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Is It Electric or Magnetic? Depends on Where You Stand


Physics is weird. Especially when you’re dealing with moving reference frames.

There’s a problem, though, which might not have been mentioned: The forces you observe depend on your vantage point—your “frame of reference.” Look out the window. The idea is that the velocity of an object depends on the motion of the observer—“it’s all relative.” If you measure the speed of a train from a moving car you get a different value than a pedestrian would see. But the problem isn’t solved, because it means two observers are seeing two different fundamental forces.

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