Saturday, October 15, 2011

Well, That Didn’t Take Long

Back on September 23rd, I posted a story about the Cern Lab thinking it had discovered something that traveled faster than light. 

They, like everyone else with even the most superficial understanding of Einstein’s theories, knew that was impossible, so they published their findings in the hope that someone could show them what they did wrong.

Now, researchers at University of Groningen in the Netherlands have come up with a likely explanation.

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According to the Dutch scientists, it all has to do with relativity – a very complicated concept to understand.

Stated simply, GPS satellites were used to measure both the distance between the starting and ending points in the experiments, and the travel time between the two.  Since the satellites orbit several miles above the earth, they must travel faster than the earth’s surface in order to appear stationary.  This means that – in terms of time and distance -  the satellites and the earth’s surface are in different reference frames, and, from the GPS satellite’s point of view, the starting point at CERN and the end point in Italy are actually getting closer while the neutrinos travel between them, which accounts for the anomaly.

At this point, you are probably saying WHAT? or Uh… okay  or you are slapping your forehead saying DAMN, why didn’t I think of that!

On the other hand, a degree in advanced math or physics isn’t really required. If you have ever had the GPS in your car tell you to drive off a cliff, or turn right where no road exists, the explanation makes perfect sense.

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