Related papers: Relativity
General lectures on quantum gravity.
A century after its formulation by Einstein, it is time to incorporate special relativity early in the physics curriculum. The approach advocated here employs a simple algebraic extension of vector formalism that generates Minkowski…
A century ago, Einstein formulated his elegant and elaborate theory of General Relativity, which has so far withstood a multitude of empirical tests with remarkable success. Notwithstanding the triumphs of Einstein's theory, the tenacious…
In this note, we discuss the significance of the general principle of relativity for a physical theory that abandons the newtonian concept of force and, hence, uses an entirely different conception for the ``cause'' behind motions of…
This is an introduction into the problem of how to set up black hole initial-data for the matter-free field equations of General Relativity. The approach is semi-pedagogical and addresses a more general audience of astrophysicists and…
This brief review is intended to introduce gravitational physicists to recent developments in which general relativity is being used to describe certain aspects of condensed matter systems, e.g., superconductivity.
General relativity is a set of physical and geometric principles, which lead to a set of (Einstein) field equations that determine the gravitational field, and to the geodesic equations that describe light propagation and the motion of…
The confrontation between Einstein's theory of gravitation and experiment is summarized. Although all current experimental data are compatible with general relativity, the importance of pursuing the quest for possible deviations from…
Many professional physicists do not fully understand the implications of the Einstein equivalence principle of general relativity. Consequently, many are unaware of the fact that special relativity is fully capable of handling accelerated…
I discuss the ontological assumptions and implications of General Relativity. I maintain that General Relativity is a theory about gravitational fields, not about space-time. The latter is a more basic ontological category, that emerges…
These lectures give an introduction to Gravitational Lensing. We discuss lensing by point masses, lensing by galaxies, and lensing by clusters and larger-scale structures in the Universe. The relevant theory is developed and applications to…
These lecture notes concern information-theoretic notions of entropy. They are intended for, and have been successfully taught to, undergraduate students interested inresearch careers. Besides basic notions of analysis related to…
We first see that the inertia of Newtonian mechanics is absolute and troublesome. General relativity can be viewed as Einstein's attempt to remedy, by making inertia relative, to matter---perhaps imperfectly though, as at least a couple of…
This is an introduction to quantum gravity, aimed at a fairly general audience and concentrating on what have historically two main approaches to quantum gravity: the covariant and canonical programs (string theory is not covered). The…
On his way to General Relativity (GR) Einstein gave several arguments as to why a special relativistic theory of gravity based on a massless scalar field could be ruled out merely on grounds of theoretical considerations. We re-investigate…
Using ideas from continuum mechanics we construct a theory of gravity. We show that this theory is equivalent to Einstein's theory of general relativity; it is also a much faster way of reaching general relativity than the conventional…
This lecture note covers Relativistic Kinematics, which is very useful for the beginners in the field of high-energy physics. A very practical approach has been taken, which answers "why and how" of the kinematics useful for students…
Gravity theories with non-minimally coupled scalar fields are used as characteristic examples in order to demonstrate the challenges, pitfalls and future perspectives of considering alternatives to general relativity. These lecture notes…
These are lectures on General Theory of Relativity that were given to students of the Mathematical Faculty of the Higher School of Economics in Moscow.
We consider the interaction of gravity, as expressed by Einstein's Equations of General Relativity, to other force fields. We describe some recent results, discussing both the mathematics, and the physical interpretations. These results…