Simultaneity as an invariant equivalence relation

DOI10.1007/S10701-012-9674-4MaRDI QIDQ1929883zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors Marco Mamone Capria

Publication date 10 January 2013

Published in Foundations of Physics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/1202.6578

zbMATH Keywords

simultaneityspecial relativityinvariant equivalence relationsMalament's theorem

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Philosophical and critical aspects of logic and foundations (03A05) Equations of motion in general relativity and gravitational theory (83C10) Special relativity (83A05)

Abstract: This paper deals with the concept of simultaneity in classical and relativistic physics as construed in terms of group-invariant equivalence relations. A full examination of Newton, Galilei and Poincar'e invariant equivalence relations in $R^4$ is presented, which provides alternative proofs, additions and occasionally corrections of results in the literature, including Malament's theorem and some of its variants. It is argued that the interpretation of simultaneity as an invariant equivalence relation, although interesting for its own sake, does not cut in the debate concerning the conventionality of simultaneity in special relativity.

Recommendations

• David Malament and the conventionality of simultaneity: a reply
• Conventionality of simultaneity: Malament's result revisited
• Simultaneity, conventialism, general covariance, and the special theory of relativity
• “Definability,” “Conventionality,” and Simultaneity in Einstein–Minkowski Space-Time
• The conventionality of simultaneity in the light of the spinor representation of the Lorentz group

Cites work

• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 3134285 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 3057862 (Why is no real title available?)
• Conventionality of simultaneity: Malament's result revisited
• David Malament and the conventionality of simultaneity: a reply
• General Relativity for Mathematicians
• Mappings of spaces with families of cones and space-time transformations
• Spatial directions, anisotropy and special relativity
• Uniqueness of Simultaneity

Cited in

(6)

• On the fundamental theorem of the theory of relativity
• The relativistic invariance of 4D-shapes
• Absolute distant simultaneity in special relativity
• The conventionality of simultaneity in the light of the spinor representation of the Lorentz group
• Simultaneity in Minkowski spacetime: from uniqueness to arbitrariness
• Simultaneity, conventialism, general covariance, and the special theory of relativity

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