Faster than the speed of light
22 September 2011, 08:35 PM
#1
Scooby Regular
Thread Starter
Faster than the speed of light
Could Einstein's theory of relativity be about to be up ended?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15017484
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15017484
22 September 2011, 09:14 PM
#6
Depends on where you are observing the light.........driving the car it would leap away from you at the speed of light. Sat at the roadside it would not leave the headlights.
Shaun
Shaun
Trending Topics
22 September 2011, 09:46 PM
#13
Scooby Regular
Thread Starter
They'd be the fastest hamsters going round the biggest hamster wheel!!
22 September 2011, 10:14 PM
#18
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Zed Ess Won Hay Tee
Posts: 21,611
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
22 September 2011, 10:15 PM
#19
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Apr 2001
Posts: 2,227
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
but the neutrinos are travelling through the earth's crust (given the earth's curve is a factor over that distance).
I think you're confusing lasers (which lose their accuracy in earth's atmosphere at pretty small distances, i.e. 20km or so, never mind the inaccuracies you get with the measuring / relay instruments along the way, the impact of gravity, the fact that the neutrinos wouldn't take the same line etc etc) with atomic clocks - which, contrary to popular belief, run slightly differently at different altitudes - and still don't help you measure the distance between two points.
???
I think you're confusing lasers (which lose their accuracy in earth's atmosphere at pretty small distances, i.e. 20km or so, never mind the inaccuracies you get with the measuring / relay instruments along the way, the impact of gravity, the fact that the neutrinos wouldn't take the same line etc etc) with atomic clocks - which, contrary to popular belief, run slightly differently at different altitudes - and still don't help you measure the distance between two points.
???
22 September 2011, 10:23 PM
#20
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,574
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Being serious for a seconds, you are right they don't have a physical connection. Its a point and shoot situation. They detect only a few hundreds or a few thousands of particles at the other end. Its the biggest, educated guess experiment ever carried out imho. This problem will explained, imho.
22 September 2011, 10:24 PM
#21
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Apr 2001
Posts: 2,227
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I know sod all about physics (clearly 
) - but in my head neutrinos don't hit things along the way, which makes them so hard to detect, whereas photons bounce off things which is why the speed of light is meaningless unless measured in a vacuum. You could use a form of light which is non-visible (e.g. radio waves of some form?) but they'd get slowed down passing through the rock vs the neutrinos, even if they took exactly the same path, which is doubtful.
i.e. I'm surprised everyone's taking as gospel that a key part of this equation is correct (distance), especially given they're saying the neutrinos are only about 20m ahead over the distance involved - presumably that's why the CERN scientists are asking for external review, rather than claiming it's true.
I'll stop now as it's too late to ponder this when the financial world's going to hell around us.
Gordo
) - but in my head neutrinos don't hit things along the way, which makes them so hard to detect, whereas photons bounce off things which is why the speed of light is meaningless unless measured in a vacuum. You could use a form of light which is non-visible (e.g. radio waves of some form?) but they'd get slowed down passing through the rock vs the neutrinos, even if they took exactly the same path, which is doubtful.i.e. I'm surprised everyone's taking as gospel that a key part of this equation is correct (distance), especially given they're saying the neutrinos are only about 20m ahead over the distance involved - presumably that's why the CERN scientists are asking for external review, rather than claiming it's true.
I'll stop now as it's too late to ponder this when the financial world's going to hell around us.
Gordo
22 September 2011, 11:25 PM
#22
Gordo...Neutrinos are not affected by gravity...
I know it was written a long time ago but there is a book called the God Particle which is a pretty good read......Ok I have a PhD LOL
http://www.amazon.com/God-Particle-U.../dp/0385312113
Shaun
I know it was written a long time ago but there is a book called the God Particle which is a pretty good read......Ok I have a PhD LOL
http://www.amazon.com/God-Particle-U.../dp/0385312113
Shaun
22 September 2011, 11:32 PM
#23
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Apr 2001
Posts: 2,227
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Gordo...Neutrinos are not affected by gravity...
I know it was written a long time ago but there is a book called the God Particle which is a pretty good read......Ok I have a PhD LOL
http://www.amazon.com/God-Particle-U.../dp/0385312113
Shaun
I know it was written a long time ago but there is a book called the God Particle which is a pretty good read......Ok I have a PhD LOL
http://www.amazon.com/God-Particle-U.../dp/0385312113
Shaun
23 September 2011, 12:00 AM
#26
Scooby Regular
iTrader: (4)
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: nr leeds
Posts: 2,473
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
i do actually know the answer to this. towards the speed of light everything slows down time wise this is apparently natures way of protecting the speed of light as the maximum speed anything can go so anything leaving or produced by the object travelling near to or at the speed of light will be slowed by the effects of time being slowed.
23 September 2011, 12:00 AM
#27
Owner of SNet
iTrader: (7)
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Berkshire
Posts: 11,513
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
In the course of doing the experiments, the researchers noticed that the particles showed up a few billionths of a second sooner than light would over the same distance
Not even a car length quicker
TX.
Not even a car length quicker
TX.
23 September 2011, 12:13 AM
#29
Scooby Regular
iTrader: (4)
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: nr leeds
Posts: 2,473
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Gordo...Neutrinos are not affected by gravity...
I know it was written a long time ago but there is a book called the God Particle which is a pretty good read......Ok I have a PhD LOL
http://www.amazon.com/God-Particle-U.../dp/0385312113
Shaun
I know it was written a long time ago but there is a book called the God Particle which is a pretty good read......Ok I have a PhD LOL
http://www.amazon.com/God-Particle-U.../dp/0385312113
Shaun
the 2 slit experiment is the main one that gets me though, as it works with photons, electrons and complete atoms. and how basically everything we know only exists if it is being observed
