Synchronization Gauges and the Principles of Special Relativity

The axiomatic bases of Special Relativity Theory (SRT) are thoroughly re-examined from an operational point of view, with particular emphasis on the status of Einstein synchronization in the light of the possibility of arbitrary synchronization procedures in inertial reference frames. Once correctly and explicitly phrased, the principles of SRT allow for a wide range of `theories' that differ from the standard SRT only for the difference in the chosen synchronization procedures, but are wholly equivalent to SRT in predicting empirical facts. This results in the introduction, in the full background of SRT, of a suitable synchronization gauge. A complete hierarchy of synchronization gauges is introduced and elucidated, ranging from the useful Selleri synchronization gauge (which should lead, according to Selleri, to a multiplicity of theories alternative to SRT) to the more general Mansouri-Sexl synchronization gauge and, finally, to the even more general Anderson-Vetharaniam-Stedman's synchronization gauge. It is showed that all these gauges do not challenge the SRT, as claimed by Selleri, but simply lead to a number of formalisms which leave the geometrical structure of Minkowski spacetime unchanged. Several aspects of fundamental and applied interest related to the conventional aspect of the synchronization choice are discussed, encompassing the issue of the one-way velocity of light on inertial and rotating reference frames, the GPS's working, and the recasting of Maxwell equations in generic synchronizations. Finally, it is showed how the gauge freedom introduced in SRT can be exploited in order to give a clear explanation of the Sagnac effect for counter-propagating matter beams.Comment: 56 pages, 3 eps figures, invited paper; to appear in Foundations of Physics (Special Issue to honor Prof. Franco Selleri on his 70th birthday

Does Clauser-Horne-Shimony-Holt Correlation or Freedman-Clauser Correlation lead to the largest violation of Bell's Inequality?

An inequality is deduced from Einstein's locality and a supplementary assumption. This inequality defines an experiment which can actually be performed with present technology to test local realism. Quantum mechanics violate this inequality a factor of 1.5. In contrast, quantum mechanics violates previous inequalities (for example, Clauser-Horne-Shimony-Holt inequality of 1969, Freedman-Clauser inequality of 1972, Clauser-Horne inequality of 1974) by a factor of $\sqrt 2$. Thus the magnitude of violation of the inequality derived in this paper is approximately $20.7$ larger than the magnitude of violation of previous inequalities. This result can be particularly important for the experimental test of locality.Comment: 15 pages, LaTeX file, no figure

Kochen-Specker theorem for a single qubit using positive operator-valued measures

A proof of the Kochen-Specker theorem for a single two-level system is presented. It employs five eight-element positive operator-valued measures and a simple algebraic reasoning based on the geometry of the dodecahedron.Comment: REVTeX4, 4 pages, 2 figure

Bell's Theorem and Chemical Potential

Chemical potential is a property which involves the effect of interaction between the components of a system, and it results from the whole system. In this paper, we argue that for two particles which have interacted via their spins and are now spatially separated, the so-called Bell's locality condition implies that the chemical potential of each particle is an individual property. Here is a point where quantum statistical mechanics and the local hidden variable theories are in conflict. Based on two distinct concepts of chemical potential, the two theories predict two different patterns for the energy levels of a system of two entangled particles. In this manner, we show how one can distinguish the non-separable features of a two-particle system.Comment: 11 pages,1 figure, To appear in J. Phy. A: Math. Gen., Special Issue: Foundations of Quantum Theor

Clonal non-malignant hematological disorders: unraveling molecular pathogenic mechanisms to develop novel targeted therapeutics

Clonal non-malignant hematological disorders are a heterogeneous group of diseases that are particularly challenging for hematologists. Indeed, most obvious and frequent hematological diseases include a broad spectrum of malignancies, such as leukemias, lymphomas, myeloma, and other myeloproliferative or lymphoproliferative disorders. In recent years, all these diseases have been categorized by the WHO according to a novel classification of myeloid and lymphoid malignancies, which takes in account the outstanding progress in our understanding of molecular defects underlying hematological malignancies. Regardless of a number of novel technologies, hematologists continue to deal daily with conditions where a clear diagnosis of a malignancy is missing: this is the case of several clonal hematological disorders, which are considered bona fide non-malignant. Some myelodysplastic syndromes, chronic T and NK disorders of granular lymphocytes, myelofibrosis, monoclonal gammopathies, monoclonal B-cel lymphocytosis, mastocytosis and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria are paradigmatic examples of how clonal disorders are clearly different from cancers, even if they may share with hematological malignancies similar molecular, genetic, epigenetic and immunological processes. Indeed, it is not entirely clear whether in individual conditions such pathogenic mechanisms may represent initial step(s) of malignant transformation, making a bridge between these clonal non-malignant disorders and typical hematological cancers. Some of these non-malignant disorders imply specific pathogenic mechanisms and/or clinical course, and so they have been definitely established with their own biological and clinical identity. However, the obvious question whether some of these clonal non-malignant hematological diseases form some a kind of disease-continuum with their corresponding malignant counterpart is still to be answered

Time on a Rotating Platform

Traditional clock synchronisation on a rotating platform is shown to be incompatible with the experimentally established transformation of time. The latter transformation leads directly to solve this problem through noninvariant one-way speed of light. The conventionality of some features of relativity theory allows full compatibility with existing experimental evidence.Comment: 12 pages, Latex, no figure. Copies available at [email protected] accepted for publication in Found. Phys. Let

Locality hypothesis and the speed of light

The locality hypothesis is generally considered necessary for the study of the kinematics of non-inertial systems in special relativity. In this paper we discuss this hypothesis, showing the necessity of an improvement, in order to get a more clear understanding of the various concepts involved, like coordinate velocity and standard velocity of light. Concrete examples are shown, where these concepts are discussed.Comment: 23 page