Do moving clocks slow down?

TL;DR

This paper advocates for teaching special relativity using Minkowski's four-dimensional spacetime formulation from the start to improve understanding and reduce paradoxes associated with traditional Newtonian-based presentations.

Contribution

It proposes a pedagogical shift to Minkowski's four-dimensional approach for teaching special relativity to enhance clarity and comprehension.

Findings

Minkowski's formulation clarifies relativity concepts.

Reduces paradoxical interpretations in teaching.

Improves student understanding of space and time.

Abstract

The special theory of relativity has fundamentally changed our views of space and time. The relativity of simultaneity in particular, and the theory of relativity as a whole, still presents significant difficulty for beginners in the theory. The difficulty stems from the fact that the usual presentation of special relativity is based on Newtonian concepts, which are relativized and change their meaning in the course of the presentation. A better pedagogical practice, in our opinion, would be to base the presentation from the very beginning on the four-dimensional formulation of Minkowski and thus remove from the theory all the paradoxical connotations that invariably accompany the usual presentation of special relativity.