This book is not only an accurate history of the physical relativity principles of motion during the last three hundred years, it is also an important book about the cognitive relativity of scientists' understanding of issues that once were challenging but which present day physicists consider commonsense.

Jan Faye, Metascience

Students and professionals will benefit from access to this unique work by an accomplished researcher.

A Spero, CHOICE

As an exercise in long-term history, it demonstrates the connectivity of issues and approaches across several centuries, despite enormous changes in context and culture. As an account of the genesis of relativity theories, it brings unprecedented clarity and fullness by broadening the spectrum of resources on which the principal actors drew.

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This book is not only an accurate history of the physical relativity principles of motion during the last three hundred years, it is also an important book about the cognitive relativity of scientists' understanding of issues that once were challenging but which present-day physicists consider commonsense.

Jan Faye, University of Copenhagen, Metascience

Truly excellent and fills an important gap in the research landscape on relativity.

Juergen Renn, Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin

Well thought out and could become the definitive work that connects the developments pertinent to relativity from the 17th century to the present.

John D. Norton, University of Pittsburgh

This first rate work pulls together many historical scientific strands, and is certain to initiate a lively discussion.

Diana Kormos-Buchwald, Caltech

Motion is always relative to some thing. Is this thing a concrete body like the earth, is it an abstract space, or is it an imagined frame? Do the laws of physics depend on the choice of reference? It there a choice for which the laws are simplest? Is this choice unique? Is there a physical cause for the choice made? These questions traverse the history of modern physics from Galileo to Einstein. The answers involved Galilean relativity, Newton's absolute space, the purely relational concepts of Descartes, Leibniz, and Mach, and many forgotten uses of relativity principles in mechanics, optics, and electrodynamics - until the relativity theories of Poincaré, Einstein, Minkowksi, and Laue radically redefined space and time to satisfy universal kinds of relativity. Accordingly, this book retraces the emergence of relativity principles in early modern mechanics, documents their constructive use in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century mechanics, optics, and electrodynamics, and gives a well-rooted account of the genesis of special and general relativity in the early twentieth century. As an exercise in long-term history, it demonstrates the connectivity of issues and approaches across several centuries, despite enormous changes in context and culture. As an account of the genesis of relativity theories, it brings unprecedented clarity and fullness by broadening the spectrum of resources on which the principal actors drew.
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This book is a full, long-term history of relativity thinking in physics, from Galileo's early reflections on the proper reference of mechanical motion to Einstein's exploitation of relativity principles in his theories of special and general relativity.
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1: Rethinking motion in the seventeenth century 2: Deriving Newton's second law from relativity principles 3: The space-time-inertia tangle 4: The optics of moving bodies 5: The electrodynamics of moving bodies 6: Poincaré's relativity theory 7: The relativity theory of Einstein, Minkowski, and Laue 8: From Riemann to Ricci 9: Mostly Einstein: To general relativity 10: Mesh and measure in early general relativity 11: Epilogue
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Olivier Darrigol studied physics at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, the history and philosophy of physics at the Sorbonne and at UC-Berkeley's Office for History of Science and Technology (OHST). He is the author of several books on the history of quantum physics, electrodynamics, hydrodynamics, and optics. He is currently a member of the SPHere research team at CNRS/Paris 7, and a Research Associate at UC-Berkeley's OHST.
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Provides a deeper understanding of the origins of relativity theories through the experience of the author and their connections Displays the importance and continuity of philosophical and mathematical resources, and the increasing role of experiments in relativity thinking Includes clear summaries of the main results at the end of each chapter and in the epilogue, with non-technical summaries for the more technical chapters
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Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780192849533
Publisert
2021
Utgiver
Vendor
Oxford University Press
Vekt
1046 gr
Høyde
246 mm
Bredde
175 mm
Dybde
27 mm
Aldersnivå
P, 06
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet
Antall sider
496

Forfatter

Om bidragsyterne

Olivier Darrigol studied physics at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, the history and philosophy of physics at the Sorbonne and at UC-Berkeley's Office for History of Science and Technology (OHST). He is the author of several books on the history of quantum physics, electrodynamics, hydrodynamics, and optics. He is currently a member of the SPHere research team at CNRS/Paris 7, and a Research Associate at UC-Berkeley's OHST.