Book ID: CBB024679698

The Formative Years of Relativity: The History and Meaning of Einstein's Princeton Lectures (2017)

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Gutfreund, Hanoch (Author)
Renn, Jürgen (Author)


Princeton University Press


Publication Date: 2017
Physical Details: 432 pages
Language: English

First published in 1922 and based on lectures delivered in May 1921, Albert Einstein’s The Meaning of Relativity offered an overview and explanation of the then new and controversial theory of relativity. The work would go on to become a monumental classic, printed in numerous editions and translations worldwide. Now, The Formative Years of Relativity introduces Einstein’s masterpiece to new audiences. This beautiful volume contains Einstein’s insightful text, accompanied by important historical materials and commentary looking at the origins and development of general relativity. Hanoch Gutfreund and Jürgen Renn provide fresh, original perspectives, placing Einstein’s achievements into a broader context for all readers.In this book, Gutfreund and Renn tell the rich story behind the early reception, spread, and consequences of Einstein’s ideas during the formative years of general relativity in the late 1910s and 1920s. They show that relativity’s meaning changed radically throughout the nascent years of its development, and they describe in detail the transformation of Einstein’s work from the esoteric pursuit of one individual communicating with a handful of colleagues into the preoccupation of a growing community of physicists, astronomers, mathematicians, and philosophers.This handsome edition quotes extensively from Einstein’s correspondence and reproduces historical documents such as newspaper articles and letters. Inserts are featured in the main text giving concise explanations of basic concepts, and short biographical notes and photographs of some of Einstein’s contemporaries are included. The first-ever English translations of two of Einstein’s popular Princeton lectures are featured at the book’s end.

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Reviewed By

Review David E. Rowe (2019) Review of "Einstein's Pathway to the Special Theory of Relativity". Isis: International Review Devoted to the History of Science and Its Cultural Influences (pp. 201-204). unapi

Review David E. Rowe (2019) Review of "Einstein's Pathway to the Special Theory of Relativity". Isis: International Review Devoted to the History of Science and Its Cultural Influences (pp. 201-204). unapi

Citation URI
https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB024679698/

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Authors & Contributors
Polak, Paweł
Sussman, Nathaniel F.
Barbero G., J. Fernando
Malloy, Vanja V.
Tavel, Morton
Pound, Robert V.
Concepts
Physics
Relativity, special
Relativity, general
Relativity
Philosophy of science
Mathematics
Time Periods
20th century, early
20th century
19th century
20th century, late
18th century
Places
Buenos Aires (Argentina)
Cracow (Poland)
Ukraine
United States
Poland
Europe
Institutions
Uniwersytet Lwowski (Lwów, Poland)
Harvard University
Universidad de Buenos Aires
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