Relativity

Rating:
Summary: Einstein is also a genius at teaching
Review: Most scientific genius' are poor at communicating their ideas to lay people who aren't versed in their high level math and vocabulary. Einstein, on the other hand, is superb at explaining the complex in simple, non scientific, non mathematical, and NON CONDESCENDING terms! While, obviously, I am against any government forced reading list, if there were one, I'd put this one at or near number one on any such list. It should certainly be required reading for all colledge graduates, regardless of their major.

Park your preconceived ideas of what you *used to* think what the universe was and prepare to be blown away at this incredible "theory" (It should no longer be called a theory as it has been proven over and over in real world experiment after emperiment)! It will certainly open your mind to new possibilities and to new ideas of what the universe is (or at least, what it *isn't*).

After reading this, go get "Quantum Electro Dynamics", a colleciton of lectures by Richard P. Feynman, to continue your maddening journey through wacky, but true, insights into what's *really* going on and what this universe really is about. It really is a quantum leap forward in thinking. You'll just have to read it to believe it (possibly several times).

After that, search Amazon.com for information about faster than light transmission for even more mind blowing ideas that are becoming a reality.

If you thought science fiction was way out there, wait til you learn about science fact! Science truly is stranger than fiction.

Rating:
Summary: Einstein: Lorentz plus Gauss equals Relativity.
Review: Measuring-rods and clocks in a continuum of non-rigid reference-bodies. This is how Einstein explains his theories of relativity to those "who are not conversant with the mathematical apparatus of theoretical physics." No offense to Einstein, but others have published more readily comprehensible descriptions of relativity. Einstein's accounts are rather belabored compared to those of physicists like Brian Greene. However, if you have a basic appreciation of geometry, you will soon attain a foggy glimpse of Einstein's two great theories in this small volume. Read this book as a curiosity, to encounter Newton's intellectual heir, and his vision of the universe, in his own words.
As the author promises, the book is well organized, moving through Relativity's essential aspects in a systematic progression and examining the difficulties he had to overcome in its development. In his preface Einstein says, "despite the shortness of the book, a fair amount of patience and force of will on the part of the reader" will be demanded. If you are curious, strap on your thinking-cap and enjoy this read in Einstein's finite but perhaps unbounded universe.

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Summary: Great Book By Originator Of Theory, What Could Be Better?
Review: This book was written beautifly! I would reccomend this book to anyone interested in relativity. Now, this book is a lot easier to understand than many other books on this same subject, but this book is difficult and does require some patience and concentration. Einstein writes this with a voice that entices the reader. This book is an absolute must have for anyone even remotely curious about relativity.

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Summary: I would like to mention a fact....
Review: While reading the reviews I noticed something. The special case was considered well written, while the general theory was considered difficult to follow. There is a simple explanation to this, Leopold Infeld (protege of Einstein's) helped in the rewriting of the Special Case, his English was much more fluent than that of Einstein. Infeld was also a superb teacher, as such he had a fluency and a rhythm with words that is easy to follow. I highly recommend any of Einstein's writings but also caution you as to his readability... On the other hand Einstein recognized this and coauthored with Infeld, (or rewrote with him previous writings), as such I highly recommend that you get those books coauthored or written by Leopold Infeld.

Rating:
Summary: Informative and Accessible
Review: Albert Einstein is the eidos of the Smart Guy. I chose to read Robert W. Lawson's authorized translation of Einstein's popular exposition of the topic of Relativity because I didn't think I knew anything about it. Well, that isn't true. That was why I chose to buy it; I have a whole special collection of uncracked literature in my library relating to my personal ignorance. I chose to read it because of both the above stated reason and because it was small enough to tote with me on the train to and from work. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Although I got a big fat B in my undergraduate physics course, all I understood about Relativity was 1) it has something to do with Energy being equal to the product of Mass and the speed of light squared, and 2) there is something wrong with Newtonian mechanics when one is trying to explain the orbit of Mercury. Relativity turns out to be a good chunk more interesting than that. By spelling it out using simple examples like trains, Euclidian geometry and math no fancier than algebra, Einstein seemed to make a pretty good case for the over-simplicity of the good old laws of inertia and momentum. Sure, my clock is at rest with respect to me and will remain so until something moves it, but observed from a distant star, it is accelerating through four-dimensional space-time quite rapidly. Moreover, the perception of my clock (and time) from that remote reference point is influenced by the finite yet constant speed of light. That guy was really thinking.

In summation, spending 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening with this book made me feel like I had the gist of Relativity. Now back to my stack of ignorance.

Rating:
Summary: The special was special; the general, generally lacking
Review: Einstein's explanation of special relativity left me feeling warm and fuzzy, but when he moved on to the general theory, things took a turn for the worse. I'll be the first to admit that a failure of information flow from Einstein to me is most likely a problem on the receiving end. However, in this case, Einstein completely left out important parts of the theory. It was as if he tried to explain a bicycle by describing the front wheel. Perhaps he felt that explaining the whole bicycle without leveraging concepts from elsewhere in physics and math was not possible. That may be true, but it doesn't change the fact that reading this book isn't going to give you a very clear understanding of the general theory of relativity.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent source for those interested in Einstein's theory
Review: This book is great for those who are interested in the Theory of Relativity without getting involved too much in the mathamatical aspect. It is written very well, and shows that Einstein was capable of writing a piece that is easy for just about anyone to understand.

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Summary: Definitely brilliant !
Review: Who's the best person to write a book on relativity if not Prof. Einstein himself ?
If you do not have a physics background don't be ashamed ! Professor Einstein presents a presumably difficult theory in a very clear and manageable way. Of course, there is a lack of formality but that is indeed the point. A person with any technical background can enjoy its reading and believe me, understand it as a whole. In particular, the reader can get a gist on the General Theory of Relativity without the sophisticated mathematical apparatus needed. I should venture to say that everyone on earth should read this book !

Rating:
Summary: A concise book that captures the essence
Review: I own this book and have read it a few times and each time I am impressed by the clarity with which it is written. It explains the concepts of relativity in words only. It avoids (technical) calculations and formulas, not for the usual 'commercial' reasons, but because the author shows he can do without. And ask yourself: how many authors are capable of doing that?

The strength of the book is its conciseness: the author forces you to think things through, before moving on to the next chapter. I think this little book is great to own next to a more advanced textbook because it really adds value, for a small price.

Buy this book for its content only: it contains no fancy graphics or other 'eye catchers'. Because the author (obviously) knows what he is talking about, he was able to keep the book thin without making compromises. Again an achievement.

Rating:
Summary: The Master never fails
Review: This book is probably the best place to start in understanding the theory that revolutionized science. It is lucid enough for practically anyone to understand. I should know, I'm still in junior high school and I understand it. Einstein conveyed the nature of his own genius into a prose that clearly explained nearly all there is to know on the basis of modern physics. The Cosmological Supplement was, in my opinion, the most interesting part. Natural science is an amazing branch of knowledge and some even say that physics is defined as the only true science. I reccommend this book to all readers who are interested in Einstein's work and even those who don't have a clue. It is all just basic science.