What is "special theory of relativity"

relativity \rel`a*tiv"i*ty\ (-t?v"?-t?), n.

1. The state of being relative; as, the relativity of a subject.
   --Coleridge.

2. One of two theories (also called theory of relativity) proposed by Albert Einstein, the special theory of relativity, or the general theory of relativity. The special theory of relativity or special relativity is based on the proposition that the speed of light is a constant no matter how observed, and is independent of the motion of the observer. From this follows several principles, such as the increase of mass with velocity (which has been confirmed: see relativistic mass equation) and the impossibility of acceleration to a speed greater than that of light; the equivalence of mass and energy, expressed by the famous equation E = mc^ 2; and time dilation, which is the apparent slowing of a clock in a system, as observed by an observer in a system moving relative to the clock. The general theory of relativity is based on the proposition that there is no physical difference between gravitational force and the force produced by acceleration. From this follow several results, of which the bending of light rays in a gravitational field and the equivalence of the inertial and gravitational masses have been verified. The possible existence of black holes (believed by many astronomers to have been adequately proven) is another consequence of the theory.

n. a physical theory of relativity based on the assumption that the speed of light in a vacuum is a constant and the assumption that the laws of physics are invariant in all inertial systems [syn: special relativity, special relativity theory, Einstein's special theory of relativity]