From: Eliezer S. Yudkowsky (sentience@pobox.com)
Date: Mon Oct 15 2001 - 12:05:47 MDT
> > Mike Lorrey <mlorrey@datamann.com>
> >
> > > There is an absolute frame of reference in at least one dimension. For
> > > example, we all know the Big Bang occured at some point in the past.
Actually, there's an absolute frame of reference for just about everything
if you measure Minkowskian intervals - sq(t^2 - (x^2 + y^2 + z^2)) -
instead of distance in time or distance in space. All observers should
agree on that. It's just when you try to measure distance and duration
separately that you run into trouble.
(Come to think of it, the foregoing is true under Special Relativity, but
I'm not sure if it's true under General Relativity.)
-- -- -- -- --
Eliezer S. Yudkowsky http://singinst.org/
Research Fellow, Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence
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