Hilary D. Brewster, "Relativity"
Oxford Book Company | 2009 | ISBN: 9380179030, 9789380179032 | 309 pages | PDF | 15.3 MB
The theory of relativity has become a cornerstone of modem physics. Over the course of time it has been scrutinized in a multitude of experiments and has always been verified with high accuracy. The correctness of this theory can no longer be called into question. Right after its discovery by Albert Einstein in 1905, special relativity was only gradually accepted because it made numerous predictions contradicting common sense, fervently castigated by Einstein, and also defied
experiment for too long a time. It was only with the advent of particle or high energy physics that matter could be accelerated to very high velocities, close to the speed of light, which not only verified special relativity but also made it a requirement for machine construction. The book opens with a description of the smooth transition from Newtonian to Einsteinian behaviour from electrons as their energy is
progressively increased, and this leads directly to the relativistic expressions for mass, momentum and energy of a particle. The expansion of the physical research frontier toward astronomy and cosmology during the past ten to twenty years conSiderably increased the importance of special relativity and, above all, general relativity based thereupon. Since astrophysics has in the same time become very popular among readers with a scientific background, the two theories of relativity have attained unprecedented publicity. The fascination with astronomy of children and youths shall only be mentioned incidentally, it is, however, one of the most impressive features of schools today. This book proceeds to do just that, offering a radically reoriented presentation of Einstein's Theory of Relativity that derives Relativity "from" Newtonian ideas, rather than "in opposition to" them.
Download
Mirror