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[Phys-L] Re: "moving clock runs slower" (yes)



I would offer that the pedagogy of introducing the ideas of special
relativity needs to recognize that the VAST majority of intro-level students
are Aristotelian thinkers--who instinctually place themselves in a frame of
reference that is at rest (absolutely). In fact, except for a gifted (or
perverse) few, we all have the conceptual bias that our everyday frame of
reference is special and stationary. Given that prejudice (and one that is
EXTEMELY difficult to overcome) the descriptions that say that high speed
motion causes clocks to run slow, mass to increase, and lengths to contract
is neither surprising nor unusefull. For students for which the Pythagorean
Theorem is 'heavy math', the above descriptions coupled with the
experimental evidence for 'slow clocks' and 'increased mass' are about as
close to the geometry of space-time as one is likely to get. JD's approach,
I would reserve for Physics/Math/(maybe science) majors. ;-)

Rick (Who teaches where we have NO physics majors but who also teaches
classes with lots of Art and English majors!)

*********************************************************
Richard W. Tarara
Professor of Physics
Saint Mary's College
Notre Dame, Indiana
rtarara@saintmarys.edu
********************************************************
Free Physics Educational Software (Win & Mac)
Animations for Lectures
Photo-realistic Lab simulations
Energy management simulations
www.saintmarys.edu/~rtarara/software.html
Energy 2100--class project
www.saintmarys.edu/~rtarara/ENERGY_PROJECT/ENERGY2100.htm
********************************************************


Are these differences in appearance? Differences in reality? Both?.
Does relativity ultimately mean we have to accept multiple descriptions
of reality? Phrased differently... do we have to say that the lack of
an absolute reference frame also implies an inability to have a single
description of reality?

Michael D. Edmiston, Ph.D.
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