2007-03-12 10:06:48 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
I didn't really see any right answers yet, so here it is:
If the speed of light were only 100 MPH, then the world we experience everyday would be relativistic, meaning we would see the strange effects of length contraction, and time dilation all around us.
Imagine driving your car to work, but the top speed of your car is only 99.9999.. MPH and can't never quite reach 100 MPH or over. And because you're moving close to the speed of light, someone on the street watching you drive by would see time slowing down for you, and would also see your car squashed to a length much shorter than it really is.
By the time you stop the car and get out, several months would have gone by, while you have only driven the car for an hour. Your boss would have gotten very upset with you, and had you replaced already.
This is what can happens in a relativistic world where everything moves close to the speed of light. And the reason we don't see this everyday is because our speeds are so much slower than light that relativistic effects are practically nil.
2007-03-15 17:28:51 · answer #1 · answered by PhysicsDude 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Snxster is mistaken, the speed of light is 186,000 miles per second, he's thinking of kilometres per second which is approximately 300,000 kph. Life at a slower light speed would be a lot slower as nothing can travel faster than light. To get comparisons, devide the number (speed of an object)you have by 1,860. I arrived at this number when I devided 186,000 by it and arrived at exactly 100 (obviously).
Therefore, if the speed of light were only 100 mph, then by comparison, a car capable of 120 mph would then have a top speed of 0.0645mph.
2007-03-12 22:15:01 · answer #2 · answered by elflaeda 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, sunlight would take much longer to reach the world. Currently it takes 8 minutes for sunlight to reach us and the speed of light is 299,792,458 miles per second. So if the speed of light was 100 miles per hour, the planet would freeze.
2007-03-12 10:23:41 · answer #3 · answered by Snxster . 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You wouldn't notice the difference. We would just live in a different scale (than we are now) and would have different laws of nature. That's what I think - the difference would be just in the measurement. Our walking speed would be something like 100 nm/s, the cars would drive at about 2 micrometers per second and so on.
2007-03-12 10:24:45 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
My theory: anything travelling over 100 mph towards you would appear to be travelling backwards away from you AT 100mph, once it's reached you. I actually made a chart to find this out. Still not 100% sure about what it looks like once it passes you, though. From my chart it looked like it must flicker, but that doesn't ring right with me.
Gravity is a completely different kettle of fish, so it won't be affected at all.
2007-03-13 04:55:02 · answer #5 · answered by ? 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
i'd ought to assert Chuck Norris ;) yet i'd even ought to bypass with Superman sorry Twilight human beings yet Superman is faster, more acceptable, has powers like, laser beams and Xray ingenious and prescient. in case you say Edward may be able to study his options is a lot of Bull, Superman can nevertheless beat him, plus because of actual undeniable actuality that Superman is likewise an Alien and may produce different forms of inner powers that we are able to not learn about which will have an potential the position he might want to dam Edward out of his options.
2016-12-01 21:44:27 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
We would adjust our life style accordingly. The whole life process would revolve around the new speed of light. It won't be a life or death situation!!!
2007-03-12 11:28:05 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
BIG SURPRISE!
We can (and already do) control the speed of light, making it slow down, stop and even go FASTER than the 'speed of light'!
Slow Light
http://www.livescience.com/technology/041112_slow_light.html
Fast Light
http://www.livescience.com/technology/050819_fastlight.html
Stopped Light
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/generalscience/lightstop_010119.html
2007-03-12 11:05:33 · answer #8 · answered by Ammy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Earth would be dimmer + there would be no life, i.e. Photosynthesis e.g. plants. Experiments, on fauna.
2007-03-13 09:56:31 · answer #9 · answered by CLIVE C 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The world wouldn't be..... simple. Gravity would be screwed and we'll all fall off. But wouldn't the boy racers be gloating?
2007-03-12 10:10:46 · answer #10 · answered by bubblybassoonist 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋