The
Great Lakes Tribune
A Physics Special on
Mass-Energy Equivalence
Article By: Hugh Corley
History
Born in Germany in 1879, Albert Einstein was theoretical physicist. After graduating high school, he began working in a Swiss patent office in 1903. 1905 was like any other year in the patent office. That is, until September 27, when Albert Einstein finished a paper that would revolutionize physics.
Titled “Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon Its Energy-Content?” it was the final paper in a series of four he submitted that year to the German physics journal, Annalen der Physik. The first three papers explained the photoelectric effect, gave experimental proof of the atoms, and introduced the theory of special relativity. In the fourth paper however, Einstein explained the idea of mass-energy equivalence, using the now famous equation E=mc2. Although the idea of mass-energy equivalence existed before Einstein, it was never realized and systematically consolidated to a single equation. iii
Explanation
Figure 1: The Rest Mass Energy Equation.ii
This equation states that that the energy of the system (E) is equivalent to the mass of the system (m) times the speed of light squared. In short, mass and energy are separate quantities that are closely related. So close, in fact, that they are physically equivalent to each other. An increase in energy yields a proportional increase in inertial mass. However it is important to note that the matter remains unchanged. Another
Albert Einstein was born in Ulm, in the Kingdom of Wüttemberg in the German Empire, on March 14, 1879. He was an Ashkenazi Jew that attended a Catholic elementary school in Munich from the age of 5 for three years. At the age of 8, Albert was transferred to Luitpold Gymnasium (now known as the Alber Einstein Gymnasium). This is where he had received advanced primary and secondary school education. He had left the German Empire seven years later. Due his father losing his job, the Einstein family moved to Italy in search of jobs. Einstein continued to
Albert Einstein was born on March 15, 1879, in the southern Germany city Ulm. Both of Einstein’s parents were Jewish, although they did not strictly practice the religion. As a adolescent he was very dull, in fact his parents first thought he might have been mentally challenged because he
mass. These laws explain why the act of one object orbiting another is possible. He explained
Most say that your youth is your glory years but for Einstein the older he got the smarter he became and he soon realized he could change the world. After leaving his job at the Patent office he started to study physics and math. Albert wrote multiple documents of his scientific findings but they weren't recognized. However his third paper contained the theory of relativity that was to revolutionize man's understanding of the physical world. The theory stated that the speed of light is the same for all observers no matter what. "In another paper published in 1905, Einstein stated in the famous e=mc2 that mass and energy are equivalent"(Great Scientists 111). Each could be transferred into the other because mass is a form of concentrated energy. However this equation suggested to others the possibility of immensely powerful explosives. This equation later lead Leo Szilard to be able to invent the atom bomb which ended the war with Japan in
I met you at the TedX Einstein 100 event in Cleveland. Since attending that event I have thought a lot about gravity and inertia. I have a question I hope you will answer. Is it possible that mass alone is not responsible for curving space-time, but instead it is caused by accelerating mass?
To commence, Einstein’s world renowned equation allowed the world to see a new way to create energy using mass.
Albert Einstein was born on March 14, 1879 in Ulm, Württemberg, Germany to Herman Einstein and Pauline Koch. He raised in a middle class Jewish household. His father was an engineer and salesman. Herman Einstein and his brother founded an electrical equipment company, Elektrotechnische Fabrik J. Einstein & Cie. Pauline Koch was a stay at home mom. Albert Einstein attended a school in Munich, Germany.
Mechanical energy is the energy which is based on either motion or position of an object (Simmons n.d.). Mechanical energy is divided into two types, potential energy (EP) and kinetic energy (EK). Potential energy is the energy of an object based upon its position relative to another. There are many types of potential energy such as elastic and gravitational potential energy. One the most common types of potential energy, which is discussed in this topic, is gravitational potential energy (given by Ep = mgh). Due to this, gravitational potential energy is equal to the work done to move an object (W = Fs). Kinetic energy is the energy of a moving object, (Given by EK = ½mv2). Work done is the change in kinetic energy or the force times the displacement (W = Fs or W = ΔE). An important aspect of mechanical energy is known as the law of conservation of energy, which states that in a closed system that the total energy of that system will remain constant, as energy is not created or destroyed, rather it is changes from one form to another (Nave n.d.). In effects this means that in a system as a ball falls its gravitational potential energy is transferred to kinetic energy, until just before it hits the ground all the potential energy has transferred to kinetic energy. This is not a perfect system and energy will be lost in other forms such as heat, sound and light. But that will be negligible in this experiment.
That is the reason why people have to study the ways of the rational theory of mass
E=mc2; it is probably the most highly acknowledged physics formula to this day. Albert Einstein discovered it, and called it “The Theory of Relativity”. It means E (energy) equals (mass) times c2 (speed of light squared). The theory states that things will move at a slower pace and get smaller in length from the position of an observer on
Albert Einstein was born May 14, 1879. He was born in Ulm, Germany. Albert was the son of Hermann Einstein and Pauline Einstein. Hermann Einstein was a German born merchant who married Pauline Koch in 1876. Pauline Einstein, maiden name Koch, was a quiet and educated
The theory of relativity is the theory of measurement; therefore, Einstein uses numbers in relation with the fundamental laws of physics. Physics is the mechanics of nature, which can be calculated through use of numbers. The application of Pythagoras’ theory to Einstein’s relativity is obviously not directly related; however, the relevancy of mathematics used with the accordance of nature has influenced many intellectuals, which in turn directly assisted Einstein’s theory. Some of these intellectuals are Aristotle, Ptolemy, and Newton.
ALBERT EINSTEIN Albert Einstein was born March 14, 1879 in Germany. His family owned a small business that manufactured electric machinery. The business failed and they left Germany. Albert was fifteen years old and he dropped out of school. When Albert was five when he received his first compass and he began to investigate the world. Little did he know that that compass would make him famous.
Born into a Jewish family at Ulm, Germany on March 14, 1879, Einstein spent his youth in Munich, where his father, Hermann and his uncle, Jacob
Einstein has brought many insights of life including the theory of the speed of light, which has led to the special theory of relativity that molded the way science, is today. “For example, various experiments, including the Michelson-Morley experiment, failed to measure the expected changes in the speed of light relative to the motion of the Earth. Due to this Einstein recognized that light has a measured speed that is independent of the speed of the observer” (“Albert Einstein.” 4). “Einstein showed in 1907 that mass is related to energy by the famous equation E=mc^2, which indicates the enormous amount of energy that is stored as mass, some of which is released in radioactivity and nuclear radiations, for example in the sun” (4).This enabled Einstein to be able to start and finish the general theory of relativity.