German Physicists Claim Speed of Light Broken 429
Byzanthy writes "Two German physicists claim to have broken the speed of light by using 'microwave photons.' According to Einstein's special theory of relativity, it would require an infinite amount of energy to accelerate any object beyond the speed of light. However, Dr Gunter Nimtz and Dr Alfons Stahlhofen, of the University of Koblenz, say they did it by using a phenomenon known as quantum tunneling.
The pair say they have conducted an experiment in which microwave photons — energetic packets of light — traveled 'instantaneously' between a pair of prisms that had been moved up to 3ft apart." New Scientist, however, is running an article that suggests Einstein can rest easy. Aephraim Steinberg, a quantum optics expert at the University of Toronto, explains that the German physicist's results aren't necessarily wrong, they are just being interpreted incorrectly.
The headline leaves only one question (Score:5, Funny)
186,000 miles per second (Score:4, Funny)
Just won't do... (Score:5, Funny)
How quaint (Score:3, Funny)
Re:How quaint (Score:2, Funny)
Great..... (Score:5, Funny)
*Grabs salt shaker* (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Just won't do... (Score:5, Funny)
and the penalty for breaking this law? (Score:5, Funny)
Informative (Score:3, Funny)
Re:The headline leaves only one question (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Wrong about microwave photons (Score:3, Funny)
Cheers!
Next article from Germany (Score:3, Funny)
Way to go Anywhere Really Phast
Or WARP
Re:and the penalty for breaking this law? (Score:5, Funny)
Layne
Ob. South Park reference (Score:3, Funny)
"Aephraim Steinberg, a quantum optics expert at the University of Toronto ..."
Blame CANADA!
From the press statement:
And there you have it - The McKenzie Brothers' explanation... Beer DOES affect relativity, in a relative sort of way. I guess.
Re:Actually (Score:5, Funny)
"Einstein, stop telling God what to do."
Re:First Post! (Score:5, Funny)
then how does a photon, WHICH HAS VOLUME AND MASS, travel at the speed of light without having the same mass/energy as the whole of the universe?
Well, you've proven one theory of mine - any postulate typed in uppercase is guaranteed to be incorrect. ;)
Re:The headline leaves only one question (Score:5, Funny)
Nice, even my cat liked that one. How do I know? Simple observation.
Re:Wrong about microwave photons (Score:5, Funny)
Only if you're within 52 light years of him.
It's because of Global Warming (Score:2, Funny)
Re:The headline leaves only one question (Score:3, Funny)
C++ (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Every couple of years (Score:5, Funny)
I use Ms. Jolie because she is frequently mentioned as part of an "entangled pair".
The missing C (Score:5, Funny)
Thus, what appeared to be a simple gaff to the untrained eye is actually a sophisticated reference en passant.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Re:The headline leaves only one question (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Every couple of years (Score:1, Funny)
Furthermore, Ms. Jolie could travel to Mars at the speed of light, because she has no mass.
Re:Every couple of years (Score:1, Funny)
Re:The missing C (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Repealed law of gravity? (Score:2, Funny)
Re:The missing C (Score:5, Funny)
Good move, I guess that's checkmate.
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Re:First Post! (Score:2, Funny)
Re:The headline leaves only one question (Score:5, Funny)
"Is it dead?" asks Schrödinger.
"I can't be certain", says Heisenberg.
Re:The summary leaves only one question (Score:3, Funny)
(Yes, one can make a Michael Jackson joke without refering to pedophili-
Re:Oblig Futurama Reference (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Another explanation from Ars (Score:3, Funny)
Apparently, for some (extremely low) values of "actress".