Redirected from Talk:Space-time
Examples of use of space-time:
The space-time four vector is:
[x y z ct]
the use of the vector as:
[x y z ict]
was common about 40 years ago or so, but it is now considered archaic and the former notation is prefered.--BlackGriffen
However, there are certainly physicists who prefer the i notation, including [http://www.stardrive.org|Dr. Jack Sarfatti].
The Wikipedia should present the mainstream state of a field as much as possible, presenting relevant dissenting views as such when they arise. The use of the i is just a lazy way to make finding the "length" squared of a four vector feel like finding the length of any other vector (dot product the vector on to itself). It is, however, just as easy to define a new "length" operator for four vectors that doesn't require complex numbers.
And if bandying about names is the game, a quick look at the Feynmann Lectures on Physics explanation of four vectors shows nary an i, even though he had a discussion of using c=1.--BlackGriffen
I concur: both 'space-time' and the 'i' notation appear to be common early usage, and physicists everywhere seem now to have standardised on both 'spacetime' and the 'i'-less notation -- The Anome
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