Equivalence principle before Einstein [duplicate]
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This question already has an answer here:
Did Galileo state the principle of equivalence in full generality?
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In a German interview some physicists were asked, what they would ask Einstein, if he were alive today. One of them wanted to know how Einstein came up with the idea of the equivalence principle, that inertial mass is the same as gravitational mass. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I always believed that was known way before Einstein. And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a leaning tower and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same.
My question is, does somebody know the name of this famous person, who conducted the experiment? I can't remember it.
physics
edited 2 days ago
Nick R
3,359723
asked Apr 6 at 16:29
MaximMaxim
1263
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marked as duplicate by Conifold, Community♦ 2 days ago
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$begingroup$
This question already has an answer here:
Did Galileo state the principle of equivalence in full generality?
1 answer
In a German interview some physicists were asked, what they would ask Einstein, if he were alive today. One of them wanted to know how Einstein came up with the idea of the equivalence principle, that inertial mass is the same as gravitational mass. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I always believed that was known way before Einstein. And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a leaning tower and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same.
My question is, does somebody know the name of this famous person, who conducted the experiment? I can't remember it.
physics
edited 2 days ago
Nick R
3,359723
asked Apr 6 at 16:29
MaximMaxim
1263
$endgroup$
marked as duplicate by Conifold, Community♦ 2 days ago
This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address your question, please ask a new question.
migrated from physics.stackexchange.com Apr 6 at 21:00
This question came from our site for active researchers, academics and students of physics.
4
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Galileo Galilei, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_Galilei
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– hyportnex
Apr 6 at 16:31
3
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"And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a church and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same." I think you mean Galileo Galilei.
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– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
2
$begingroup$
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it's about the history of physics, not physics primarily.
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– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
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It's also notable that he never did this experiment. He experimented with sloped planes, but the two body drop was his thought experiment: what if we connect the bodies with a piece of chain and then reduce and reduce its length until there is no chain?
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– kkm
yesterday
add a comment |
$begingroup$
This question already has an answer here:
Did Galileo state the principle of equivalence in full generality?
1 answer
In a German interview some physicists were asked, what they would ask Einstein, if he were alive today. One of them wanted to know how Einstein came up with the idea of the equivalence principle, that inertial mass is the same as gravitational mass. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I always believed that was known way before Einstein. And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a leaning tower and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same.
My question is, does somebody know the name of this famous person, who conducted the experiment? I can't remember it.
physics
edited 2 days ago
Nick R
3,359723
asked Apr 6 at 16:29
MaximMaxim
1263
$endgroup$
This question already has an answer here:
Did Galileo state the principle of equivalence in full generality?
1 answer
In a German interview some physicists were asked, what they would ask Einstein, if he were alive today. One of them wanted to know how Einstein came up with the idea of the equivalence principle, that inertial mass is the same as gravitational mass. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I always believed that was known way before Einstein. And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a leaning tower and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same.
My question is, does somebody know the name of this famous person, who conducted the experiment? I can't remember it.
This question already has an answer here:
Did Galileo state the principle of equivalence in full generality?
1 answer
physics
physics
edited 2 days ago
Nick R
3,359723
asked Apr 6 at 16:29
MaximMaxim
1263
edited 2 days ago
Nick R
3,359723
asked Apr 6 at 16:29
MaximMaxim
1263
edited 2 days ago
Nick R
3,359723
edited 2 days ago
Nick R
3,359723
edited 2 days ago
Nick R
3,359723
3,359723
asked Apr 6 at 16:29
MaximMaxim
1263
asked Apr 6 at 16:29
MaximMaxim
1263
asked Apr 6 at 16:29
MaximMaxim
1263
1263
marked as duplicate by Conifold, Community♦ 2 days ago
This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address your question, please ask a new question.
migrated from physics.stackexchange.com Apr 6 at 21:00
This question came from our site for active researchers, academics and students of physics.
marked as duplicate by Conifold, Community♦ 2 days ago
This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address your question, please ask a new question.
migrated from physics.stackexchange.com Apr 6 at 21:00
This question came from our site for active researchers, academics and students of physics.
4
$begingroup$
Galileo Galilei, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_Galilei
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– hyportnex
Apr 6 at 16:31
3
$begingroup$
"And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a church and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same." I think you mean Galileo Galilei.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
2
$begingroup$
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it's about the history of physics, not physics primarily.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
$begingroup$
It's also notable that he never did this experiment. He experimented with sloped planes, but the two body drop was his thought experiment: what if we connect the bodies with a piece of chain and then reduce and reduce its length until there is no chain?
$endgroup$
– kkm
yesterday
add a comment |
4
$begingroup$
Galileo Galilei, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_Galilei
$endgroup$
– hyportnex
Apr 6 at 16:31
3
$begingroup$
"And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a church and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same." I think you mean Galileo Galilei.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
2
$begingroup$
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it's about the history of physics, not physics primarily.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
$begingroup$
It's also notable that he never did this experiment. He experimented with sloped planes, but the two body drop was his thought experiment: what if we connect the bodies with a piece of chain and then reduce and reduce its length until there is no chain?
$endgroup$
– kkm
yesterday
4
4
$begingroup$
Galileo Galilei, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_Galilei
$endgroup$
– hyportnex
Apr 6 at 16:31
$begingroup$
Galileo Galilei, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_Galilei
$endgroup$
– hyportnex
Apr 6 at 16:31
3
3
$begingroup$
"And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a church and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same." I think you mean Galileo Galilei.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
$begingroup$
"And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a church and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same." I think you mean Galileo Galilei.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
2
2
$begingroup$
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it's about the history of physics, not physics primarily.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
$begingroup$
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it's about the history of physics, not physics primarily.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
$begingroup$
It's also notable that he never did this experiment. He experimented with sloped planes, but the two body drop was his thought experiment: what if we connect the bodies with a piece of chain and then reduce and reduce its length until there is no chain?
$endgroup$
– kkm
yesterday
$begingroup$
It's also notable that he never did this experiment. He experimented with sloped planes, but the two body drop was his thought experiment: what if we connect the bodies with a piece of chain and then reduce and reduce its length until there is no chain?
$endgroup$
– kkm
yesterday
add a comment |
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
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There are lots of different ways of stating the equivalence principle, and they're not all logically ... er ... equivalent to each other.
Names that come up in this connection, from before Einstein, are Galileo and Eotvos. Experiments that test the equality of gravitational and inertial mass are called Eotvos experiments.
Einstein's version of the equivalence principle is more radical than anything that Galileo or Newton envisioned. It entails throwing away the whole concept of a universal reference frame and instead defining inertial frames as local, free-falling frames. Previously, people had imagined that there was a frame of the "fixed stars," which was as good an approximation to an inertial frame as we would ever need. But according to relativity, observers in New York and Beijing can't even have the same frame of reference.
Taking the equivalence principle seriously also leads to the prediction of gravitational time dilation, which is something that nobody before Einstein had imagined.
answered Apr 6 at 16:36
Ben CrowellBen Crowell
1,711825
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add a comment |
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
There are lots of different ways of stating the equivalence principle, and they're not all logically ... er ... equivalent to each other.
Names that come up in this connection, from before Einstein, are Galileo and Eotvos. Experiments that test the equality of gravitational and inertial mass are called Eotvos experiments.
Einstein's version of the equivalence principle is more radical than anything that Galileo or Newton envisioned. It entails throwing away the whole concept of a universal reference frame and instead defining inertial frames as local, free-falling frames. Previously, people had imagined that there was a frame of the "fixed stars," which was as good an approximation to an inertial frame as we would ever need. But according to relativity, observers in New York and Beijing can't even have the same frame of reference.
Taking the equivalence principle seriously also leads to the prediction of gravitational time dilation, which is something that nobody before Einstein had imagined.
answered Apr 6 at 16:36
Ben CrowellBen Crowell
1,711825
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
There are lots of different ways of stating the equivalence principle, and they're not all logically ... er ... equivalent to each other.
Names that come up in this connection, from before Einstein, are Galileo and Eotvos. Experiments that test the equality of gravitational and inertial mass are called Eotvos experiments.
Einstein's version of the equivalence principle is more radical than anything that Galileo or Newton envisioned. It entails throwing away the whole concept of a universal reference frame and instead defining inertial frames as local, free-falling frames. Previously, people had imagined that there was a frame of the "fixed stars," which was as good an approximation to an inertial frame as we would ever need. But according to relativity, observers in New York and Beijing can't even have the same frame of reference.
Taking the equivalence principle seriously also leads to the prediction of gravitational time dilation, which is something that nobody before Einstein had imagined.
answered Apr 6 at 16:36
Ben CrowellBen Crowell
1,711825
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
There are lots of different ways of stating the equivalence principle, and they're not all logically ... er ... equivalent to each other.
Names that come up in this connection, from before Einstein, are Galileo and Eotvos. Experiments that test the equality of gravitational and inertial mass are called Eotvos experiments.
Einstein's version of the equivalence principle is more radical than anything that Galileo or Newton envisioned. It entails throwing away the whole concept of a universal reference frame and instead defining inertial frames as local, free-falling frames. Previously, people had imagined that there was a frame of the "fixed stars," which was as good an approximation to an inertial frame as we would ever need. But according to relativity, observers in New York and Beijing can't even have the same frame of reference.
Taking the equivalence principle seriously also leads to the prediction of gravitational time dilation, which is something that nobody before Einstein had imagined.
answered Apr 6 at 16:36
Ben CrowellBen Crowell
1,711825
$endgroup$
There are lots of different ways of stating the equivalence principle, and they're not all logically ... er ... equivalent to each other.
Names that come up in this connection, from before Einstein, are Galileo and Eotvos. Experiments that test the equality of gravitational and inertial mass are called Eotvos experiments.
Einstein's version of the equivalence principle is more radical than anything that Galileo or Newton envisioned. It entails throwing away the whole concept of a universal reference frame and instead defining inertial frames as local, free-falling frames. Previously, people had imagined that there was a frame of the "fixed stars," which was as good an approximation to an inertial frame as we would ever need. But according to relativity, observers in New York and Beijing can't even have the same frame of reference.
Taking the equivalence principle seriously also leads to the prediction of gravitational time dilation, which is something that nobody before Einstein had imagined.
answered Apr 6 at 16:36
Ben CrowellBen Crowell
1,711825
answered Apr 6 at 16:36
Ben CrowellBen Crowell
1,711825
answered Apr 6 at 16:36
Ben CrowellBen Crowell
1,711825
answered Apr 6 at 16:36
Ben CrowellBen Crowell
1,711825
1,711825
add a comment |
add a comment |
4
$begingroup$
Galileo Galilei, see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_Galilei
$endgroup$
– hyportnex
Apr 6 at 16:31
3
$begingroup$
"And I have an experiment in mind where one famous guy standing on a church and letting two things fall with different mass to test if gravity acts on every object the same." I think you mean Galileo Galilei.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
2
$begingroup$
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it's about the history of physics, not physics primarily.
$endgroup$
– Gert
Apr 6 at 16:32
$begingroup$
It's also notable that he never did this experiment. He experimented with sloped planes, but the two body drop was his thought experiment: what if we connect the bodies with a piece of chain and then reduce and reduce its length until there is no chain?
$endgroup$
– kkm
yesterday