Reading at the speed of light

            For this blog post, I will be reviewing the book Relativity: The Special and General Theory by none other than Albert Einstein. This is different from the previous books I have reviewed, as they have all been science fiction but fiction nevertheless. This is a nonfiction book detailing the special and general theory of relativity, the most accurate descriptions of the workings of space, time and gravitation that we have today. Developed by Einstein himself in the early twentieth century, the theories are summarized in this book translated from German by Robert W. Lawson. This book is enjoyable due to many reasons, one of which are its clear methodical approach which allows the reader to fully comprehend the content.

            Einstein uses a rigorous approach in this book, starting off with the basics of geometry and coordinate systems. He then introduces the principles of classical mechanics, including Galilean transformations between reference frames and the law of the addition of velocities. These are all basic physics principles that can quickly be understood. Einstein introduces two fundamental ideas behind his theory, the principle of relativity (in the restricted sense) and the law of propagation of light. The former says that if K is a reference frame and K' is another reference frame that undergoes uniform translation relative to K, then the laws of physics hold the same for K' as they do for K. The latter states that the speed of light in a vacuum is constant. Using these two principles, he arrives at an apparent contradiction in classical mechanics that paves the way for his theory (Einstein, 16-24). All the concepts in this book are thoroughly explained and defined, and Einstein leaves no stone unturned. The more technical topics like Lorentz transformations also have rigorous proofs in the appendix of the book. This makes the book more enjoyable as it is not a half-hearted explanation of the theory but one that is truly insightful and will be interesting for even the science haters.

            The methodical approach also serves the purpose of putting everyone on the same page, regardless of previous physics knowledge or background. For example, even if the reader had never heard of coordinate systems, the first chapters of the book explains the concepts in a clear way, utilizing real life examples like specifying the location Potsdamer Platz, Berlin (edited by the translator to Tralfagar Square, London) (Einstein, 7). Einstein also uses specific thought experiments to present his ideas in such a way that the reader will be able to use their imagination to picture the laws of physics in action. He especially uses the example of a train travelling at a constant rate across a stationary embankment to exemplify two reference frames, one of which is moving at a constant velocity with respect to the other. In the section about general relativity, he uses an example of a chest with a man inside that is floating in deep space and canmes, one of which is travelling at a constant velocity with respect to the other. Later on in his sect be externally accelerated by pulling on a rope to demonstrate the idea of the equivalence of inertial and gravitational mass. (Einstein, 75-78). These thought experiments and methodical approaches makes sure that anyone of any background can fully understand and enjoy this book.

            In conclusion, Relativity: The Special and General Theory is an extremely insightful and useful book about how the universe around us works. I recommend it to anyone interested in science and physics, but also to those who are not interested in the subject. I guarantee that they will change their mind after reading this book.

-Shreyas