Relativity: The Special and General Theory

by Albert Einstein

Overview

From the age of Galileo until the early years of the 20th century, scientists grappled with seemingly insurmountable paradoxes inherent in the theories of classical physics. With the publication of Albert Einstein's "special" and "general" theories of relativity, however, traditional approaches to solving the riddles of space and time crumbled. In their place stood a radically new view of the physical world, providing answers to many of the unsolved mysteries of pre-Einsteinian physics.
Acclaimed as the pinnacle of scientific philosophy, the theories of relativity tend to be regarded as the exclusive domain of highly trained scientific minds. The great physicist himself disclaimed this exclusionary view, and in this book, he explains both theories in their simplest and most intelligible form for the layman not versed in the mathematical foundations of theoretical physics.
In addition to the theories themselves, this book contains a final part presenting fascinating considerations on the universe as a whole. Appendices cover the simple derivation of the Lorentz transformation, Minkowski's four-dimensional space, and the experimental confirmation of the general theory of relativity. Students, teachers, and other scientifically minded readers will appreciate this inexpensive and accessible interpretation of one of the world's greatest intellectual accomplishments.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780486417141
Publisher:	Dover Publications
Publication date:	10/18/2010
Series:	Dover Books on Physics
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	192
Sales rank:	1,051,214
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

In addition to conducting the research that culminated in his acclaimed theories of relativity, Albert Einstein (1879-1955) taught and lectured at universities around the world. Einstein received numerous awards and honorary doctorate degrees in science, medicine, and philosophy, and he remains a towering symbol of intellectual and imaginative achievement.

It's All Relative
Around 1950, Hayward Cirker, Founder and President of Dover Publications, wrote to Einstein and asked his approval to proceed with a Dover paperback reprint of the 1923 collection of original papers on relativity by Einstein himself and others (H. A. Lorentz, H. Weyl, and H. Minkowski), which had originally been published in England. Einstein was reluctant, wondering how much interest there could possibly be in this relic of his work from 30 or more years earlier. Cirker persisted, and Einstein finally agreed — the Dover edition of The Theory of Relativity has been in print ever since and has been followed by many other Dover books on relativity.

The papers reprinted in this original collection will always be for the serious student the cornerstone of their Einstein library: Michelson's Interference Experiment (H. A. Lorentz); Electromagnetic Phenomena in a System Moving with any Velocity Less Than That of Light (H.A. Lorentz); On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies (A. Einstein); Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon its Energy Content? (A. Einstein); Space and Time (H. Minkowksi with notes by A. Sommerfeld); On the Influence of Gravitation on the Propagation of Light (A. Einstein); and The Foundation of the General Theory of Relativity (A. Einstein) found on pages 109–164 of this text; Hamilton's Principle and The General Theory of Relativity (A. Einstein); Cosmological Considerations on the General Theory of Relativity (A. Einstein); Do Gravitational Fields Play an Essential Part in the Structure of the Elementary Particles of Matter? (A. Einstein); and Gravitation and Electricity (H. Weyl).

In the Author's Own Words:
"How can it be that mathematics, being after all a product of human thought independent of experience, is so admirably adapted to the objects of reality?"

"What nature demands from us is not a quantum theory or a wave theory; rather, nature demands from us a synthesis of these two views which thus far has exceeded the mental powers of physicists."

"Do not be troubled by your difficulties with Mathematics, I can assure you mine are much greater." — Albert Einstein

Critical Acclaim for The Theory of Relativity:
"This book constitutes an indispensable part of a library on relativity." — Nature

Table of Contents

PART I THE SPECIAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY
I. Physical Meaning of Geometrical Propositions
II. The System of Co-ordinates
III. Space and Time in Classical Mechanics
IV. The Galileian System of Co-ordinates
V. The Principle of Relativity (in the Restricted Sense)
VI. The Theorem of the Addition of Velocities employed in Classical Mechanics
VII. The Apparent Incompatibility of the Law of Propagation of Light with the Principle of Relativity
VIII. On the Idea of Time in Physics
IX. The Relativity of Simultaneity
X. On the Relativity of the Conception of Distance
XI. The Lorentz Transformation
XII. The Behaviour of Measuring-Rods and Clocks in Motion
XIII. Theorem of the Addition of Velocities. The Experiment of Fizeau
XIV. The Heuristic Value of the Theory of Relativity
XV. General Results of the Theory
XVI. Experience and the Special Theory of Relativity
XVII. Minkowski's Four-dimensional Space
PART II THE GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY
XVIII. Special and General Principle of Relativity
XIX. The Gravitational Field
XX. The Equality of Inertial and Gravitational Mass as an Argument for the General Postulate of Relativity
XXI. In what Respects are the Foundations of Classical Mechanics and of the Special Theory of Relativity unsatisfactory?
XXII. A Few Inferences from the General Principle of Relativity
XXIII. Behaviour of Clocks and Measuring-Rods on a Rotating Body of Reference
XXIV. Euclidean and Non-Euclidean Continuum
XXV. Gaussian Co-ordinates
XXVI. The Space-time Continuum of the Special Theory of Relativity considered as a Euclidean Continuum
XXVII. The Space-time Continuum of the General Theory of Relativity is not a Euclidean Contiuum
XXVIII. Exact Formulation of the General Principle of Relativity
XXIX. The Solution of the Problem of Gravitation on the Basis of the General Principle of Relativity
PART III CONSIDERATIONS ON THE UNIVERSE AS A WHOLE
XXX. Cosmological Difficulties of Newton's Theory
XXXI. "The Possibility of a "Finite" and yet "Unbounded" Universe"
XXXII. The Structure of Space according to the General Theory of Relativity
APPENDICES
I. Simple Derivation of the Lorentz Transformation
II. "Minkowski's Four-dimensional Space ("World") [Supplementary to Section XVII.]"
III. The Experimental Confirmation of the General Theory of Relativity
(a) Motion of the Perihelion of Mercury
(b) Deflection of Light by a Gravitational Field
(c) Displacement of Spectral Lines towards the Red
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX

Editorial Reviews

He was unfathomably profound - the genius among geniuses who discovered, merely by thinking about it, that the universe was not as it seemed.

Time

[Editor's Note: The following is a combined review with THEORIES OF THE UNIVERSE, RELIGION AND SCIENCE, and MY EXPERIMENTS WITH TRUTH.]--The Listen to a Genius series is a collection of CD reissues of recordings made by Audio Scholar in the 1990s. The idea--to present a cross section of writings by the world's greatest thinkers--is admirable. But while the production quality and narration are generally excellent, the series has some problems. First, the complete absence of liner notes is a disappointment. More importantly, the abridgments of these great works are often so drastic that they fail to provide a coherent introduction to the author's work. In his preface to RELATIVITY, for example, Einstein writes that his book requires "a fair amount of patience and force of will on the part of the reader." Indeed, a work of this complexity would have a reader continually rereading, something that is impractical in the audio medium. As a result, this recording will likely appeal only to those with a solid background in physics or mathematics, despite Einstein's remarkably lucid prose and the unflinching Julian Lopez-Morillas, who delivers it with clarity. Similar flaws bog down THEORIES OF THE UNIVERSE, also read by Lopez-Morillas. Though Stephen Hawking gets top billing, he is the author of only one of the four selections in this recording. His contribution, like his famous book A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME (millions sold, perhaps hundreds read and understood), has fascinating and memorable passages but is altogether impenetrable to the non-physicist. The high point of the recording, rather, is Paul Thagard's "Conceptual Revolutions," an erudite but accessible look at the major leaps in scientific thought. Bertrand Russell's RELIGION AND SCIENCE is much easier to digest. Published in 1935, it looks at the conflicts between these two integral parts of human culture. The writing is clear, and the abridgment, while it retains only a fraction of the original work, is tidy if not seamless. David Case sounds pedantic at first, but once listeners warm to him, they’ll be happy to have exchanged Einstein’s quantum physics for this introduction to Russell's metaphysics. Mohandas Gandhi's MY EXPERIMENTS WITH TRUTH (1925) is an altogether different kind of philosophy. Frederick Davidson has chosen to read this autobiography of India's great spiritual leader with an affected accent, an odd choice in a work of nonfiction. But it works: It helps to ground a rambling piece of writing, helping this title to come closest to fulfilling the aim of the Listen to a Genius series. D.B. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine

JUN/JUL 02 - AudioFile