explain me in simple language: what is einstein's theory of relativity?

Answer 1

Einstein's Relativity Theory what tells you is that space and time are not absolute concepts as were conceived by Isaac Newton 350 years ago. This theory let's you explain how the Universe works as a whole in mechanical terms ( I mean, talking about forces, velocities and time passing)

There are two "flavors" of this theory.:

Special Relativity Theory.- It tells you that all uniform movement is relative to the reference frame you are working with. If you move faster in reference to another body, you will see that the other body "seems" to be static. To the contrary, if you move slower that the othr body you will feel that you are the static one.

Einstein's theory postulate that all observers will always measure the speed of light to be the same no matter what their state of uniform linear motion is.

General Relativity.- This theory that tries to explain is the nature of the gravity force. And it uses advanced mathematical concepts (as Riemann geometries, algebraic geometry and other weird concepts) to tell you that our Universe is made of a kind of space-time "higher" dimensional web (yes! there are more than the three dimensions you already know) and that gravity is just the consequence of a "deformation" of this web. For example, Sun creates a kind of "well" that causes Earth and surrounding planets to travel around it as a ball can do it in a vortex.

Hope it helps!

Answer 2

The theory of relativity is not a simple subject, and involves many contradictions within the theory and between classical mechanics.

There are actually two relativity theories, special relativity and general relativity.

Special relativity:

1. That observers, when in uniform motion relative to one another, have no way of determining whether one of them is "stationary" (Galileo's principle of relativity),

2. That the speed of light in a vacuum is the same for all observers, regardless of their motion or of the motion of the source of the light.

The resultant theory has many surprising consequences. Some of these are:

Time dilation: Moving clocks tick slower than an observer's "stationary" clock.
Length contraction: Objects are shorter along the direction in which they're moving.
Relativity of simultaneity: two events that appear simultaneous to an observer A will not be simultaneous to an observer B if B is moving with respect to A.
E=mc²: energy and mass are equivalent and interchangeable.

And then there is the general theory of relativity which involves the the equivalence principle, under which the states of accelerated motion and being at rest in a gravitational field are physically identical.

Some of the consequences of general relativity are:

Time goes slower at lower gravitational potentials. This is called gravitational time dilation.
Orbits precess in a way unexpected in Newton's theory of gravity. (This has been observed in the orbit of Mercury and in binary pulsars).
Even rays of light (which are weightless) bend in the presence of a gravitational field.
The Universe is expanding, and the far parts of it are moving away from us faster than the speed of light.
A rotating mass "drags along" the space time continuum around it.

Answer 3

Essentially, all things are relative to the individual observer. The speed of light is a contstant for any individual observer. If you were sitting in space and saw another astronaut come flying by you, the posit that you are staionary and he is moving is just as valid as the other astronaut saying that he is infact stationary and you are the one moving. Each observation is valid for the observer.
If you were driving you car at 99% the speed of light and you turned on your headlights, you would see no difference. An outside observer would also observe the same speed of light, however they would disagree about the distance that the light traveled.
Gone also is the idea of absolute time. Time is also relative for each observer. We have proven experimentally that time slows down for you as you move faster and faster.

Answer 4

Newtonian Physics considers parts such as length and mass to be constants. the sole consistent in Relativity is the cost of sunshine. From this are derived equations that are fairly basic yet contradict Newtonian strategies. length, Mass and Time all matter on the cost of one observer relative to a different. something shifting relative to something is definitely in a different timeframe however the outcomes are in basic terms important at velocities drawing near the cost of sunshine.

Answer 5

Distance and time depend on the observer's frame. Conservation of energy: E=mc^2.

Answer 6

It's the perception between something moving and somebody watching. He generally describes what a human would see if placed on these moving objects.

Answer 7

In simple words it gives relation between mass and energy!!!!

Answer 8

mass, length, time are variable if observed from aframe that is moving with high velocity as compared to light.
i.e. mass increases
length decreases.
time inncreases