The Curious History of Relativity : How Einstein's Theory of Gravity Was Lost and Found Again / Jean Eisenstaedt.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Eisenstaedt, Jean, author.

Language:

English

French

Subjects (All):

Einstein, Albert, 1879-1955.

Einstein, Albert.

General relativity (Physics).

Space and time.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (ix, 363 pages) : illustrations

Place of Publication:

Princeton, NJ : Princeton University Press, [2018]

Language Note:

In English and French.

Summary:

Black holes may obliterate most things that come near them, but they saved the theory of general relativity. Einstein's theory was quickly accepted as the true theory of gravity after its publication in 1915, but soon took a back seat in physics to quantum mechanics and languished for decades on the blackboards of mathematicians. Not until the existence of black holes by Stephen Hawking and Roger Penrose in the 1960s, after Einstein's death, was the theory revived. Almost one hundred years after general relativity replaced Newton's theory of gravitation, The Curious History of Relativity tells the story of both events surrounding general relativity and the techniques employed by Einstein and the relativists to construct, develop, and understand his almost impenetrable theory. Jean Eisenstaedt, one of the world's leading experts on the subject, also discusses the theory's place in the evolution of twentieth-century physics. He describes the main stages in the development of general relativity: its beginnings, its strange crossing of the desert during Einstein's lifetime while under heated criticism, and its new life from the 1960s on, when it became vital to the understanding of black holes and the observation of exotic objects, and, eventually, to the discovery of the accelerating universe. We witness Einstein's construction of his theory, as well as the work of his fascinated, discouraged, and enthusiastic colleagues--physicists, mathematicians, and astronomers. Written with flair, The Curious History of Relativity poses--and answers--the difficult questions raised by Einstein's magnificent intellectual feat.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Foreword / Damour, Thibault

Acknowledgments

INTRODUCTION. A Difficult Theory

CHAPTER ONE. The Speed of Light and Classical Physics

CHAPTER TWO. Light and the Structure of Space-Time

CHAPTER THREE. Toward a New Theory of Gravitation

CHAPTER FOUR. Einstein's Principles

CHAPTER FIVE. The Birth of General Relativity

CHAPTER SIX. General Relativity: A Physical Geometry

CHAPTER SEVEN. Relativity Verified: Mercury's Anomaly

CHAPTER EIGHT. Relativity Verified: The Deflection of Light Rays

CHAPTER NINE. Relativity Verified: The Line Shift

CHAPTER TEN. The Crossing of the Desert

CHAPTER ELEVEN. An Unpopular Theory

CHAPTER TWELVE. The Rejection of Black Holes

CHAPTER THIRTEEN. Paths in Schwarzschild's Space-Time

CHAPTER FOURTEEN. No Ordinary Stars

CHAPTER FIFTEEN. Gravitation, Astrophysics, and Cosmology

AFTERWORD. The Paths of General Relativity

Bibliography

Name Index

Notes:

Translation of: Einstein et la relativité générale.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 349-360) and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 23. Mai 2019)

ISBN:

9780691186757

0691186758

OCLC:

1076451574