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Key Terms
- binding energy
- the energy equivalent of the difference between the mass of a nucleus and the masses of its nucleons
- ether
- scientists once believed there was a medium that carried light waves; eventually, experiments proved that ether does not exist
- frame of reference
- the point or collection of points arbitrarily chosen, which motion is measured in relation to
- general relativity
- the theory proposed to explain gravity and acceleration
- inertial reference frame
- a frame of reference where all objects follow Newton’s first law of motion
- length contraction
- the shortening of an object as seen by an observer who is moving relative to the frame of reference of the object
- mass defect
- the difference between the mass of a nucleus and the masses of its nucleons
- postulate
- a statement that is assumed to be true for the purposes of reasoning in a scientific or mathematic argument
- proper length
- the length of an object within its own frame of reference, as opposed to the length observed by an observer moving relative to that frame of reference
- relativistic
- having to do with modern relativity, such as the effects that become significant only when an object is moving close enough to the speed of light for γ to be significantly greater than 1
- relativistic energy
- the total energy of a moving object or particle E=γmc2, which includes both its rest energy mc2 and its kinetic energy
- relativistic factor
- γ=1√1−u2c2, where u is the velocity of a moving object and c is the speed of light
- relativistic momentum
- p = γmu, where γ is the relativistic factor, m is rest mass of an object, and u is the velocity relative to an observer
- relativity
- the explanation of how objects move relative to one another
- rest mass
- the mass of an object that is motionless with respect to its frame of reference
- simultaneity
- the property of events that occur at the same time
- special relativity
- the theory proposed to explain the consequences of requiring the speed of light and the laws of physics to be the same in all inertial frames
- time dilation
- the contraction of time as seen by an observer in a frame of reference that is moving relative to the observer