The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
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The relativistic interval is a quantity used to denote the distance between two events in four-dimensional space-time. Similar to the distance between two points in space, which is unchanged by relabeling the origin of the coordinate system or rotating it around, the relativistic interval is invariant under Lorentz transformations. It is defined by the equation I = c2 ()t2 - ()x2 . In this equation, ()t is the time between two events, and ()x is the distance between two events. Unlike a distance, which is always positive, the interval may be positive, negative, or zero.
Depending on the value of the interval, pairs of events fall into three categories. If the interval is negative, the distance between the two events is larger than the distance light can travel in time (Delta)t. In this case, a Lorentz transformation can be done so that an observer sees the two events occur simultaneously, so the events are called "space-like." If the interval is positive, a Lorentz transformation can be done so that the two events appear to occur at the same point in space but at different times, so the events are called "time-like." If the interval is zero, the only way the two events can communicate is by a light signal, so the events are called "light-like."