"Relativity In our Time" is a book concerning the relevance of Einstein's theory to human relations in contemporary times. lt is physics and it is philosophy. lt is a discussion about one of the greatest of all pillars of 20th century thought and science. Based on a seminar course for a mixture of science and humanities students, the approach and narrative style leads the reader towards the frontier of thinking in this farreaching subject. Sachs deals with the whole spread of relativity, starting from the early history of Galileo and Faraday, he arrives at the foundation of the special theory. There is a logical transition to the general theory while the last part of the book covers the mind-testing realms of unified field theory, Mach's principle and cosmology. The book begins with atomistic, deterministic, classical physics and goes on towards a view of continuous fields of matter and a clearer view of spacetime. The reader is led into Einstein's extension of this theory towards a unified force field; consequently the authors address the issue of the validity of linear mathematics compared with the realism of a non- linear universe.; Such arguments today are leading towards a new paradigm in science - a study and description of nonlinear natural systems especially far from equilibrium systems; their energetics and dynamics. This book should be of value to postgraduates, undergraduates, secondary students and professionals in physics and philosophy and anyone with an interest in science subjects.
Author(s): Mendel Sachs
Edition: 1
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2005
Language: English
Pages: 177
Book Cover......Page 1
Half-Title......Page 2
Dedication......Page 3
Title......Page 4
Copyright......Page 5
Contents......Page 6
Preface......Page 10
1 Introduction......Page 14
THE BASIC PREMISE OF RELATIVITY—THE PRINCIPLE OF COVARIANCE......Page 15
THE ROLE OF SPACE AND TIME IN RELATIVITY THEORY......Page 17
Implications of the space-time logic in the physical laws......Page 19
Implications of a unified field theory in general relativity......Page 22
NOTES......Page 24
2 A seminal idea—the principle of relativity......Page 26
3 Early observations of things......Page 29
NOTES......Page 33
4 Toward an abstract view of nature......Page 34
NOTES......Page 38
5 Einstein’s ideas of special relativity......Page 40
NOTES......Page 44
6 Space......Page 45
NOTES......Page 52
7 Time......Page 53
NOTES......Page 60
8 Space-time......Page 61
NOTES......Page 65
9 The principle of relativity— from Galileo to Einstein......Page 66
10 Violations of ‘common sense’ notions of distance and simultaneity......Page 73
NOTES......Page 79
11 On the Fitzgerald-Lorentz contraction......Page 80
12 Relative time and the twin paradox......Page 84
NOTES......Page 91
13 Geometry, causality and the light cone in special relativity......Page 92
CAUSALITY......Page 94
14 Particles of matter in special relativity and E=Mc2......Page 98
NOTES......Page 106
15 The continuous field concept in relativity......Page 107
NOTES......Page 110
16 The Mach principle......Page 111
NOTES......Page 117
17 Experimental confirmations of special relativity and transition to general relativity......Page 118
NOTES......Page 125
18 The curvature of space-time......Page 126
NOTES......Page 132
19 Gravitation and crucial tests of general relativity......Page 133
NOTES......Page 139
20 Faraday’s unified field concept......Page 141
NOTES......Page 146
21 Einstein’s unified field concept......Page 147
NOTES......Page 151
22 The night sky......Page 153
NOTES......Page 158
23 Cosmology......Page 159
NOTES......Page 172
Index......Page 173
