Physics › Section T · Special relativity › Topic T.1
Einstein's postulates
In 1905 Albert Einstein rebuilt our ideas of space and time from two short statements. Everything strange in special relativity, from slowed clocks to mass as energy, follows from them by careful reasoning.
In this topic
- A speed everyone agrees on
- Reference frames and inertial frames
- The first postulate
- Light and the search for the ether
- The Michelson-Morley experiment
- Worked example: how small was the effect?
- The second postulate
- Worked example: a beam from a fast ship
- Light in matter and the speed limit
- Where relativity matters
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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