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7.2 THE NATURE OF LIGHT
SPECIAL REALTIVITY P72 005 The following
question was given in the 1989 HSC Physics Examination paper. At what speed will the
mass of a proton become double its rest mass. In
today’s interpretation of mass, this question is wrong. Explain why! View solution below only after you have completed answering the question. The solution is not in a form that you would answer in an examination. The answers are often in more detail to help improve your appreciation and understanding of the physics. |
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Solution Today’s interpretation of the mass of an object is that it is independent of the speed of the object. The terms rest mass and relativistic mass no longer need to be used. It is the momentum and energy of the object that is dependent upon the speed on the object as measured by an observer in an inertial frame of reference.
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