Space, Time and Einstein: An IntroductionMcGill-Queen's Press - MQUP, 24.02.2003 - 255 Seiten An enlightening introduction to the philosophy of time and space. J.B. Kennedy offers an introduction to one of the liveliest and most popular fields in philosophy - time and space - aimed specifically at a beginning readership with no background in philosophy or science. He goes to the philosophical heart of the issues without recourse to jargon, mathematics, or logical formulas and introduces Einstein's revolutionary ideas in a clear and simple way, as well as concepts and arguments of other relevant philosophers, both ancient and modern. Current debates in philosophy and physics are also handled with exemplary clarity and Kennedy is able to provide readers with a real sense of where we have come from and where we are going. The writing is engaging, lively, and entertaining and serves to introduce the subject to beginning students as well as providing a clear statement of the "state of the debate" for a popular science readership. Kennedy covers such topics as Einstein's special and general relativity, how to build an atom bomb, the four-dimensional universe, the possibility of time travel, the impossibility of motion, whether space curves, the big bang, black holes, and the idea of inflationary and accelerating universes. |
Inhalt
Philosophical progress | 75 |
Frontiers | 175 |
Spacetime diagrams | 207 |
Symmetry and Lorentzs minority interpretation | 222 |
Simple formulas for special relativity | 225 |
Websites | 227 |
Guide to further reading | 229 |
239 | |
Andere Ausgaben - Alle anzeigen
Space, Time, and Einstein: An Introduction Kennedy,John Bernard Kennedy Eingeschränkte Leseprobe - 2003 |
Häufige Begriffe und Wortgruppen
A-series absolute space acceleration angles argument Aristotle asserts astronomers atomists atoms Big Bang black holes block universe bucket bucket argument cause the concavity coexist concept contradiction curved space debate depend dilation distances and durations Earth Einstein Einstein's theory energy Euclid's event ontology existence experiments explain explosion faster than light four-dimensional future galaxies garage geometry gravity idea incongruent infinite infinity kilometres Leibniz length contraction Lorentz mainstream interpretation mass mathematicians mathematics McTaggart measurements metaphysics minority interpretation motion moving inertially Newton objects observations particles past philosophers philosophy of space physicists physics plane of simultaneity predictions premise problem of change quantum theory reality relativity of simultaneity relativity theory rubber sheet rulers and clocks sense set of rulers simply slices spaceship spacetime interval spatial special relativity special theory speed of light stars straight lines substances Suppose symmetry theory of relativity things travel faster University Press worldline Zeno Zeno's paradoxes