May the Buddha Smile upon Einstein: He was Evidently Wrong About the Mirror.

[RascalPuff]

Observing the sun through a filtered glass enables the viewer to study events occuring on and around the sun about eight minutes after the real time of their occurrences on the sun's surface, because it takes about eight minutes for the light traveling at C (286,282 mps) to traverse the approximately 93,000,000 miles separating sun from earth...

Consider a macrocosmic circle and the radius between a point of observation and its optical - 'event' - horizon.
It is understood that in a spatially expanding universe, the relative velocity of light is exceeded beyond the 'event' horizon from the perspective of a point of observation at the center of said horizon. This is the solution to 'Olber's paradox', which asked why a universe full of light sources doesn't illuminate the entire night sky.
A source of light occurring directly upon the peripheral boundary of the event horizon does not transmit light any further than the source of observation and consequently that light source - though it can be seeen -shows no passage of time; is timeless, non-eventful, relative to the point of observation at the center of it's own given event horizon.

At a slightly further distance just beyond the optical event horizon that light source winks out and is no longer visible due to its relative excess of the speed of light.

The passage of light signals from less distant light sources - inside the optical horizon - is accompanied by a correspondingly faster series of events observable on the nearer light source.

Any observation of earth from the parameter of the optical horizon reveals that there is no apparent passage of time on earth, converse to the observers on earth seeing no passage of time relative to objects on the event horizon...

All locations in deep space can be perceived as the center of a circular 'event' horizon.

When an observer (on earth, for example) at the center of a parameter of receding light sources, moves outward to place himself at the parameter of earth's event horizon. He then becomes the center of another circumference of light, representing another event horizon system.

No matter where an observer may go in the universe, he will be the center of a circumferential parameter of light, corresponding to the aforedescribed dynamics...

Question:
is there anywhere that the obsever can go and locate himself, where a flashlight beam will not move away from him at the speed of light in whatever direction he projects the beam?

Answer:
Until further overriding notice, the answer to this question is 'no', there is not anywhere the observer can go and locate himself, where a flashlight beam will not move away from him at the speed of light, in whatever direction he points the beam.

Conclusion:
A post modernistic classic example of lightspeed not being exceeded, is often cited in the first presentation by Einstein, wherein a person traveling at light speed and holding a mirror out in front of themselves, cannot see his or her own image...
In accordance with the circumstances described leading up to this conclusion, the velocity of light is constant, relative to the source (coordinate system) from which it originates. Einstein would in fact see his own image in any mirror he held up before himself, just as surely as we are traveling at light speed away from a given locality in the universe and a flashlight beam still travels at the speed of light away from us. So too is our image reflected in the subjected hand held mirror.

May Readers please post their reply to this determination.
I will be grateful to anyone who can correct me on this.

Regards,
- RP
(World's Number One Einstein Groupie;
Apprentice to Albert - 'The Axe' - Einstein)

[MJA]

Question:
is there anywhere that the obsever can go and locate himself, where a flashlight beam will not move away from him at the speed of light in whatever direction he projects the beam?

Answer:

The answer is yes. If the observer points the flashlight beam toward himself, the light would not move away but rather move toward the observer.

MJA

[RascalPuff]

The answer is yes. If the observer points the flashlight beam toward himself, the light would not move away but rather move toward the observer.

MJA

Dear MJA:
I agree about the flashlight beam moving toward the observer (at the speed of light) when the flashlight beam is pointed toward himself. I fail to accomodate how that gainsays the point made in the post you're responding to.

Will you please elaborate on the contrary point you apparently think you've made.

Regards,
- RP

[MJA]

Dear R.P.

Was not your question the point? If not what is?

MJA

[RascalPuff]

Dear MJA:

Your last post was:


"Was not your question the point, if not what is?"

The point is whether or not Einstein - or anyone else under the same circumstances - would see his own image in the mirror he is holding in front of himself.

The question as to what direction the flashlight beam is projected is auxiliary to the point.

Please note the conclusion, which determines that Einstein - or anyone else under the same circumstances - would see their own image in the hand held mirror.

Have you reason to contend that conclusion, and if so, what?

_________________________________

"Question:
is there anywhere that the obsever can go and locate himself, where a flashlight beam will not move away from him at the speed of light in whatever direction he projects the beam?

Answer:
Until further overriding notice, the answer to this question is 'no', there is not anywhere the observer can go and locate himself, where a flashlight beam will not move away from him at the speed of light, in whatever direction he points the beam.

Conclusion:
A post modernistic classic example of lightspeed not being exceeded, is often cited in the first presentation by Einstein, wherein a person traveling at light speed and holding a mirror out in front of themselves, cannot see his or her own image...
In accordance with the circumstances described leading up to this conclusion, the velocity of light is constant, relative to the source (coordinate system) from which it originates. Einstein would in fact see his own image in any mirror he held up before himself, just as surely as we are traveling at light speed away from a given locality in the universe and a flashlight beam still travels at the speed of light away from us. So too is our image reflected in the subjected hand held mirror."
______________________________

Regards
- RP

[MJA]

The point is whether or not Einstein - or anyone else under the same circumstances - would see his own image in the mirror he is holding in front of himself.

The question as to what direction the flashlight beam is projected is auxiliary to the point.

Please note the conclusion, which determines that Einstein - or anyone else under the same circumstances - would see their own image in the hand held mirror.

Have you reason to contend that conclusion, and if so, what?

_________________________________

- RP

Dear R.P.

Thanks for your clarification as I will try to answer the mirror question.

Einstein would see his reflection in the mirror only if he was traveling at a slower speed than the light that must overtake him, then must reflect off the mirror back to his face, then back to the mirror, then back again to his eyes relaying the vision or reflection of himself to his brain. If he traveled at the same speed as the light, what he would see depends on his position to that beam of light. And if he traveled faster than the light he would see nothing at all.

Does that help?

MJA

[dleviwing]

Too often the statement is used “The speed of light is a constant”. In the science community we understand what is meant by this, however in the general public it is abhorrently misquoted. What is left out in the statement is “MEASUREMENT” and “IN A VACUME”.

The MEASUREMENT of the speed of light IN A VACUME renders a constant value regardless of the reference frame of the source or the observer. The speed of light is NOT a constant. Using time dilation, Relativity corrects for the variance of reference frames.

[RascalPuff]

Dear R.P.

Thanks for your clarification as I will try to answer the mirror question.

Einstein would see his reflection in the mirror only if he was traveling at a slower speed than the light that must overtake him, then must reflect off the mirror back to his face, then back to the mirror, then back again to his eyes relaying the vision or reflection of himself to his brain. If he traveled at the same speed as the light, what he would see depends on his position to that beam of light. And if he traveled faster than the light he would see nothing at all.

Does that help?

MJA

As you are probably aware, MJ, there's an entire school of thought that says the flashlight beam, when projected ahead of Einstein, would not go anywhere. Whereas, it would behave from Einstein's coordinates the same as it would behave from any other coordinates - it would project a beam of light at the speed of light whatever direction it was pointed - his speed of light originating from his coordinate system is not comparable to the speed of light originating from coordinate system earth. That isn't the direct focus of the contention at issue here, but it's part of the misunderstanding related to the proposed problem. Einstein continues as his own coordinate system.

When the source of light is confined as originating exclusive from the earth that Einstein is rushing away from, then he does not see his own image in the mirror. But he is surrounded by light sources. He also has a flashlight that behaves as it always does wherever he is. He is illuminated by the surrounding light sources and if and when he employs his flashlight, he is illuminated by that beam.
Conclusion: with or without the flashlight, Einstein sees his own image in the hand held mirror. On the other hand, I do agree with your conclusion regarding light originating from the earth and Einstein's disappearance over the earth's event horizon. (While bearing in mind that Einstein's event horizon travels with him wherever he goes.)

Thank you.

Regards,
- RP

[N0B0DY]

Hi Dave,

To to be clear on your point, would you agree that the reference frames you are referring to are only observable reference frames, and that absorption and re-emission in the vacume is neglected?

[dleviwing]

Reference frames usually refer to the state of motion of the source or the observer.
Actually it is General Relativity that corrects for this when it uses mass to alter spatial density of the vacuum (refractive index of space).