Translation from German:
15.07.2011 - Open letter from Ekkehard Friebe to Prof. Dr. Hermann Nicolai, Director of the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics / Albert Einstein Institute in Potsdam/Golm
Dear Mr. Prof. Dr. Nicolai,
As a longtime member of the German Physical Society, I have knowledge from the ?Physik Journal? (4, 2005, No. 10, page 3) of your article "No breeding ground for Einstein's Successor? Theoretical Physics in Germany - a few remarks on the Einstein Year?.
You wrote:
"Not only because of the fascination of these questions, I mean, all major universities (and at the forefront of those who for the label" claim elite ") should allow her inquisitive students, at least one entry in the form of introductory lectures - even if the respective research areas lie elsewhere."
The fascination of inquisitive students for the theory of special relativity, however, could be afflicted by an unusual circumstance that affects the understanding of this theory considerably: the unexplained solution to the famous twin paradox in the scientific community.
To mark the centenary of the publication of Paul Langevin's famous work "On Space and Time", which later became popularly known as the twin paradox, the U.S. "Natural Philosophy Alliance" (NPA) has initiated a detailed study, which states the amazing result, that after 100 years of scientific development of this famous problem of special relativity, the twin paradox is still unresolved.
A summary of the findings from this study, accompanied with an open letter to the physics community ist provided by NPA on the Internet with a detailed report:
Although general agreement exists that the paradox is not a problem and has already found a definitive solution, there is no agreement as to exactly what that solution is, because the physics journals and textbooks present many conflicting solutions to this paradox. Hence, the NPA asked the physics community about selecting a single, definitive solution.
The international scope of the problem is already documented by the impressive list of signatories, which is performed below the Open Letter. The physics community in Germany as the birthplace of Albert Einstein and the Albert Einstein Institute are in my view in particular obligated, and are predestined to bring about a solution to this problem.
Therefore, I would be very grateful, Dear Mr. Prof. Dr. Nicolai, if you would take position on this important issue and if I would get from you a single, definitive solution to the twin paradox.
I thank you in advance
Yours sincerely
Dipl.-Ing. Ekkehard Friebe
NB: I have today published this Open Letter to you in my website: http://www.kritik-relativitaetstheorie.de/2011/07/offener-brief-von-ekkehard-friebe-an-prof-hermann-nicolai/
