Relativity and the Nature of Spacetime

Vesselin Petkov

Feb 2006 · Springer Science & Business Media

About this ebook

Puts the emphasis on conceptual questions: Why is there no such thing as absolute motion? What is the physical meaning of relativity of simultaneity? But, the most important question that is addressed in this book is "what is the nature of spacetime?" or, equivalently, "what is the dimensionality of the world at the macroscopic level?"

Develops answers to these questions via a thorough analysis of relativistic effects and explicitly asking whether the objects involved in those effects are three-dimensional or four-dimensional.

Discusses the implication of the result (this analysis clearly shows that if the world and the physical objects were three-dimensional, none of the kinematic relativistic effects and the experimental evidence supporting them would be possible) for physics, philosophy, and our entire world view are discussed.

About the author

Presently: Assistant Professor, Science College, Concordia University (in fact, I am associated with three departments - Liberal Arts College, Philosophy Department, and Science College)

1984 -1989: Adjunct Professor, Philosophy Department, Sofia University

1986 -1989: Researcher, Institute of Philosophy, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

Doctoral degrees in theoretical physics (1997, Concordia University) and philosophy of science (1988, Institute of Philosophy, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences).