Introduction

Bodies,’’ in which he presented a theory that later came to be known as the

Special Theory of Relativity (STR).

This 1905 paper is widely regarded as having destroyed the classical con-

ceptions of absolute time and space, along with absolute simultaneity and

absolute length, which had reigned in physics from the times of Galileo and

Newton to the dawn of the twentieth century. As we embark upon a new century, the Special Theory is now 100 years

old, and a great deal has transpired in both philosophy and physics since its

first publication. It therefore seems appropriate at this time to seek a fresh

appraisal of the theory’s central claims, especially concerning the elimination

of absolute time and absolute simultaneity.