Muons are created in the upper atmosphere by cosmic rays striking the atmosphere. The lifetime of a muon is about 2 microseconds. However, we can detect and measure them here on earth and see their lifetime is about 32 microseconds. Why? They are travelling at revalistic speeds close to c (0.998c).
So their time is dilated meaning by their time in their frame of reference, they live that 2microseconds, but by our time we see them live longer (32 microseconds) because time slows down from our frame of reference due to their speeds.
So in one frame of reference time "stands still" while in the other one, time progresses.
So imagine 2 twins A and B.
Twin A stays on earth and ages normally. Twin B boards a spacecraft and flys away from earth at 0.99999999c. From twin A's frame of reference, he sees time nearly stop for twin B, while his (Twin A) carrys on. Twin B comes back at 0.99999999c and the two are re-united. Now in the same frame of references, Twin A is older than Twin B!
BTW, Using atomic clocks they have proven our astronauts are slightly younger than they woulh have been if they had stayed on earth!
2006-08-13 04:57:13
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answer #1
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answered by cat_lover 4
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A paradox is an apparent contradiction, which upon closer inspection reveals subtleties which were previously overlooked. To ask whether a paradox is "true" is therefore kind of strange.
The resolution of the "twin paradox" is that the "twins" are not equivalent, because the travelling twin must decelerate to turn around and return to earth. This is an objective, frame-independent way of telling who is whom, so there is no contradiction in the fact that one twin is older than the other when they're reunited.
This prediction can be (and probably has been) experimentally confirmed. Just take a beam of muons (a muon is an elementary particle with a lifetime at rest of about 2.2 microseconds). Split the beam so part goes around a ring at high speed, while the other stops in a target. From the time of the stop (which you can detect) to one or more cycles around the ring and back to the target, count the amounts of muons in a the beam and in the stop. A greater fraction of the moving muons will still be around. The ones in the beam in fact will live longer--they will be "younger" than the muons in the target.
2006-08-13 04:43:03
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answer #2
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answered by Benjamin N 4
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The question becomes, will a person traveling through space at a speed near that of the speed of light age less quickly than a person remaining on earth all the while?
The answer is, "Yes." Now for the reason.
Mass is composed of electromagnetic energy. As a mass accelerates, the mass frequency converts at a right angle to the direction of travel, becoming added to that of the dimension of travel. A mass has only a limited amount of energy in its composition. When a mass is at rest, the energy is able to move in any direction. As a mass moves the potential for energy movement at right angles to direction of travel decreases. At the speed of light minus 2 mps, energy is able to travel most at a speed of 2 mps in any direction. Moving at the speed of light, there is no potential movement in any direction because the mass will have converted into electromagnetic energy.
The greater speed of a moving mass, the less potential exists for aging to occur, because all body processes slow down - heart beat completed once every month or so. Aging can't take place if there are no biological processes taking place.
http://360.yahoo.com/noddarc scroll down to "The Problem and Repair of Relativity". It is a short, easy to read, two page writing that explains why this works.
2006-08-13 09:06:36
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answer #3
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answered by Anonymous
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The Twin Paradox states that when one twin flies in a spaceship at close to the speed of light and turns back, he will be younger than the other twin at rest on Earth. However, in the spaceship twin's point of view, he is at rest and his twin is the one moving at close to the speed of light.
This can be resolved by the fact of a misconception. The spaceship twin undergoes acceleration while the Earth twin does not. For more, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_paradox
2006-08-13 05:00:44
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answer #4
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answered by Science_Guy 4
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All but one of the answers are correct. The dilation of time is a proven effect under near light speed conditions. So also is the increase in mass at near light speed, which is also a major part of the theory of relativity.
Since you are interested in paradox's, try this one on for size. Man travels back in time and kills his mother before he is born. Now that's enough to give anyone a headache.
2006-08-13 05:09:12
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answer #5
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answered by oldprof 7
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Guess you're refering to astronaut leaving his twin behind on earth and returning to earth after travelling in space at high speeds for a few years and returning to find his twin is much older.
Yep! True. Proven already and the physics is used everyday and in everyday things even like satellites! Time slows for things travelling at high speed.
2006-08-13 04:47:57
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answer #6
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answered by Plato X 2
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Interesting question..
We have indeed proven that time does indeed slow
as one approaches the speed of light however presuming a
human was traveling at the speed of light , does this mean
the cellular aging does not occur ?
If one spent 10 years traveling at the speed of light, why would
our cells not continue to divide and age ?
2006-08-13 05:02:01
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answer #7
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answered by Anonymous
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Here's another way to look at it. From the perspective of either twin, the other twin is aging slower. When they are reunited. Both should see the other as much younger.
2006-08-13 08:00:25
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answer #8
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answered by STEVEN F 7
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the reason being that whilst the two have been in action relative to one yet another, in hassle-free terms the twin contained in the spaceship replaced into sped up. In relativity concept there's a quantity referred to as 'proper time', that's in actuality the time measured by utilising a clock which accompanies the observer in each and every reference physique. Observers in uniform action relative to one yet another will see one yet another's clocks bogged down as predicted by utilising particular relativity. Such observers are nicely-referred to as inertial observers. yet introduce non-uniform action (i.e. acceleration) and an sped up observer measures a shorter proper time than an inertial observer. in hassle-free terms the twin contained in the rocket perceives acceleration (the g rigidity of the rocket because it helpful factors velocity), so he studies a shorter proper time than the non-sped up, inertial twin back in the international. replace: Remo, i replaced into attempting a handwaving description of the equivalence concept of accepted relativity: a gravitational field is indistinguishable from an acceleration.
2016-09-29 05:33:29
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answer #9
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answered by ? 4
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its a load of crap. anyone who says it has been proven is a liar or an idiot. we are traveling about 500,000 miles an hour through the universe. if you leave earth at 500,000 miles an hour, you are traveling one million mph. when you turn around to return to earth, you are sitting still in the universe, waiting for the solar system to pass by, so the total average speed evens out to be the same as if you never left earth. time doesn't slow doown because you are moving fast, time pieces llike clocks run slower when they are away from gravitational pull
2006-08-13 04:50:35
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answer #10
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answered by iberius 4
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