Chronology Current Month Current Thread Current Date
[Year List] [Month List (current year)] [Date Index] [Thread Index] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Date Prev] [Date Next]

Newton's Third Law

Lisa Morris writes:
...
Are there limitations to Newton's Third Law and, if so, what are they?
...
In short, yes. Newton's third law (N3) ONLY applies in the non-relativistic
limit; it is, by definition, Newtonian. N3 is manifestly inconsistent with
interactions which are not propagated instantaneously across finite distances.
(Of Newton's laws, only his first one goes over unscathed into relativity.)

David Bowman
Georgetown College
dbowman@gtc.georgetown.ky.us