@Mathphile hi saw your msg on Physics chat. have drawn a similar analogy myself in the past. there is some analogy of light travel vs sound travel in a gas. have found relativistic like formulas in thermodynamics. few have remarked on this analogy. think its more important than widely realized.
@Mathphile looking for refs myself. my suggestion is to start with "sound travel in a gas" and then look at the formulas. its a complicated topic that requires deep/ dedicated study. can pass on some other refs over time.
@Mathphile whether someone is up to it is not exactly predictable, but its coming... its on the horizon... its a wave approaching... are you a math undergraduate student? "beginners mind" can be an asset :) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoshin
@Mathphile cool. anyway youve asked a unintentionally deep question, do encourage you to pursue it to the end, can assist in that endeavor, however it is not to be taken lightly... have spent years investigating it... up to you...
ofc you realize that relativity is a very deep/ complex topic, and looking at its deeper connections even more ambitious, but do believe it is within reach of anyone seriously dedicated... for me it is also rewarding...
@Mathphile cool thx for tip yes am a big fan of number-theory have been banging on collatz conjecture a long time. theres another number theory room that have chatted in over the yrs.
@Mathphile cool, austin? here is a semi famous person from there, writes great blogs, expert in quantum computing etc en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Aaronson