the
students,
this
work
also
provides
the
ground
for
a
deeper
understanding
of
this
remarkable
theory
than
the
“remember
and
repeat”
approach.
The
model
is
linked
to
the
STR
using
an
elegant
and
powerful
investigation
tool
–
the
analogy
of
Felix
Klein.
The
use
of
analogy
highlights
to
students
the
fact
that
we
leave
in
a
unified
Universe
where everything is intimately interconnected.
Modelling the Lorentz Transformation
This
work
is
concerned
with
the
two
experiments
that
most
rightfully
deserve
to
be
deemed
the
most
baffling
experiments
of
the
contemporary
time
–
the
very
famous
interferometer
of
Michelson-
Morley
and
the
much
less
famous,
but
more
generic
and
therefore
more
useful,
interferometer
of
Kennedy-Thorndike.
The
work
emphasizes
the
role
of
assumptions
in
scientific
inquiry,
demonstrating
how
foundational
assumptions
–
often
made
unconsciously
–
can
predetermine
the
outcomes
of
a
theory
or a train of thought.
The Interferometers of Michelson-Morley,
Kennedy-Thorndike, and the Second
Postulate of the STR
This
work
is
astrophysical
in
nature
and
deals
with
a
remarkable
and
informative
artefact
of
the
formation
of
our
Universe
–
the
relict
radiation.
This
has
proved
to
be
an
amazingly
prolific
natural
laboratory for exploring fundamental phenomena. Key insights from this work include:
•
The
time
dilation
effect
–
the
fact
that
the
time
and
therefore
all
physical
processes
proceed
at
a
slower
pace
within
a
moving
object
(e.g.
us
as
part
of
the
Milky
Way).
This
fact
is
derived
from
the
apparent
discrepancy
between
the
“hot”,
the
“cold”,
and
the
average
temperature
of
the
relict
radiation.
•
The
average
temperature
of
the
relict
radiation,
obtained
from
the
measurements
of
the
“hot”
and
“cold”
temperatures,
must
be
corrected
by
the
Lorentz
factor
to
account
for
our
motion
relative to the effective source of the relict radiation.
•
Relative
to
the
relict
radiation
the
objects
can
be
unequivocally
divided
into
stationary
and
moving.
Thus,
the
relict
radiation
can
be
used
as
a
universal
frame
of
reference
against
which
to
measure motion. Yet, this can not be regarded as contradicting the relativity principle.
•
The
distribution
of
matter
in
the
early
Universe
(about
200,000
years
old
and
62
million
light-years
in
diameter)
must
have
been
remarkably
homogeneous
and
isotropic,
with
as
much
matter
in
one
region
as
in
any
other.
Furthermore,
the
temperatures
across
local
regions
must
have
been
nearly
identical.
All
of
this
was
maintained
despite
the
ongoing
expansion
of
the
Universe,
and
to an astonishing degree of accuracy.
•
The
expansion
of
the
Universe
must
also
be
strictly
isotropic,
occurring
at
the
same
rate
in
every
direction
within
the
observable
Universe,
and
this
isotropy
has
been
maintained
unfailingly
up
to the present time. The term “Big Bang” is the most awkwardly chosen one then.
The Relict Radiation and the
Relativity Principle
