The Tests of Time : Readings in the Development of Physical Theory / Lisa M. Dolling, Glenn N. Statile, Arthur F. Gianelli.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Dolling, Lisa M., Editor.

Gianelli, Arthur F., Editor.

Statile, Glenn N., Editor.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Physical sciences--History.

Physical sciences.

Science--Philosophy.

Science.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (716 pages) : illustrations

Place of Publication:

Princeton, NJ : Princeton University Press, [2017]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

The development of physical theory is one of our greatest intellectual achievements. Its products--the currently prevailing theories of physics, astronomy, and cosmology--have proved themselves to possess intrinsic beauty and to have enormous explanatory and predictive power. This anthology of primary readings chronicles the birth and maturation of five such theories (the heliocentric theory, the electromagnetic field theory, special and general relativity, quantum theory, and the big bang theory) in the words of the scientists who brought them to life. It is the first historical account that captures the rich substance of these theories, each of which represents a fascinating story of the interplay of evidence and insight--and of dialogue among great minds. Readers sit in with Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo as they overturn the geocentric universe; observe the genius of Faraday and Maxwell as they "discover" the electromagnetic field; look over Einstein's shoulder as he works out the details of relativity; listen in as Einstein and Bohr argue for the soul of quantum mechanics in the Completeness Debate; and watch as Hubble and others reveal the history of the universe. The editors' approach highlights the moments of discovery that rise from scientific creativity, and the presentation humanizes the scientific process, revealing the extent to which great scientists were the first to consider the philosophical implications of their work. But, most significantly, the editors offer this as their central thesis: although each was ushered in by a revolution, and each contains counterintuitive elements that delayed its acceptance, these five theories exhibit a continuous rational development that has led them to a permanent place in the worldview of science. Accessible to the general reader yet sufficiently substantive that working scientists will find value in it, The Tests of Time offers an intimate look into how physical theory has been developed, by the brilliant people who have developed it.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

Philosophical Introduction: Philosophy of Science and Physical Theory

PART I. The Heliocentric Theory

Introduction

1. ARISTOTLE: The Physical Foundation for the Geocentric Universe

2. ARISTARCHUS: An Early Version of Heliocentrism

3. CLAUDIUS PTOLEMY: The Case for Geocentrism

4. NICHOLAUS COPERNICUS: First Thoughts on Heliocentrism

5. NICHOLAUS COPERNICUS: The Heliocentric Theory

6. TYCHO BRAHE: The Supernova of 1572

7. TYCHO BRAHE: Observational Evidence against the Aristotelian Cosmology

8. JOHANNES KEPLER: The Sun as the Source of Planetary Motions

9. GALILEO GALILEI: Telescopic Observations in Support of Copernicus

10. JOHANNES KEPLER: The Superiority of the Copernican System

11. GALILEO GALILEI: The Coherence of the Copernican Theory

12. ISAAC NEWTON: The Physical Foundations of Heliocentrism

13. JOHN HERSCHEL: The Discovery of Stellar Parallax

Selected Bibliography

PART II. Electromagnetic Field Theory

1. WILLIAM GILBERT: The Properties of Magnets

2. CHARLES COULOMB: The Law of Electric Force

3. HANS CHRISTIAN OERSTED: The Effect of a Current of Electricity on a Magnetic Needle

4. ANDRÉ MARIE AMPÈRE: A Positivist Approach to Electromagnetism

5. ISAAC NEWTON: The Particle Theory of Light

6. CHRISTIAAN HUYGENS: The Wave Theory of Light

7. THOMAS YOUNG: The Vindication of the Wave Theory of Light

8. AUGUSTIN FRESNEL AND DOMINIQUE ARAGO: The Transverse Nature of Light Waves

9. MICHAEL FARADAY: Electromagnetic Induction

10. MICHAEL FARADAY: The Concept of an Electromagnetic Field

11. JAMES CLERK MAXWELL: The Theory of the Electromagnetic Field

12. JAMES CLERK MAXWELL: The Electromagnetic Theory of Light

13. JAMES CLERK MAXWELL: The Medium for Electromagnetic Waves

14. HEINRICH HERTZ: The Production of Electromagnetic Waves

PART III. The Theory of Relativity

1. JAMES CLERK MAXWELL: The Ether

2. ALBERT MICHELSON: The Ether and Optical Experiments

3. GEORGE F. FITZGERALD: The Contraction Hypothesis

4. HENDRICK A. LORENTZ: The Contraction Hypothesis

5. HENRI POINCARÉ: A Prelude to Relativity

6. ALBERT EINSTEIN: The Postulates of the Special Theory of Relativity

7. HERMAN MINKOWSKI: The Space-Time Continuum

8. ALBERT EINSTEIN: The Foundation of the General Theory of Relativity

9. ALBERT EINSTEIN: The Ramifications of the Special and General Theories of Relativity

10. ARTHUR EDDINGTON: The Bending of Light Rays

11. ALBERT EINSTEIN: Ether and Relativity

12. ALBERT EINSTEIN: Later Comments on General Relativity

13. ALBERT EINSTEIN: E = MC2

PART IV. Quantum Theory

Historical and Conceptual Development

1. MAX PLANCK: The Quantum Hypothesis

2. ALBERT EINSTEIN: The Photon

3. NIELS BOHR: The Quantum Character of the Atom

4. LOUIS DE BROGLIE: The Wave Nature of the Electron

5. NIELS BOHR: Complementarity and the New Quantum Theory

6. NIELS BOHR: The Debate with Einstein

7. ALBERT EINSTEIN: Response to Bohr

8. WERNER HEISENBERG: A Brief History of Quantum Theory

9. WERNER HEISENBERG: The Copenhagen Interpretation

10. ERWIN SCHRÖDINGER: The Fundamental Idea of Wave Mechanics

11. ERWIN SCHRÖDINGER: Are There Quantum Jumps?

12. P.A.M. DIRAC: The Conceptual Difficulties of Quantum Theory

13. JOHN A. WHEELER: Observer-Created Reality

The Completeness Debate

14. ALBERT EINSTEIN, BORIS PODOLSKY, AND NATHAN ROSEN: The EPR Paradox

15. ALBERT EINSTEIN: The Argument for Incompleteness

16. NIELS BOHR: Response to EPR

17. DAVID BOHM: The Hidden Variables Hypothesis

18. J. S. BELL: Comment on the Hidden Variables Hypothesis

19. J. S. BELL: A Conceptual Analysis of the EPR Thought Experiment of David Bohm

20. ABNER SHIMONY: Philosophical Reflections on the Completeness Debate

PART V. Big Bang Cosmological Theory

1. HENRIETTA LEAVITT: Variables in the Magellanic Clouds

2. HENRIETTA LEAVITT: The Variability-Luminosity Relationship

3. VESTO SLIPHER: The Radial Velocity of the Andromeda Nebula

4. VESTO SLIPHER: The Discovery of the Red Shift of Nebula

5. HARLOW SHAPLEY: The Measurement of Great Distances

6. WILLEM DE SITTER: Relativity and Cosmology

7. EDWIN HUBBLE: The Structure of the Universe

8. EDWIN HUBBLE: The Velocity-Distance Relationship

9. ARTHUR EDDINGTON: The Expanding Universe

10. GEORGES LEMAÎTRE: The Beginning of Big Bang Cosmology

11. ARNO PENZIAS AND ROBERT WILSON: The Discovery of Background Radiation

12. R. H. DICKE, P.J.E. PEEBLES, P. G. ROLL, D. T. WILKINSON: An Explanation of the Penzias and Wilson Discovery

13. STEVEN WEINBERG: The Cosmic Microwave Radiation Background

14. ALAN GUTH AND PAUL STEINHARDT: The Inflationary Universe

15. GEORGE SMOOT AND KEAY DAVIDSON: Wrinkles in Time

16. STEPHEN HAWKING: The Edge of Spacetime

Epilogue

1. HELGE KRAGH: Physical Theory: Present and Future

Sources of the Readings

Index of Names

Index of Concepts

Permissions

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 26. Nov 2019)

ISBN:

1-4008-8916-2

OCLC:

1129174287