Special Relativity: For the Enthusiastic Beginner

by David J. Morin

This book is written for high school and college students learning about special relativity for the first time. It will appeal to the reader who has a healthy level of enthusiasm for understanding how and why the various results of special relativity come about. All of the standard introductory topics in special relativity are historical motivation, loss of simultaneity, time dilation, length contraction, velocity addition, Lorentz transformations, Minkowski diagrams, causality, Doppler effect, energy/momentum, collisions/decays, force, and 4-vectors. Additionally, the last chapter provides a brief introduction to the basic ideas of general relativity, including the equivalence principle, gravitational time dilation, and accelerating reference frames. The book features more than 100 worked-out problems in the form of examples in the text and solved problems at the end of each chapter. These problems, along with the discussions in the text, will be a valuable resource in any course on special relativity. The numerous examples also make this book ideal for self-study. Very little physics background is assumed (essentially none in the first half of the book). An intriguing aspect of special relativity is that it is challenging due to its inherent strangeness, as opposed to a heavy set of physics prerequisites. Likewise for the math calculus is used on a few occasions, but it is not essential to the overall flow of the book.

Genres: Physics, Science

269 pages, Paperback

Published January 20, 2017

Reviews

[Mwalenski · Rating 5 out of 5]

While the book requires more than a casual read to really appreciate the nuances, even on a casual read this was the clearest explanation of special relativity I've ever seen. In addition to the text, there are lots of problems/exercises to work through (many with solutions provided).

Truly mind-blowing.

[Francesca Fernandes · Rating 5 out of 5]

YES. I LOVE THIS MAN.

[Lola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. Would've loved it to have a bit more of mathematical background, mostly in the general relativity chapter but i understand that's not the main point of the book.