this post was submitted on 12 Oct 2024
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Science Memes

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[–] huginn@feddit.it 10 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

Space isn't a medium because mediums have privileged frames of reference.

You're talking about spacetime which is a field, not a medium.

[–] Nougat@fedia.io -3 points 21 hours ago (1 children)

So you’re saying that light can travel through not-space?

[–] huginn@feddit.it 5 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

Light is also not "stuff" - it's electromagnetic radiation. It's by the unprivileged intertial frame of reference that we define the speed of light. Light's speed is the speed at which it travels unimpeded through the spacetime "field". Additionally light does not accelerate or change speed in any way while traveling in that frame.

Unless you're asking if light travels through things that are not the field known as the spacetime continuum in which case yes: light travels (and changes speed) through all sorts of materials. Like glass.

[–] Nougat@fedia.io 1 points 15 hours ago

Don't materials also need to exist in space?