Chapter 644: Chapter 539: Everything is changing, only the speed of light is constant!_2
Steg, who had previously scoffed at Jeffrey, fell silent for a moment, then also nodded.
“Well said, the development of magic studies and the perfection of theories cannot happen overnight, and we must not affirm everything just because of the authority of the proposer. Just like Chairman Lynn’s postulate in the theory of relativity about the constancy of the speed of light, I think that it simply doesn’t accord with logic. I can even think of over a thousand methods to refute it!”
The wizards gathered here nodded as well, for they had come together today to inquire about this very issue from the Star of Magic.
However, just as Steg had finished speaking, another voice rang out from inside the manor.
“Oh, really? I wonder what those methods might be? I would like to hear about them!”
The previously confident Steg’s face changed instantly, and he immediately turned his head towards the direction of the manor.
The person who arrived was naturally Lynn, accompanied by a majestic beast over three meters tall. It was Mutuo who had just taken its stand at the gateway, barring everyone from entry.
All the grand wizards present had come to refute the theory of relativity, but upon truly seeing Lynn, some began to have second thoughts, starting to ponder whether there was something amiss with their own theories.
There had been no shortage of those who believed they had identified theoretical flaws and could disprove the Star of Magic, thus making a name for themselves.
After all, everyone knew that Chairman Lynn had no scruples when it came to discussions about magic studies and had even openly stated on multiple occasions that he welcomed anyone to prove his theories wrong with rigorous theories and precise experimental results!
Yet, to this day, no one had been successful, and the number of those who had been figuratively slapped in the face was countless.
Even the stellar elemental orbital model, which was the only theory proven wrong, had been corrected by Lynn himself with an even more fitting quantum probability cloud theory—indeed, to this day, many wizards still firmly believed the stellar elemental orbital model was the truth because it was just too perfect.
Despite having many concerns, they had come all the way and it wouldn’t be good to turn back now. Steg braced himself and spoke up. “Chairman Lynn, regarding your latest publication on the theory of relativity released today, I have many doubts and questions that I wish for you to clarify!”
“Since it is a discussion about academic matters, let’s come inside and talk,” Lynn replied without any intention of making it difficult for Steg. He had anticipated that releasing the theory of relativity would inevitably cause a huge stir in the academic world.
The microcosmic phenomena do indeed seem difficult to understand from a macrocosmic perspective.
Steg then breathed a sigh of relief and stepped into the manor along with Jeffrey, Sanchez, and others.
Lynn led them to the optical laboratory, and Steg looked around the room, which was filled with many magical instruments with names he could not pronounce, all seemingly exquisite.
“Let’s discuss your questions here, one by one. We might as well start with the principle of relativity!” Lynn said directly.
The wizards exchanged glances and Steg was the first to speak. “In your paper, you said that all inertial frames of reference are equally valid, that none is more special than another. So if I am running towards you now, it can also be interpreted as you running towards me, is that correct?”
The equality of reference frames in the principle of relativity was the first issue that confused him,
“No, before understanding this concept, I need to explain what an inertial frame of reference is!” Lynn shook his head. “It refers to the situation where an object maintains relative rest or moves at a constant speed along a specific path. Without external forces causing a change, it will continue to move at its current velocity.”
“For example, all of you standing still right now can be considered inertial frames of reference inside this planet.” As Lynn spoke, he pulled out a silver coin and threw it sharply. “If I am the frame of reference, then it could be said that this silver coin is moving forward at a speed of fifty meters per second!”
“Does this have any significance? Regardless of whether it’s from the perspective of an inertial reference frame, isn’t its speed and direction the same?” a senior Wizard asked in surprise.
“No, without this reference frame, we might as well say that the speed of this silver coin is thirty kilometers per second!” Lynn shrugged and said with a smile.
Steg and the others were taken aback for a moment, then turned to look at the silver coin nailed to the wall and began to ponder with furrowed brows.
A senior Wizard who had studied astronomy quickly caught on. “This is the speed of the Eternal Star orbiting the Sun!”
Because they were inside the Eternal Star, if they took the Sun as the reference frame, they were indeed moving at a speed of thirty kilometers per second around the Sun.
“But, that doesn’t seem quite right either?” Steg said thoughtfully. “It is the Eternal Star that is moving, the speed of this silver coin is still fifty meters per second.”
Lynn retorted, “Suppose you are sitting on a high-speed train, not moving yourself, but to people outside the station you are still moving away from them at high speed.”
Steg was suddenly at a loss for words and unable to respond for a good while.
Lynn went on to explain. “Without an inertial reference frame, distinguishing up from down or north from south is utterly meaningless. For instance, inside the Eternal Star, to people living in the northern hemisphere, north is up, while for those in the southern hemisphere, south is up!”
“The reason we can clearly distinguish directions now is because gravity is pulling us down to the ground, making the center of the Earth ‘down’, and the other directions are naturally discerned as well!”
In just a few sentences, Lynn had clarified the necessity of inertial reference frames and why reference frames are equated, and since all present were senior Wizards, they naturally had no difficulty understanding.
But this gave rise to a second question.
“Speaker Lynn, I understand what you mean, but forgive me for being blunt, your theory of the constancy of the speed of light seems to conflict with the concept of the equivalence of reference frames,” Steg spoke up again.
“Suppose we release a laser magic inside the Eternal Star, then as seen from the star, shouldn’t the speed of light be the speed of its revolution plus the speed of light?”
The example Steg brought up was akin to the silver coin Lynn had thrown, using Lynn’s own words as a rebuttal.
Lynn was naturally not going to be tripped up by such a minor issue, and replied with an unperturbed smile. “How do you think waves propagate? And what factors affect their speed?”
When Steg saw Lynn shifting the topic, he frowned slightly but still answered. “The transmission of waves naturally relies on a medium, as for their speed of propagation…”
“The speed of mechanical waves depends solely on the medium; they are not affected by other factors!” Lynn explained. “For example, sound is a type of mechanical wave!”
“Under normal temperature and atmospheric pressure, it propagates at a speed of three hundred and forty meters per second. Its speed will not increase just because you are running and shouting at the same time! An example of this is when you use Thunder Magic—the sound may arrive after the lightning because it’s much slower than lightning and isn’t affected by external forces.”
“Therefore, no matter what state you are in, as long as the medium doesn’t change, any measurement of mechanical waves within an inertial reference frame, in any position or angle, with instruments, will inevitably yield a stable and constant value!”
Jeffrey suddenly saw the light and exclaimed excitedly. “Light is also a wave, a rather special electromagnetic wave that also possesses certain wave characteristics, so measuring its speed is actually measuring its rate of propagation in a certain medium!”
Lynn nodded with a smile, knowing this, the mystery of the constant speed of light was half understood, although the remaining half was the most difficult to understand!