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From: upen@watarts.UUCP (Li Pen)
Newsgroups: net.physics
Subject: Re: Could someone explain why FTL is illegal?  In small words?
Message-ID: <8130@watarts.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 1-Nov-84 10:07:29 EST
Article-I.D.: watarts.8130
Posted: Thu Nov  1 10:07:29 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 2-Nov-84 05:10:41 EST
References: <327@mhuxt.UUCP>
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 17

  to put it short:   Einstein assumed that nothing could move faster than
the speed of light.  From there he deduced his theories.  He redefined
simultanuity to the measurable simultanuity, meaning that two events happen
at the same time for an observer if he receives the information at the same
time at the speed of light.
  Thus, if something moved faster than the speed of light, it would
effectly move backward in time according to Einstein's universe, since 
the observer could now know something before the event occured in his
reference frame.  (I'm not going to go into the mathematics of his
hyperbolical space-time, but that is the jist of it).
  Since Einstein's equation seem to be supported by experimental evidence,
we assume them to apply in which case FTL would lead to logical contradictions.
(moving backwards in time is not very logical).

				Ue-li Pen
				Math Undergrad @ University of Waterloo