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Einstein's Mirror
Einstein's Mirror is a book on relativity with a difference. Following the successful format of their earlier book, The Quantum Universe, the authors blend a simple, non-mathematical account of the underlying theory of special relativity and gravitation with a description of the way these theories have been triumphantly supported by experiment. Applications of relativity in atomic and nuclear physics are wide-ranging, from satellite navigation systems, particle accelerators and nuclear power to quantum chemistry, anti-matter and black holes. The text is enlivened by a superb collection of photographs and by amusing anecdotes about the early pioneers. The closing chapter examines the influence of Einstein's relativity on the development of science fiction. Final year students at school, general readers with an interest in science, and undergraduates in science subjects will all enjoy and benefit from this fascinating and accessible introduction to one of the most profound scientific discoveries of the twentieth century.
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 31, 1997
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 23, 2008
This is a fun one to really stretch your mind and the way you view the universe.
June 21, 2023
Surprisingly solid and entertaining. My relation with this book is quite funny. It all started in my sister's primary school. She got it as an award for extraordinary results at the end of a school year. It was back in 2006... Then, 'Einstein's Mirror' spent 17 years on the bookshelf in her room. Finally, when I was visiting my parent's house, I found it - a dusty, niche prose about Einstein's relativity theories just laying there and waiting for me... I had to read it!
First of all, you can experience the passage time when reading the book. It was originally published in 1997. The pace is slow and predictable. Diagrams and other visualisation tools are used rarely (and even then they are not really helpful and are pretty hard to grasp...) There were moments where I enjoyed it (especially in the historical digressions / introductions, which by the way were awesome) but unfortunately more often I felt overwhelmed. I had to read a paragrapah a couple of times to comprehend the message (or just use google...).
Second of all, physics is hard. I was able to understand the main foundations of relativity theories (of course, more or less I knew it before) and their consequences. The biggest issue for me was to grasp a chain of events and discoveries that ultimately led to Einstein's theories. It required a wide knowledge spread across different science fields. In my opinion, the book itself hasn't provided enough information and explanations for those stuff.
Probably, there are many items in the market that provide better content about Einstein and his amazing theories. I would still give a credit to the 'Einstein's Mirror' though. It's stale a little. It doesn't fit into modern style of writing books. It's inefficient sometimes and requires additional knowledge. But, in the end, it does what it's supposed to do - describes relativity theories pretty well :)
First of all, you can experience the passage time when reading the book. It was originally published in 1997. The pace is slow and predictable. Diagrams and other visualisation tools are used rarely (and even then they are not really helpful and are pretty hard to grasp...) There were moments where I enjoyed it (especially in the historical digressions / introductions, which by the way were awesome) but unfortunately more often I felt overwhelmed. I had to read a paragrapah a couple of times to comprehend the message (or just use google...).
Second of all, physics is hard. I was able to understand the main foundations of relativity theories (of course, more or less I knew it before) and their consequences. The biggest issue for me was to grasp a chain of events and discoveries that ultimately led to Einstein's theories. It required a wide knowledge spread across different science fields. In my opinion, the book itself hasn't provided enough information and explanations for those stuff.
Probably, there are many items in the market that provide better content about Einstein and his amazing theories. I would still give a credit to the 'Einstein's Mirror' though. It's stale a little. It doesn't fit into modern style of writing books. It's inefficient sometimes and requires additional knowledge. But, in the end, it does what it's supposed to do - describes relativity theories pretty well :)
September 30, 2023
What? Einstein with minimum math?
The author of “The Quantum Universe” does it again with this almost pop science for its time (copyright 1997) overview of:
1) A Revolution in Time
2) The nature of light
3) Light and Time
4) The ultimate speed
5) E=mc2
6) Matter and anti-matter
7) Little Boy and Fat Man: relatively in action
8) Down to earth
9) Warped space
10) The Big Bang, black holes, and unified fields
11) Afterward: Relativity and science fiction
Each chapter a general overview of the subject with pictures, diagrams, margin notes, and more.
This book makes a great starting place in understanding “The Quantum Universe.
The author of “The Quantum Universe” does it again with this almost pop science for its time (copyright 1997) overview of:
1) A Revolution in Time
2) The nature of light
3) Light and Time
4) The ultimate speed
5) E=mc2
6) Matter and anti-matter
7) Little Boy and Fat Man: relatively in action
8) Down to earth
9) Warped space
10) The Big Bang, black holes, and unified fields
11) Afterward: Relativity and science fiction
Each chapter a general overview of the subject with pictures, diagrams, margin notes, and more.
This book makes a great starting place in understanding “The Quantum Universe.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews