The ABC of Relativity

Presents several psychologically challenging implications of the theory of relativity. I most enjoyed the discussion on the distinctions between various sciences, especially the relationship between geometry and physics. The main downside for me was the increasingly confusing gap between the jargon and the mathematics the jargon is intended to represent. Probably unavoidable, but I fell behind on the discussion toward the end.

In this book, first published in 1925 (although the edition I have was revised in 1959), Bertrand Russell attempts to explicate both special and general relativity. With the exception of a couple of very short sections that he advises non-mathematical readers to skip, he uses little or no math. This means that reading this book will not, in fact, allow you to completely understand relativity, as you pretty much need a good grasp of the math for that. But he does give a decent accounting of the reasons, both experimental and theoretical, why we believe these theories to be sound ones, explains the important ideas involved, and gives the reader a sense of the often strange and counter-intuitive implications that result from them. The show more style is perhaps a little old-fashioned by today's standards, and the subject matter a bit difficult -- I majored in physics in college, and I don't even pretend to fully understand all of it -- but Russell uses a lot of examples and analogies that are helpful. In the last few chapters (and, to a certain extent throughout the book), he also delves into some philosophical and epistemological territory, which gets a little abstruse, even by the standards of a book on relativity. I'm not entirely sure what to make of some of that, but I did find all of it interesting.

I'm not sure I'd recommend this as a first introduction to the subject; there are doubtless more recent books that do a better job of that. But for those who know just a little bit about relativity, are still trying to get a handle on what it all means in terms of our conception of space and time, and are interested in reading a few deep thoughts, I'd say it's still worth a look. show less

First published in 1925. Russell uses little or no math. I can't say that I completely understood relativity, even though I had a good grasp of the maths for that. The style is old-fashioned ¨clarté¨ but the subject matter is a bit difficult. I majored in Indstrial Design in college, and I don't even pretend to fully understand it . BR also delves into some philosophical and epistemological territory, which gets a little abstruse. I'm entirely sure what I couldn't make of the whole of that, but I did struggle by...

This was the right book at the right time for me, and reading it in my teens triggered my own interest in physics and cosmology. A great layman's starter on some of the most important ideas of our time.

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Ga dit boek niet in de bibliotheek halen: koop het zelf zodat je erin kunt krabbelen en onderlijnen... Lees het met een frisse kop. Zet je gsm af. Bertrand Russell, filosoof, wiskundige, bevriend met Albert Einstein, had de gave om moeilijke onderwerpen op een menselijke manier uit te leggen. Niettemin. Bij aandachtig lezen groeit er geleidelijk een schijn van een glimp van een vermoeden wat Bertrand's vriend éigenlijk met die relativiteit bedoelde.

"Tutti sanno che Einstein ha fatto qualcosa di sorprendente, ma pochi sanno che cosa abbia fatto esattamente." In questo classico della divulgazione scientifica, Russell ci rende comprensibili le teorie della relatività ristretta e generale e ci spiega con chiarezza e con un linguaggio privo di difficoltà terminologiche le loro applicazioni in innumerevoli campi.