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1、ONTHEELECTRODYNAMICSOFMOVINGBODIESByA.EINSTEINJune30,1905ItisknownthatMaxwell’selectrodynamics—asusuallyunderstoodatthepresenttime—whenappliedtomovingbodies,leadstoasymmetrieswhichdonotappeartobeinherentinthephenomena.Take,forexample,therecipro-calelectrody
2、namicactionofamagnetandaconductor.Theobservablephe-nomenonheredependsonlyontherelativemotionoftheconductorandthemagnet,whereasthecustomaryviewdrawsasharpdistinctionbetweenthetwocasesinwhicheithertheoneortheotherofthesebodiesisinmotion.Forifthemagnetisinmoti
3、onandtheconductoratrest,therearisesintheneighbour-hoodofthemagnetanelectricfieldwithacertaindefiniteenergy,producingacurrentattheplaceswherepartsoftheconductoraresituated.Butifthemagnetisstationaryandtheconductorinmotion,noelectricfieldarisesintheneighbourhood
4、ofthemagnet.Intheconductor,however,wefindanelectro-motiveforce,towhichinitselfthereisnocorrespondingenergy,butwhichgivesrise—assumingequalityofrelativemotioninthetwocasesdiscussed—toelec-triccurrentsofthesamepathandintensityasthoseproducedbytheelectricforces
5、intheformercase.Examplesofthissort,togetherwiththeunsuccessfulattemptstodiscoveranymotionoftheearthrelativelytothe“lightmedium,”suggestthatthephenomenaofelectrodynamicsaswellasofmechanicspossessnopropertiescorrespondingtotheideaofabsoluterest.Theysuggestrat
6、herthat,ashasalreadybeenshowntothefirstorderofsmallquantities,thesamelawsofelectrodynamicsandopticswillbevalidforallframesofreferenceforwhichtheequationsofmechanicsholdgood.1Wewillraisethisconjecture(thepurportofwhichwillhereafterbecalledthe“PrincipleofRelat
7、ivity”)tothestatusofapostulate,andalsointroduceanotherpostulate,whichisonlyapparentlyirreconcilablewiththeformer,namely,thatlightisalwayspropagatedinemptyspacewithadefinitevelocitycwhichisindependentofthestateofmotionoftheemittingbody.Thesetwopostulatessuffice
8、fortheattainmentofasimpleandconsistenttheoryoftheelectrodynamicsofmovingbodiesbasedonMaxwell’stheoryforstationarybodies.Theintroductionofa“luminiferousether”willprovetobesuperfluousinasmuchastheviewhere
