On this date 117 years ago, Albert Einstein's paper explaining the theory of special relativity appeared. At least that's when it happened in our own timespace. Special relativity accounts for how space and time get stretched out, or compressed, for different observers, when one of them is moving at close to the speed of light. Of course that isn't important for those of us who travel around at speeds from zero to (merely) thousands of miles per hour. But when we consider the motions of photons or electrons or other subatomic particles, their interactions with "us" or with anything moving more slowly than the speed of light depend on the principles of special relativity, not everyday mechanics. A photon entering my eye (to cause what I see as a color) experiences time differently -- our clocks never match up.
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