ryan
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- Jun 26, 2010
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Imagine two very long pieces of thin opaque ribbon equal in length. Imagine that these ribbons are floating in space. They are stretched out lengthwise such that one end of one ribbon meets the end of the other ribbon, so these ribbons maximize their combined length. So, where one ribbon ends the other begins. These ends overlap very slightly so that no light can get through the space that both ribbons meet. Now imagine an observer watching as the ribbons go by at a relativistic speed. The observer has a device that will blow up if hit by a photon coming from a position in front of the observer where a continuous shadow from the ribbons will hopefully be. So from the frame of the ribbons a man sees that the ribbons overlap; therefore, the man will not see the observer blow up. But because of Lorenz transformations, the observer does blow up.
How can this be?
This is just like the ladder paradox only there is only one photon that needs to get through instead of needing simultaneity like in the ladder paradox.
How can this be?
This is just like the ladder paradox only there is only one photon that needs to get through instead of needing simultaneity like in the ladder paradox.