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The universal force / Louis A. Girifalco.
- Format:
- Book
- Language:
- English
- Subjects (All):
- Gravitation.
- Gravity.
- Gravity--Seasonal variations.
- Gravitation--History.
- Gravity--History.
- History.
- Physical Description:
- xx, 297 pages ; 22 cm
- Place of Publication:
- Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2007.
- Summary:
- The Universal Force conveys the excitement of science and nature's mysteries. It describes gravitation as seen by examining the achievements of those great scientists who have struggled with the seemingly simple facts and managed to extract some truth about the nature of gravity, its origins, and its effects. Gravity is intimately tied up with motion, and therefore with time and space, and is responsible for planetary systems, the evolution of stars and the existence of black holes and the very beginning of the Universe. It is the universal force, and to look at gravity is to look at the deepest aspects of nature.
- The historical context from Aristotle's teleology through Galileo's conflict with the Church, to Newton's law, and Einstein's curved space time, displays the evolution of the science of gravity as one of the greatest and most fascinating human achievements. Contrary to popular opinion, all important science can be understood by anyone, with or without a scientific background. This book shows that the beauty and mysteries of science can be shared with everyone.
- Contents:
- The seeker
- The giants
- The first modern giant
- The grid
- The universal force
- The laws
- The system of the world
- Force and mass
- Two more giants
- - Ether
- The genius
- Time and space
- It really is true
- The space-time continuum
- Time warps and bent space
- It stands alone
- This too is true
- Crunch
- Beyond existence
- Absolute space?
- Infinity
- How weird can it get?
- Scientific truth
- The meaning of why
- Final comments.
- Notes:
- Includes bibliographical references and index.
- ISBN:
- 9780199228966
- 0199228965
- OCLC:
- 154309280
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