TIME, LENGTH AND MASS ARE DERIVED QUANTITIES Tower Chen1, and Zeon Chen2

Unit of Mathematical Sciences,

College of Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Guam, UOG Station, Mangilao, Guam 96923. E-mail: tchen@uguam.uog.edu
2

E-mail: zeon_chen@yahoo.com Abstract

From three fundamental quantities, time, length, and mass, all other mechanical quantitiese.g., area, volume, acceleration, and powercan be derived. For all people and for all time, we are able to set the standard units for time, length, and mass only based on physical events. In the International System of units, we use the velocity of light to define 1sec, 1meter, and use gravitational force to define 1kg by balancing with the prototype on scale. Because of it, we might need to treat physical events as our fundamental elements of thoughts instead of individual objects. If it is the case, then the velocity of light and one Newton of force should be fundamental quantities, and time, length, and mass could be derived. 1. Introduction The following statements were written in the paper Time Dilation and Length Contraction Shown in Three-Dimensional Space-Time Frames published in Concepts of Physics, Vol. VI, No.2, 2009. Since the concept of the movement phenomenon of an object is more fundamental than the concepts of space and time, its unit of velocity is more fundamental than the units of space (length) and time, which are derivations. Furthermore, without gravitational force, we would be unable to measure the gravitational mass of an object; without spring force, we would be unable to measure the inertial mass of an object. Since the concept of the force phenomenon applied to an object is more fundamental than the concept of mass, the unit of force is more fundamental that the unit of mass, which is also a derivation. In this paper, we like to have further discussion about this issue. Accurate measurements of physical quantities such as distance, area, volume, time, weight, force, power, temperature, electrical current and voltage, and others are essential for fair trade and commerce. Any successful trading of objects requires that the participants have a good understanding of what it is that they are exchanging. Most early length units were based on the size of human body parts and other familiar everyday objects. It is interesting to note that the ancient Egyptians soon discovered a need for what we would nowadays call a standard. By 2000 B.C. the cubit was represented by an official permanent object, a piece of marble, the royal cubit. In contrast, the English units of measure were not standardized until the 13th century [1].

2. Universal System of Units The French Revolution brought about many changes, amongst them the metric system of units. Adopted in France in 1799, "for all people, for all time", the metric system has two important characteristics. The standards are based on physical events, which are as permanent as possible, and the units group and subdivide in multiples of ten. No more yards, feet, and inches. The original "meter" was to have been one ten-millionth of the distance from the pole to the equator. This is a standard based on science and technology. The idea of such a standard ultimately led to the (almost) universal system of units called the SI system [1]. All physical quantities are based on three fundamental concepts: distance, time, and mass. The three fundamental quantities are measured in terms of the three basic units of measure, which in the International System of units are: meter, second, and kilogram. The International System, or the SI system, is often referred to as the metric system. Human interactions, in industry and commerce among others, depend on measuring devices based on these units adopted in 1946 [1]. In the National Physics Laboratory in Great Britain, the definitions of the three fundamental standard units are: The meter is the length of the path traveled by light in vacuum during a time interval of 1/299,792,458 of a second [2]. The second is the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the cesium-133 atom [2]. The kilogram is the unit of mass; it is equal to the mass of the international prototype of the kilogram [2]. 3. Physical Events versus Individual Objects If you were shut in a completely darkened house, without movement, would you be able to tell how much time has passed or what size of the empty space of the house is? To measure the time passed, you may consider counting the number of breaths you took or the number of times your heart has beaten. However, both of these examples are related to some sort of movement, as is with the case of probably any other example that you may think of. Thus, without movement you are not able to tell the time passed in the house. You might say that if the lights were on, you can tell the size of the empty space of the house by looking its walls without moving of your body. However, looking involves the movement of light, which is reflected off the walls and into your eyes. Since the velocity of light is very large, it reaches the walls of any house almost instantaneously. If we only used the velocity of light to measure the space of a house, we would conclude that all houses have same size due to the indistinguishable amount of time it takes for light to travel from the walls to our eyes. Because you still can tell the size of a house, you might conclude that you do not us the movement of light. Actually we are able to tell the size of a house by looking, because we compare relative the length of your body to the distances of

the walls of the house based on our knowledge and experience. If the house is as big as the universe containing many galaxies, then we can calculate the distance of another galaxy by using the time required for light to travel between our galaxy and that galaxy in principle. If our eyes are covered with handkerchiefs, we are able to tell the size of the empty space of house only by walking with the same speed. The earlier we encounter a wall, the smaller size of the empty space of the house. If a person never encountered a wall while walking in a straight line, he might conclude that the empty space of the house is infinitely large. The size of the empty space of the house is measured by the velocity of body movement. Using the same method, the size of the occupied space by an object can be measured by the velocity of light movement. There are gravitational mass and inertial mass for an object in physics. Both definitions are defined by using the event of force acting on the object. Without gravitation force, we are not able to check the balance of an object with the standard prototype object. Without spring force, we would not able to calculate the acceleration of an object pulled by the standard spring. Here we summarize the discussion using the Contextual Principle: We are able to cognize the being of an individual through the existence of events and are able to describe the properties of that individual through the individual's possession of contextual attributes. We are not able to cognize the being of an individual through the existence of individual itself and are not able to describe the properties of that individual through the individual's possession of innate attributes. Believing that fundamental elements of universal phenomena are individuals, so we are able to cognize the properties of an individual through the individuals possession of innate attributes. Believing that fundamental elements of universal phenomena are events, so we are able to describe the properties of an individual through the individual's possession of contextual attributes. 4. Construction of a 3-d s-t Frame In the past, we believed that time and space exist innately in the house, so objects can sit and any person is able to move in the house. Descartes and Galileo made a most wonderful discovery. In this way, time is represented as if it were another dimension of space. This spatialization of time is useful but may be challenged as representing a static and unchanging world [3]. Now we should think that the movement generates the concept of space and time in the house. This leads us using velocity of a moving medium to construct a 3-d s-t frame [4]. In this proposed 3-D S-T frame, space is represented by three perpendicular axes (x, y, and z), but time is represented by spheres of different radii with the origin of the space axes as their center. The radius of the sphere for 1sec is 1R

= Vm (1sec) , the radius of the sphere for 2sec is 2 R = Vm (2 sec) , the radius of the sphere for 3sec is 3R = Vm (3 sec) , and so on. The motion

of any particle in space can be decomposed into its x, y, and z directions. Its component along the xaxis, y-axis, z-axis can be described as a function of time, which is represented by the time circles created from the intersections between the x-y plane, y-z plane, z-x plane, and the concentric time spheres, respectively. Although the space coordinates are bi-directional, time cannot be given a

negative value, thus the time coordinate only has one outgoing direction in this 3-d s-t frame. The construction of a 3-d s-t frame is shown in Fig.1. If messages are relayed by sound of

Vm = 350m / sec , then the radius of the sphere representing one second is equivalent to 1R = Vm (1sec) = 350 m , the radius of the sphere representing two seconds is equivalent to 2 R = Vm (2 sec) = 700 m , and so on [4].

Fig.1: In this proposed 3-d s-t frame, space is represented by three perpendicular axes (x, y, and z), but time is represented by spheres of different radii with the origin of the space axes as their center.

If the message is transmitted by light of representing one second is equivalent to 1R representing two second is equivalent to

Vm 3 10 8 m / sec , then the radius of the sphere

= Vm (1sec) = 3 10 8 m , the radius of the sphere

2 R = Vm (2 sec) = 6 10 8 m , and so on. For light as a

medium, we can also use the period and wavelength of light are T and unit of length because of

as the unit of time and the

c = / T . The radius of the sphere representing one period, T, is equivalent to 1R = (c)(1T ) = ( / T )(1T ) = , the radius of the sphere representing two period, T, is equivalent to 2 R = (c)( 2T ) = ( / T )( 2T ) = 2 , and so on. It shows that the unit of time-sphere
and the unit of space-axes are related. Since the velocity of light is the limiting velocity, all possible motions of a particle can be described using this 3-d s-t frame. This 3-d s-t frame can help us visualize time dilation and length contraction [5] and solving twins paradox [6] [7]. 5. Conclusions If we want to understand time and space, we cannot study them separately. It is our illusion to believe that time and space have innate properties, the house provides time and space for an object to sit or a person to move. Actually, without movement, we are not able to measure the elapsed time and both the size of empty space and the size of unoccupied space by an object in the universe. The movement of an object generating the concept of time and space helps us understand time and space. Since the concept of movement is more fundamental than the concept of space and time, then choosing the velocity of light as a fundamental quantity is reasonable. Since we are able to measure

the mass of an object through gravitational force or spring force, then choosing force as a fundamental quantity is reasonable. 6. References [1] National Institute of Standards and Technology The Background of International System of Units http://physics.nist.gov/Units/background.html [2] International System of Units http://physics.nist.gov/cuu/Units/current.html [3] L. Smolin, 2006. The Trouble with Physics. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, p.256-258. [4] The paper Motions of Particles Described in a Three-Dimensional Space-Time Frame by Tower Chen, Zeon Chen published in The Proceeding of The Tenth Asian Technology Conference in Mathematics, 2005. [5] The paper Time Dilation and Length Contraction Shown in Three-Dimensional Space-Time Frames by Tower Chen, Zeon Chen published in Concepts of Physics, Vol. VI, No.2 (2009). [6] The paper The Paradox of Twins Described in a Three-dimensional Space-time Frame by Tower Chen, Zeon Chen published in The Proceeding of The Tenth Asian Technology Conference in Mathematics, 2008. [7] The paper A Pair of Inertial Frames versus an Inertial Frame by Tower Chen, Zeon Chen Published in Concepts of Physics, Vol. V, No.3 (2008).