Yet there are now many other texts that discuss these subjects with much more clarity and much more depth, and have many more years of thought and experiment. The aim of this book is to introduce people without a strong physics or even scientific background to the special and general theories of relativity and now i want to read other similar scientific books. Introducing relativity is a 2002 graphic study guide to the theory of relativity and albert einstein written by bruce bassett and illustrated by ralph edney. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of albert einstein and what it means. This is the most important finding not just one of the most in the history of human beings. I recommend you those books from the excellent chicago physics bibliography.
The basic concept of the book is to cover special relativity and electromagnetism together, getting to the point of understanding the behavior of electric and magnetic fields under lorentz transformations, and the lorentz invariance properties of maxwells equation. Theory of relativity, theories of science, books barnes. On the 100 th anniversary of albert einsteins general theory of relativity, bennetts book seeks to explain both special and general relativity in a form that a nonexpert could understand. His book the grammar of science was remarkable in that it anticipated some of the ideas of relativity theory. Intended for a popular audience, the book remains one of the most lucid explanations of the special and general theories ever written. I can imagine students in my special relativity course reading einsteins description and taking away a better understanding of the subject. The central idea of general relativity is that space and time are two aspects of spacetime.
A classic semipopular book, by now hopelessly outdated, but written with the engaging, stylish verve that made eddington one of the most popular science writers of his day. The authors are best known for their book gravitation which is coauthored with misner. I first learnt about general relativity from gerochs semipopular book. The present book is intended, as far as possible, to give an exact insight into the theory of relativity to those readers who, from a general scientific and philosophical point of view, are interested in the theory, but who are not conversant with the mathematical apparatus of theoretical physics. The special and the general theory, by albert einstein. Einstein wrote a book too, and it remains in print to this day.
French is another good one, which is recommended text in mit. The description of special relativity in einsteins book is pleasurable and easy to read. How to teach relativity to your dog for the price of a book, orzel delivers the heady, joyful experience of taking a small college class with a brilliant and funny professor who really knows how to teach. Optical images in sr that i just cant make sense of at all. Relativity and the priesthood of science lewrockwell. An illustrated guide to relativity by tatsu takeuchi. Some just slow my reading, but there are entire sections e. First english translation of einsteins theory of relativity. In this work einstein intended, as far as possible, to give an exact insight into the theory of relativity to those readers who, from a general and scientific philosophical. Special relativity and classical field theory not even wrong.
An accesible version of einsteins masterpiece of theory, written by the genius himself according to einstein himself, this book is intended to give an exact insight into the theory of relativity to those readers who, from a general scientific and philosophical point of view, are interested in the theory, but who are not conversant with the mathematical apparatus of. Advanced general relativity, by john stewart, cambridge, 1990. Relativity the special and general theory by einstein. As to whether the general public can understand the work, i think einsteins own recommendation says it best. Find the top 100 most popular items in amazon books best sellers. The special and the general theory ebook written by albert einstein, general press. A page of the original manuscripts of the theory of relativity developed by albert einstein on display at the israeli national academy of.
The best part of this book is hearing einsteins writing on the subjects of relativity, the nature of science, and the issues of integrating general relativity with quantum theory. A summary of special relativity in s albert einstein. The special and general theory, a popular exposition, authorised translation by robert w. But, he does another thing in this book which i found most valuable, and that is that he firmly ties the discussion of relativity to empirical reality, so that in the end we might accept relativity with no more fuss than we accept a 30 cm rule for measuring distances and drawing straight lines. A handy accompaniment to undergraduate study in relativity, the book is a mathematical exposition into its broad features and is not by any means a popularlay account of. First, the book introduces special relativity in a simple way. This is an introduction to einsteins theories of special and general relativity. In this book, you will find the anatomy of sentences a. One hundred years ago, einsteins theory of general. Discover the best relativity physics in best sellers. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Best books to selfstudy general relativity physics forums. While lorentz failed to discover this relativity due to his belief in newtons. For a superfast introduction special relativity by resnick is also a good option.
David mermin based on a course for nonscience majors, but with plenty of math, this is one of the clearest descriptions ive read of the essential role of clocks and practical issues of measurement in relativity. The special and the general theory by albert einstein 2010 reprint of 1920 first english edition. The special and the general theory by albert einstein, einstein. For a first book on the philosophical reaction to relativity, id recommend.
Internet archive bookreader relativity, the special and the general theory. Spacetime is curved when there is gravity, matter, energy, and momentum. What is the best book for selflearning special and. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read relativity. A technical one just might be accepted, he thought. This book has 2 chapters on advanced aspects of some mathematis that is useful in relativity, namely some modern approaches to tensor theory also known in that case as differential geometry, and a very good approach to spinors.
This detailed account of the controversy surrounding the publication of albert einsteins theory of relativity explores the ferocious popular and academic opposition which at one time encircled one of the most important scientific breakthroughs of the twentieth century. They opened our eyes to profound connections between general relativity black holes. To be honest i imagine that selflearning relativity to be quite difficult. Moreover, the book has appendixes where the author makes reference to some interesting subjects like the problem of space and relativity, the experimental confirmation of the theory, to name a few. There are a great number of really excellent books on relativity, but no particular book is good for everyone. After completing the final version of his general theory of relativity in november 1915, albert einstein wrote relativity. Best books to selfstudy general relativity thread starter kesh. This book won a prize for the exceptionally clear quality of its exposition. The reason is because special relativity is just an elaborately contrived and meaningless mathematical theory which attempts to justify its own false premise. The most famous work of einsteins life also dates from 1905 a busy year for him, when he applied the ideas of his relativity paper to come up with the equation emc2 that represents the relationship between mass m and energy e in a nutshell, einstein found that as an object approached the speed of light, c, the mass of the object increased.
I suggest schutz, a first course in general relativity, because he does a good job on special relativity and introduces all the neccessary math. Along with quantum mechanics in the 1920s, einstein s special theory of relativity 1905 and general theory of relativity 1916 stand as the supreme achievements of twentiethcentury physics. Motion mountain relativity of the adventure of physics. If you have decided to learn something about relativity, and you do not have vast knowledge in physics and mathematics, i sincerely recommend you. But in the popular imagination, relativity remained deeply mysterious. A listing of technical books for general relativity.
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