Deck 7: Albert Einstein and the Theory of Relativity: Can a Human Ever Travel Faster Than the Speed of Light, at Warp Speed

Question 1

Which prediction of the theory of general relativity was the first to be tested by scientists?

A) The Earth will experience a solar eclipse in 1919.
B) Mercury will advance in its orbit by 43 seconds of arc.
C) The strong gravitational field of the Sun will bend light coming from a distant star.
D) Newtonian physics applies only to large masses.
E) Length contraction will occur in particle accelerators.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

If you flipped a coin while going up an escalator, a person observing the motion of the coin would describe the motion as

A) a circle.
B) a straight line.
C) an arc.
D) random.
E) an ellipse.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

How is the 'rest mass' of an object related to its energy?

A) The object's velocity is equal to the speed of light times the rest mass divided by the Lorentz number.
B) The object's rest mass is equal to the gravitational constant times the object's rest mass times the speed of light squared.
C) The object's rest energy is equal to the object's rest mass multiplied by the gravitational constant.
D) The object's rest mass is equal to the object's rest energy multiplied by the speed of light squared.
E) The object's rest energy is equal to the object's rest mass multiplied by the speed of light squared.

Answer 3

E

Question 4

Gravitational red shift, which is one prediction based on general relativity,

A) has been confirmed by experiments using laser light.
B) states that light coming from the Earth's surface to space will appear slightly more blue in space than it does on Earth.
C) states that light coming to the Earth's surface from space will appear slightly more red on Earth than it does in space.
D) cannot be confirmed using data from the Gravity Probe B satellite.
E) has never been confirmed and remains a mystery.

Question 5

Newton's laws of motion fail

A) when dealing with extremely low masses.
B) at speeds significantly less than the speed of light.
C) in helping us understand most of the everyday world.
D) for objects with extremely large masses.
E) when using atomic clocks rather than stopwatches.

Question 6

Which of the following appears to be contradicted by the theory of relativity?

A) conservation of energy
B) the Lorentz factor
C) time dilation
D) length contraction
E) the Pythagorean theorem

Question 7

In which direction does the length contraction phenomenon apply?

A) toward the center of the object
B) along the direction of motion
C) perpendicular to the direction of motion
D) in all directions simultaneously
E) in concentric circles

Question 8

The Lorentz factor is a number

A) that is always more than one.
B) showing the magnitude of change in time.
C) comparing the relative speed of two atomic clocks.
D) representing the atomic mass of a moving clock.
E) that is used in Newtonian motion calculations.

Question 9

In which of the following instances have the predictions of general relativity been confirmed?

A) gravitational bending of electromagnetic radiation
B) advances in planetary orbits
C) gravitational frequency shifts in the color of light
D) gravitational bending of electromagnetic radiation and advances in planetary orbits
E) gravitational bending of electromagnetic radiation and frequency shifts in the color of light plus advances in planetary orbits

Question 10

Which of the following scientific instruments has been used to document time dilation?

A) quartz crystals
B) lasers and atomic clocks
C) Gravity Probe B satellite
D) supercomputers
E) stopwatches and flashlights

Question 11

According to the theory of relativity, as the speed of light is approached, 1) time slows down and approaches zero.
2) time speeds up and approaches infinity.
3) distance shrinks and approaches zero.

A) 1
B) 2
C) 3
D) what is noted in both 1 and 3 happens.
E) nothing happens.

Question 12

Pick out the false statement, using relativity principles.

A) The fact that mass and energy are equivalent can be verified in a nuclear power plant.
B) Relativity states that nothing can travel faster than the speed of light.
C) An object accelerated to the speed of light will appear to contract.
D) Einstein's relativity principles encompass Newton's laws of motion rather than replace them.
E) Based on relativity principles, everything stated in A through D above is true.

Question 13

The legendary apple was to Isaac Newton as the _________ was to Albert Einstein.

A) orange
B) speed of light
C) clock
D) patent office
E) coin toss

Question 14

To a ground-based observer, what is the speed of a moving ball tossed backward at 30 km/hour on a train moving forward at 90 km/hr?

A) 150 km/hr
B) 60 km/hr
C) 30 km/hr
D) 90 km/hr
E) 2700 km/hr

Question 15

Why is the speed of light considered as special in Einstein's theories?

A) The speed of light is a constant built into Maxwell's equations.
B) The speed of light is relative to the observer's frame of reference.
C) All scientists agree that the speed of light can never be exceeded.
D) In relativity, the moving clocks slow down in time and all light becomes dimmer.
E) Every observer sees the speed of light differently.

Question 16

Einstein's theories of relativity

A) are a result of the contradiction between Newton's laws of motion and Maxwell's equations.
B) proved the laws of nature are not universally applicable.
C) indicated that Maxwell's equations were in error and provided a way of correcting Maxwell.
D) showed that the speed of light is not always a constant.
E) proved to the world that everything is relative and nothing is absolute.

Question 17

What is the difference between general and special relativity?

A) General relativity applies to accelerating frames of reference and special relativity does not.
B) Special relativity is a special case for two frames of reference accelerating in opposite directions.
C) General relativity can only solve problems of time dilation and length contraction; special relativity can apply to problems of large mass and the speed of light.
D) Special relativity is much more complex than general relativity, requiring rigorous mathematical calculations to explain.
E) Physicists have been arguing over the difference since 1915 and have not come to a consensus yet.

Question 18

Which accomplishment below established Einstein as an international celebrity?

A) his early work at the patent office
B) his publication of the special relativity theory
C) his publication of the general relativity theory
D) his prediction of light bending during a solar eclipse
E) his establishing the time dilation principles

Question 19

Which scientist thought that planets move in a straight line along the curved surface of space?

A) Einstein
B) Kepler
C) Galileo
D) Newton
E) Copernicus

Question 20

Special relativity is applied to

A) reference frames that are accelerating.
B) reference frames that do not accelerate.
C) very difficult mathematical problems involving the speed of light and other large values.
D) both special relativity and what Einstein called general relativity.
E) rare instances in which the object moves faster than the speed of light.

Question 21

Why is the speed of light so important in relativity theory?

Question 22

The equation t_GG = t_MM means

A) one clock's tick sounds the same as another.
B) all observers see their clocks as normal in their own frames of reference.
C) Time is usually constant.
D) time can never stop.
E) all observers see clocks differently no matter where they are.

Question 23

Use the central assumption of the theory of relativity to predict what will happen to each of the following as the speed of light is approached: (1) time; (2) distance; and (3) mass.

Question 24

What is a frame of reference? Give examples.

Question 25

Give a precise one-sentence definition of the principle of relativity. (Do not use E = mc².)

Question 26

Name two places where the equivalence of mass and energy has been verified experimentally.

Question 27

If you went on a trip that seemed twenty years long to you while on board a spacecraft going just slightly less than the speed of light, when you returned to Earth, you might meet your __________ assuming they did no space traveling of their own.

A) grandparents.
B) great-grandparents.
C) grandchildren.
D) great-grandchildren.
E) yourself.

Question 28

Why do the predictions of relativity not match up with our everyday experiences?

Question 29

Review the progress in scientific thought from Newton and Einstein. How did the latter build on the former?

Question 30

If we are traveling at 0.9 times the speed of light and we turn on a flashlight pointed toward the front of the spaceship, how fast is the light moving from the flashlight?

A) 0.9 times the speed of light
B) 1.9 times the speed of light
C) the speed of light
D) 0.1 times the speed of light
E) No one really knows what will happen under these circumstances.

Question 31

How would Newton and Einstein explain the movement of the solar system around the Sun?

Question 32

Use the Lorentz factor to show that our intuition about what we observe is correct in common circumstances.

Question 33

Why did Einstein publish his theory of special relativity before his general relativity?

Question 34

In Star Trek television shows and movies, the starships travel faster than the speed of light. Is this possible? Justify your answer.

Question 35

Which of these follows from the theory of relativity?

A) Mass is relative to one's frame of reference.
B) Time is relative to one's frame of reference.
C) Length is relative to one's frame of reference.
D) Mass, time, and length are all relative to one's frame of reference.
E) None of these things are relative to one's frame of reference.

Question 36

What does Einstein's famous E = mc² formula mean?

Question 37

How are time dilation and length contraction related?

Question 38

It took Einstein ten years from the time of publication of special relativity to finish and publish general relativity. Why do you think that someone else in the highly competitive world of science did not figure out general relativity before Einstein and publish before him?

Question 39

Describe an Earth-based field of study that must compensate for length contractions.

Question 40

How might relativistic travel (travel at speeds near the speed of light) affect the notion of relatedness and other issues in human societies in the distant future?

Question 41

If you were in an airplane with no windows, how could you tell if you were moving?

Question 42

Why do the lights on the Earth's surface appear slightly more red than they do on Earth if they are observed from space?

Question 43

What happens to mass and the energy required to move it as speed approaches the speed of light?

Question 44

How did the Gravity Probe B satellite and its experiments test general relativity?

Question 45

What was the pre- and post-Einstein scientific view of the isolation of the universe's reservoir of mass from the reservoir of energy?

Question 46

How is the modern GPS (global positioning satellite) system affected by general relativity?

Question 47

Was Newton wrong in his breakthrough thinking that produced his laws?