• Question: What did Albert Einstein’s 'Theory of Relativity' (E=mc2) mean for modern life?

    Asked by jamesat79 to Steve on 18 Jun 2013.
    • Photo: Steven Gardner

      Steven Gardner answered on 18 Jun 2013:

      Well E=mc^2 means that you can turn a small amount of mass into a large amount of energy. This is what nuclear power does (and what nuclear bombs do, unfortunately).

      The other thing I can think of that relies on relativity is the global positioning system (or GPS). GPS is what a sat nav or smart phone will log into to find out where you are. Without relativity, we could measure time accurately and so the system would always be slightly off. As it is I think it’s accurate to within a few metres, which is quite impressive when you imagine the size of the earth!

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