The Application of Special Relativity Theory

in Velocity Raptor Game

Cosmology And General Relativity
Atifah Damia Binti Mohd Talha
17184350
December 6, 2020

Abstract
We studied how the consequences of special relativity related to the challenges
in the Velocity Raptor Game.The consequences of special relativity includes length
contraction,time dilation,Doppler effect and relativity of simultaneity.We discussed
the comparison between the theory and the game.Each challenges of the game has
specific effect of the special relativity.The reason why we can relate the game with
the relativistic effect because the simulation of the game programmed exactly like the
reference frame of the Raptor which is near the speed of light.

1
Contents
1 Introduction 2

2 Method and Procedure 3

3 Results and Discussion 4

3.1 Length Contraction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3.2 Time Dilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.3 Doppler Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.4 Ladder Paradox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.5 Twin Paradox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

4 Conclusion 9

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1 Introduction
An important aim of this lab report is to explain the consequences of special relativity
towards the Raptor’s frame of reference.We will discuss what will happen when the Raptor
travels near the speed of light.Velocity Raptor is a game where the Raptor is trying to
travel near the speed of light.The simulation accurately represents what you would see
when traveling near the speed of light.The world seems to bend and warp due to the fact
it takes light some time to reach our eye.As we all know,Einstein constructs the special
relativity base on two postulates which are the laws of physics can be stated in the same
form in all inertial frame of references and the speed of light in a vacuum has the constant
value, c = 3 × 108 ms−1 ,in all inertial frames.Therefore,as the Raptor’s speed near to the
speed of light, her acceleration decrease and she experiences some effects such as length
contraction,time dilation and Doppler Effect.Figure 1 shows the introduction of the game.

Figure 1: The introduction of Velocity Raptor Game.

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2 Method and Procedure
The Raptor must pass the challenge in order to reach the speed of light:

1. Bullet Challenge

• A stream of moving bullets prevent the Raptor from passing through.

• The Raptor moved along the motion of the bullets to pass through the bullets’
ray of motion.

2. Puddle Challenge

• The puddles disappeared and reappeared in its respective time.

• The Raptor needed to move very fast to pass through the puddle as the duration
of the puddle to reappear was faster than the duration of Raptor’s motion.

3. Changing Colors Challenge

• The keys changed its colour due to the movement of the Raptor. The colour of
the key represents as frequency of light.
• The Raptor discovered the right position and direction to make the keys have
the same wavelength colour. The right position is in the middle of the keys’
positions.

4. Door Challenge

• There were 2 doors that opened and closed simultaneously.When the Raptor hit
the first door,it opened and the second door will shut instantly.
• The Raptor moved as fast as she can to pass through both doors.Thus,both
doors did not close simultaneously.

5. Fire Block Challenge

• This challenge contained a fire block and a snow block.The Raptor used fire
block to melt the snow block.
• After the Raptor activated the fire block,she moved around as fast so that she
can to make the time of the fire block ran slower than the snow block’s time.It
was more challenging when the Raptor must avoid some puddles at the same
time.

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3 Results and Discussion
In this section, we will discuss the comparison between the theory of Special Relativity and
the consequences felt by the Raptor when her speed near the speed of light. My point of
view will be considered in this discussion as well.

3.1 Length Contraction

Based on the theory, the length of any object in a moving frame will contract its direction
of motion when its speed near the speed of light.Therefore, the room shrunk as the Raptor
moved around the room.The length is at maximum from the reference frame of the resting
object.As the Raptor stay still, the room return to its original shape based on the Raptor’s
reference frame.This proved that the things will bend and wrap when our speed near the
speed of light.
Based on Figure 2,we could see when the stream of bullets passing by the Raptor in
opposite direction, the bullets contracted. The faster the Raptor, the more it contracted.
But when the Raptor was moving in the same direction of the bullets across the room,
the bullets seem to expand and move slower. The faster the Raptor, the slower the bullets
moved. We can assume that the inertial frame of the bullets were in relative motion to
the Raptor’s inertial frame.Therefore, we could see the bullets expand and moved slower
because in the Raptor’s reference frame, the time were running slow. If the time dilated,
the length of object will appear longer and slower in motion.The size of bullet expanded in
length as the Raptor approached the bullets.This is due to the delay of Raptor’s time.By
using the Lorentz transformation, we can calculate the amount of contraction.The length
of the object measured in the moving frame is given by

√ v2
L0 = L0 (1 − 2 )
c
√ 2
where L’ is the length of the moving object, L0 is the length of object at rest and (1− vc2 ) is
the Lorentz Factor, γ(V ).From the equation, we can conclude that the length of any moving
object will contract since the value of Lorentz Factor is smaller than 1.If the Raptor was
at rest and observed the moving bullets, she found out that the bullets were contracted.In
other situation,as the Raptor were moving,the bullets lengthen due to time dilation in the
space around the moving Raptor.

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 (a) (b) (c)

Figure 2: (a)The Raptor oppose the direction of the bullets.(b)The Raptor and the bullets
are in the same direction.(c)The Raptor moved diagonal towards down left to slower the
speed of both bullets.

3.2 Time Dilation

Another consequences of special relativity is ’a moving clock seems to run slow’, known
as time dilation. Any inertial observer who is in relative motion, they will find that time
passes slower for any other inertial observer who is in relative motion.Equation below shows
4t
4t0 = √ 2
(1 − vc2 )
the moving observer’s period of clock 4t0 is longer than period 4t in the frame of the clock
itself.
Based on Figure 3,we related the theory to the game when the Raptor was passing
across the ticking clocks, the times run slowly in those clocks. Nevertheless, the clock away
from the Raptor seems to be ticking normally which is faster than the Raptor’s clock. The
faster the Raptor moves, the slower the clocks ticked around her space.This proved the
theory that the moving observer’s period is longer than the rest observer’s period.
Next, we can relate this phenomena with the puddles challenge. The puddles have
their own clock to set the duration for the puddle to disappear and reappear.When the
Raptor was at rest, the clock of the puddles run regularly but as the Raptor moved, the
puddles’ clocks seem to run faster. It is difficult to let the Raptor across the puddles because
the period of the puddle to reappear is shorter than the period of Raptor moves. This is
due to the time dilation in Raptor’s reference frame. In her reference frame, she finds that
the time passes slower for any other inertial observer who is relative in motion.The solution
to this challenge is the Raptor needed to move as fast as she can since her time is slower
than the puddle’s time.
Truthfully, I really confused with the time in special relativity.The theory stated that
the the time of other inertial observer who is in relative motion run slower.But,based on
this challenge, the time of moving Raptor seems to slow compared to the other resting
puddle’s time.I guess since the puddle is at rest and the Raptor is moving,thus the time
run slower in Raptor’s frame.

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 (a) (b) (c)

Figure 3: (a)The clocks near the Raptor run slower than the clocks away from the Rap-
tor.(b)The period of the puddle to disappear/reappear runs regularly as the Raptor at
rest.c)The period of the Raptor’s movement slower than the period of the puddle to reap-
pear.

3.3 Doppler Effect

An observer who is moving relative to the wave source will undergo change in frequency
of a wave.This phenomenon is known as Doppler effect.A proper frequency which the radi-
ation was emitted will have higher frequency than the radiation received from a receding
source.Consequently,the spectral lines seen in the light of receding source will be shifted to-
wards the red end of the spectrum which is known as red shift.In a similar way, the spectra
of approaching source will be subject to a blue shift. In simplest, if any object approaching,
the peaks of the waves of light will have higher frequency,it becomes bluer and it appears
redder as the frequency lower due to the object moving away.Thus,the relationship between
receding frequency (frec ) and the emitted frequency (fem )is given by:
√ c−V
frec = fem ( )
c+V
where frec is receding frequency, fem is emitted frequency, c is the speed of light and V is
the speed of the source.
Based on the Figure 4,we can relate the theory above with the changing colour
challenge.We assume that the key approached by the Raptor is the emitted source and the
key away from the Raptor is the receding source. We observed that the key became bluer
as the Raptor approached and redder as the Raptor moved away.This shows that the bluer
key has higher frequency and the redder key has lower frequency.In order to make both
keys have the same colour(frequency), the Raptor need to move towards the middle of the
keys to balance both frequencies.In a situation consist of more keys,the Raptor need moved
as fast as she can to bend the room so that she can locate herself in the middle of the keys.
In short,we could say that the motion of the Raptor will affect the colour of the keys.
We can obtain redder key by moving the Raptor away from the respective key and bluer
key by moving the Raptor towards the respective key.

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 (a) (b) (c)

Figure 4: (a)The Raptor moves toward the middle of the keys.(b)The nearest key to the
Raptor seems bluer and the further key seems redder.(c)The Raptor moves as fast as she
can to make all the keys have the same colour.

3.4 Ladder Paradox

The Door Challenge is almost identical to the Ladder Paradox or Garage Paradox.This
challenge required the Raptor to pass through both doors which will open and close simul-
taneously.In reality,it is impossible for the Raptor to get through the doors because once
the Raptor passed across the first door,the second doors will hit the Raptor instantly.
We can relate this to the Ladder Paradox theory where the ladder undergoes the
relativistic effect of length contraction and become significantly shorter due to the high
velocity of ladder across the garage.As a result,in the garage reference frame,the ladder
can fit the garage, even though both doors close simultaneously in a brief time due to the
length contraction of the ladder.However, in the ladder reference frame,the garage is the
one who is contracted.This paradox can be explained in the relativity of simultaneity where
two distinct events is not possible to occur at the same time if those events are separated
in space.Therefore,in the ladder reference frame, even though the garage contracted but
the doors open and close at different time.The ladder can fit the garage in both reference
frames.
Based on Figure 5,we could think how the relativistic effect affected this para-
dox.Based on the doors’ reference frame, the Raptor contracted as she passed through in
high speed.Thus,she can fit between the doors when the doors close simultaneously.However,
in the Raptor’s reference frame, she sees the distance between the two doors contracted as
she moved across in high speed.But the doors did not close simultaneously because the first
door will experience dilate in time relative to the Raptor’s time and the second door shut
and open at a very fast time so that the Raptor can pass through. In simplest,the doors
did not open and close simultaneously from the reference frame of the Raptor. Therefore,
she did not hit by the door.

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 (a) (b) (c)

Figure 5: (a)The Raptor moved towards the doors.(b)Both doors open at different time as
the Raptor pass through.(c)None of the doors hit the Raptor as she moved near the speed
of light.

3.5 Twin Paradox

The twin paradox is a well-known relativistic effect involving identical twins, one of whom
likes to travel into space in a high-speed spaceship and returns home to find that the other
twin has aged more as she remained on Earth..Like we discussed earlier, a fast-moving
object is subjected to observable time dilation effects.Thus, both of them mutually claim
that the time of the other twin is running slow. There is no uniformity in both views
between the space time paths of the twins as each twin sees the other twin’s moving.The
solution to this paradox is we assumed that the travelling twin undergoes acceleration
when she’s leaving Earth. Thus, there is simultaneity in her different frames causing her
rest frame temporarily non-inertial.In contrast,throughout the journey,the earthbound twin
is at rest in the same inertial frame. Therefore, the travelling twin is younger than her
twin.
In the game, we assumed that when the Raptor activate the fire block, she acted as
the travelling twin into space.She travelled around as fast as she can to delay the countdown
of the fire block. In the other hand, the snow block behaved as the other twin remained on
Earth. Even though the countdown of the snow block is longer than the fire block at first,
she managed to melt the snow block by moving the fire block as fast as she can.The lifetime
of the fire block happened to be longer than the snow block.We could observed that she
undergoes time dilation effects when her speed near the speed of light. This proved that
the travelling twin aged less than earthbound twin.

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 (a) (b) (c)

Figure 6: (a)The Raptor travelled to activate the fire block.(b)The Raptor moved around
to increase the lifetime of the fire block.(c)The Raptor travelled to melt the snow block.

4 Conclusion
In conclusion,the consequences of the special relativity have been applied in this game.The
comparison between the theory of special relativity and the challenges of the game helps
us to understand more about this field.Somehow, there are few confusions rise among
the relativistic effect.Nevertheless,this lab report helps me to understand about special
relativity better.

References
[1] Time dilation/length contraction - Hyperphysics,
http : //hyperphysics.phy − astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Relativ/tdil.html

[2] Lambourne, R. Relativity, gravitation and cosmology. Cambridge: Cambridge Univer-

sity Press, 2010.