Long Hard Journey: The Story of Relativity

Book excerpt: Long Hard Journey begins in ancient Greece where science originated 2000 years ago. From the advances made in physics since the days of philosopher/scientists like Pythagoras and Aristotle, key breakthroughs are laid out—these shed a very bright light on the postulates and laws of Einstein”s theory of relativity. The scientific psyche is on display too, with the reader seeing the biting vindictiveness of a Sir Isaac Newton, the despair of the “reluctant revolutionary” Max Planck, and the utter astonishment of men like James Clerk Maxwell and Ernest Rutherford. Physics is thus shown to be high drama instead of the tedious march toward the truth that it is oft perceived to be. Grab this delightful little primer if you’ve never quite gotten the gist of relativity before. Take it home and partake of the drama.