Relatively Einstein Worksheet

Note that this worksheet may require some additional research beyond the presentation!

 

  1. What is wrong with saying, “That spaceship is traveling 100 miles per hour.”?

 

 

 

  1. What is the speed of light in a vacuum in the following units?
    1. ________  m/s
    2. ________  km/hr
    3. ________  mph
  2. If a spaceship turns on its headlights while it is traveling 0.5 c (half the speed of light), what will be the speed of the photons (units of light) coming out of its headlights?

 

 

 

  1. Answer the following questions on photons:
    1. Do red and blue photons travel at the same speed in outer space? 

 

    1. Do these photons slow down, speed up, or go the same speed in glass? 

 

    1. Do red and blue photons behave differently in the glass?  Why or why not?

 

 

 

 
  1. What is the gamma factor for a spaceship traveling 9/10 the speed of light?

 

 

 

  1. What is the gamma factor in the limiting cases of v << c and v ≈ c ?
    1. For v << c, gamma à

 

 

    1. For v ≈ c, gamma à

 

 

  1. At what velocity would a spaceship have to be traveling relative to you in order for its meter stick to appear to be 67 cm long to you?  How long would it appear to someone on the spaceship?

 

 

 

 

  1. Is there a test that can be done to determine whether the downward pull you feel in this room is due to gravity rather than an upward acceleration of the entire room at 9.8 m/s2?

 

 

 

 

  1. Does an astronaut’s watch tick more slowly, more quickly, or the same while stationary in outer space compared to the same watch on the Earth’s surface?

 

 

  1. Why do we not notice relativistic effects in our everyday lives?  (Note that there are two answers, one for SR and one for GR. Provide both answers.)
    1. SR:

 

 

 

    1. GR:

 

 

 

  1.  Are the GPS satellite clocks running too slow or too fast according to SR?

 

 

 

 

  1. Are the GPS satellite clocks running too slow or too fast according to GR?