Theory of Relativity

11 Stories

Teen Explains Relativity With Popcorn, Nabs $400K

Meet the winner of the Breakthrough Junior Challenge

(Newser) - To most people who aren't physicists, Albert Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity is probably just a vague concept that somehow explains why Matthew McConaughey doesn't age in Interstellar . But to 18-year-old Ryan Chester, it's easy to explain—which is exactly what he's done in a...

Hawking's New Theory: 'There Are No Black Holes'

He addresses conflicting theories of physics

(Newser) - Stephen Hawking helped develop current theories on black holes—but now, he's saying there aren't any. New Scientist explains his thinking, focusing on what's known in physics as the "firewall paradox," which deals with a black hole's event horizon. That's an "invisible...

Einstein Safe: Neutrinos Do Not Break Light Speed

New experiment shows particles at identical speed with light

(Newser) - Einstein's theory apparently remains untouchable, and flabbergasted theoretical physicists can cease hyperventilating: Neutrinos do not exceed the speed of light, but they do appear to travel at the same speed as light, according to the results of a recent experiment. The new data confirm Einstein's foundational ideas and...

Einstein Wrong? Maybe Just Faulty Wiring

A simple loose cord may explain last year's controversy

(Newser) - More evidence that last year's furor over the accuracy of Albert Einstein's work got blown way out of proportion: Physicists believed they'd seen particles traveling faster than light , a phenomenon that would disprove the theory of relativity. But the controversial observations may have been the result of...

'Most Beautiful Theories' in Science Include Relativity and Theory of Evolution

 191 'Most Beautiful' 
 Theories in Science 
in case you missed it
Jan 21, 2012 7:00 AM CST

191 'Most Beautiful' Theories in Science

Relativity, theory of evolution top the list

(Newser) - Every year, the website Edge poses a big, open-ended question to leading scientists. This year's query— "What is your favorite deep, elegant or beautiful explanation?" —received 191 answers covering a wide range of ideas, with Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity and Charles Darwin's Theory of...

Faster-Than-Light Findings All Wrong: New Study

Scientists refute labmates' shocking results

(Newser) - The scientists who said they recorded particles traveling faster than light in September —and then confirmed their own findings last week —have it wrong, international scientists in Italy say. The ICARUS project, based in the same laboratory as the OPERA experiment, argued that if the particles had traveled...

2nd Test Finds Faster-Than-Light Particles

Result backs up much-hyped, and much criticized, earlier experiment

(Newser) - The international physics team OPERA (Oscillation Project with Emulsion Tracking Apparatus) has managed to recreate the result that shocked the physics world , again detecting a batch of subatomic particles moving faster than the speed of light, the Washington Post reports. The "positive outcome of the test makes us more...

Einstein Theory of Relativity Challenge by New Finding

 E=MC2: 
 It Might 
 Be Wrong 
in case you missed it
Sep 24, 2011 7:00 PM CDT

E=MC2: It Might Be Wrong

Physicists report neutrinos traveling faster than light

(Newser) - It's enough to make Einstein's hair stand up: Physicists at CERN think they've spotted neutrinos traveling faster than light, reports AP . According to Einstein's special theory of relativity—his E=MC2 equation—nothing should be able to go that fast. At Wired , Adrian Cho doesn't mince...

$750M Later, Einstein Proven Right

 $750M Later, Einstein 
 Proven Right 
in case you missed it
May 8, 2011 6:18 AM CDT

$750M Later, Einstein Proven Right

NASA's Gravity Probe B vindicates predictions about warping of space, time

(Newser) - Einstein was right: Observations from NASA’s Gravity Probe B have confirmed that the Earth really does warp time and space around it. The probe contained four perfectly engineered gyroscopes, and took incredibly precise measurements of their spin axes, expecting the curve of space-time around the Earth to cause predictable...

Team Proves Einstein's Relativity Affects Aging

Gravity's effect on time means your hair is aging faster than your feet

(Newser) - People age faster—very, very slightly faster—the higher above ground they live, according to scientists testing Einstein's theory of relativity. Researchers using ultra-precise atomic clocks found that time, as Einstein predicted, is slowed down by gravity even over minuscule distances. The scientists found that just moving a couple of...

Massive Space Mission to Test Einstein Theory

Three ships to fire lasers at each other near sun

(Newser) - NASA and the European Space Agency are preparing to shoot three spacecraft into orbit around the sun and have them fire laser beams at each other, in an attempt to detect gravitational waves—the last unproven piece of Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity. They're calling the whole thing the...

11 Stories