topics: |  physics | relativity | science

combines essays from the books Mr Tompkins in Wonderland and Mr Tompkins explores the atom.

Contents

1. City speed limit

Mr T has a dream while attending a lecture by a professor on the theory of relativity. in his dreams, he enters a world where the speed of light is less. speeding bicycles seem far shorter, but when Mr Tompkins lifts a bike and starts to pedal, he doesn't become shorter, but the world becomes narrower in his direction of motion. although half an hour has passed by the wall clock, it seems much less and is only 5:05 on his watch. About a young man who chastizes him for not knowing these things:

  
	   The young man was evidently a native, and
	   had been accustomed to this state of things 
	   even before he had learned to walk. p.6

2. The Professor’s lecture on relativity which caused Mr. Tompkins’s dream

	starts with newton's view of space:
	   Absolute space, in its own nature, without regard to anything
	   external, remains always similar and immovable ...
	   Absolute, true and mathematical time, of itself, and from its own
	   nature flows equably without regard to anything external. [Principia] 
  	and goes on to describe the process by which contradictions appeared
	in this view, with Michelson's experiments on the absoluteness of the
	speed of light.  and how einsteins eqn of velocity computation
	restricts velocity.  thus a tramp running on the roof of a train at
	3/4c, while the train is moving at 3/4c, has a speed of (v1+v2) /
	(1+v1v2/c^2), which implies the resulting velocity is 24/25 c, still
	less than vel of light.   Leads on to demolishing the notion of
	simultaneity (can only exist in a local frame).  Asks us to compare: 
	   Two events in diff places considered simultaneous from ref frame A
	   will be separated by a definite time interval in ref frame B
	 and now compare:
	   Two events in diff times at same place in ref frame A will be
	   separated by a definite space time interval in ref frame B
	 which can well happen - e.g. two events on a moving train.  But this
	 is completely symmetric to the earlier statement.  Einstein's
	 insight consisted in noting this symmetry and building the
	 space-time continuum on it.  goes on to the equations for shortening
	 of space [length mult by sqrt (1 - (v/c)^2)], and expanding of time
	 [time mult by 1/sqrt above].  

3. Mr. Tompkins takes a holiday
4. The Professor’s lecture on curved space, gravity and the universe
5. The pulsating universe
6. Cosmic opera

   	a number of poems that describe the nature of the universe - an opera
	about the big bang theory, complete with music scores, and a famous poem
	on the big debates between the big bang theory (Gamow's view) vs the
	entrenched opinion on the univ being in a steady state, written 
	by George Gamow with his wife Barbara Gamow (some opine that
	it was mostly Barbara).  It outlines the debate with the
	steady-staters (Fred Hoyle, Hermann Bondi, Thomas Gold).  Ryle is the
	radio astronomer Martin Ryle, who computed the density in the far
	reaches of the universe.

  	   "Your years of toil,"
	   Said Ryle to Hoyle,
	   	"Are wasted years, believe me.
           The steady state
	   Is out of date.
		Unless my eyes deceive me,

           My telescope
	   Has dashed your hope;
		Your tenets are refuted.
           Let me be terse:
	   Our universe
		Grows daily more diluted!"

           Said Hoyle, "You quote
	   Lemaître, I note,
		And Gamow. Well, forget them!
    	   That errant gang
	   And their Big Bang—
		Why aid them and abet them?

	   You see, my friend,
	   It has no end
		And there was no beginning,
           As Bondi, Gold,
	   And I will hold
	   	Until our hair is thinning!"

	   "Not so!" cried Ryle
	   With rising bile
	   	And straining at the tether;
	   "_Far galaxies
	   Are, as one sees,
	        More tightly packed together!_"

	   "You make me boil!"
	   Exploded Hoyle,
		His statement rearranging;
           "_New matter's born
	   Each night and morn.
	        The picture is unchanging!_

	   "Come off it, Hoyle!
	   I aim to foil
		You yet" (The fun commences)
	   "And in a while"
	   Continued Ryle, 
	   	"I'll bring you to your senses!"

7. Quantum billiards
8. Quantum jungles
9. Maxwell’s demon
10. The gay tribe of electrons
10. 1/2. A part of the previous lecture which Mr Tompkins slept through
12. Inside the nucleus
13. The wood carver
14. Holes in nothing
15. Mr Tompkins tastes a Japanese meal
	a very lucid explanation of "strong interaction" forces, which are
	caused by mesons jumping back and forth between the particles in
	contact.  theory due to Hidekei Yukawa, which is the Japanese
	connection.