First, this: BETTER - Π = BEER. Why? No one knows. It Is A Mystery. Personally, I'd just as soon have pie and coffee. Maybe warm apple pie, with vanilla ice cream.
Then, the Ehrenfest paradox actually breaks pi. Which is terrible; a good crust will just crumble. You need to use a sharp knife, but oh, no, he goes right at it.
And a funny thing happens if you have two spaceships and a spool of thread.
Hmm, maybe you should save that first one for March 14th.
ReplyDeleteThe spinning disc could be demon-strated (sorry, couldn't help myself) by Niven's sourcerer, who spins up the disc using mana-based magic to spin it ever faster, and more magic to hold it together. When the mana in the area is drained, the disc explodes. Just put a demon (a very teeny-tiny demon, a little like Maxwell's) on the disc and give him a ruler with which to measure its radius. As it approaches light-speed, he'd be able to tell us directly if its radius actually changes. He'd have to bail out at the last second, of course.
It doesn't break Pi, it just shows that space in not Euclidean. Parallel lines can meet when spacetime is curved. Or diverge. Does crazy things to the rule that the sum of angles in a triangle have to be a constant. Look up Riemann geometry.
ReplyDeleteIt also points out the fact that things change under the pressure of relativistic effect.
It also points up the truth of the statement, that there are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
And I would like a nice piece of rhubarb pi, if you please.
Pi is good. Apple pie w/sharp chedder sliced on top is even better. My dad's fav.
ReplyDelete"A clock is placed on a rotating table. As the speed of rotation is increased, the clock flies to pieces..."
ReplyDeleteFrom A Random Walk in Science