Six Not-So-Easy Pieces Einstein's Relativity, Symmetry and Space-Time

About this book

Drawn from Feynman's celebrated introductory course of lectures on physics. Though slightly more challenging than the first Six Easy Pieces, these rewarding lectures delve into the most revolutionary discovery of twentieth century physics: Einstein's theory of relativity.

Contents

Part 1 Vectors: symmetry in physics; translations; rotations; vectors; vector algebra; Newton's laws in vector notation; scalar product of vectors. Part 2 Symmetry in physical laws: symmetry operations; symmetry in space and time; symmetry and conservation laws; mirror reflections; polar and axial vectors; which hand is right?; parity is not conserved!; antimatter; broken symmetries. Part 3 The special theory of relativity: the principle of relativity; the Lorentz transformation; the Michelson-Morley experiment; transformation of time; the Lorentz contraction; simultaneity; four-vectors; relativistic dynamics; equivalence of mass and energy. Part 4 Relativistic energy and momentum: relativity and the philosophers; the twin paradox; transformation of velocities; relativistic mass; relativistic energy. Part 5 Space-time: the geometry of space-time; space-time intervals; past, present and future; more about four-vectors; four-vector algebra. Part 6 Curved space: curved spaces with two dimensions; curvature in three-dimensional space; our space is curved; geometry in space-time; gravity and the principle of equivalence; the speed of clocks in a gravitational field; the curvature of space-time; motion in curved space-time; Einstein's theory of gravitation.

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Biography

Richard P. Feynman (1918-88) was one of this century's most brilliant and original thinkers. He taught at Cornell and the California Institute of Technology and received the Nobel Prize in Physics for his work in quantum electrodynamics. Books by Feynman in Penguin include THE CHARACTER OF PHYSICAL LAW (1965), QED (1985), the bestselling THE MEANING OF IT ALL(1998) and SIX EASY PIECES (1998).