Table of Contents

ALBERT EINSTEIN REFERENCE ARCHIVE

RELATIVITY: THE SPECIAL AND GENERAL THEORY

CONTENTS

Part I: The Special Theory of Relativity

Part II: The General Theory of Relativity

Part III: Considerations on the Universe as a Whole

PREFACE

PART I

THE SPECIAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY

PHYSICAL MEANING OF GEOMETRICAL PROPOSITIONS

THE SYSTEM OF CO-ORDINATES

SPACE AND TIME IN CLASSICAL MECHANICS

THE GALILEIAN SYSTEM OF CO-ORDINATES

THE PRINCIPLE OF RELATIVITY (IN THE RESTRICTED SENSE)

THE THEOREM OF THE ADDITION OF VELOCITIES EMPLOYED IN CLASSICAL MECHANICS

THE APPARENT INCOMPATIBILITY OF THE LAW OF PROPAGATION OF LIGHT WITH THE PRINCIPLE OF RELATIVITY

ON THE IDEA OF TIME IN PHYSICS

THE RELATIVITY OF SIMULATNEITY

ON THE RELATIVITY OF THE CONCEPTION OF DISTANCE

THE LORENTZ TRANSFORMATION

THE BEHAVIOUR OF MEASURING-RODS AND CLOCKS IN MOTION

THEOREM OF THE ADDITION OF VELOCITIES. THE EXPERIMENT OF FIZEAU

THE HEURISTIC VALUE OF THE THEORY OF RELATIVITY

GENERAL RESULTS OF THE THEORY

EXPERIENCE AND THE SPECIAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY

MINKOWSKI'S FOUR-DIMENSIONAL SPACE

PART II

THE GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY

SPECIAL AND GENERAL PRINCIPLE OF RELATIVITY

THE GRAVITATIONAL FIELD

THE EQUALITY OF INERTIAL AND GRAVITATIONAL MASS AS AN ARGUMENT FOR THE GENERAL POSTULE OF RELATIVITY

IN WHAT RESPECTS ARE THE FOUNDATIONS OF CLASSICAL MECHANICS AND OF THE SPECIAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY UNSATISFACTORY?

A FEW INFERENCES FROM THE GENERAL PRINCIPLE OF RELATIVITY

BEHAVIOUR OF CLOCKS AND MEASURING-RODS ON A ROTATING BODY OF REFERENCE

EUCLIDEAN AND NON-EUCLIDEAN CONTINUUM

GAUSSIAN CO-ORDINATES

THE SPACE-TIME CONTINUUM OF THE SPEICAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY CONSIDERED AS A EUCLIDEAN CONTINUUM

THE SPACE-TIME CONTINUUM OF THE GENERAL THEORY OF REALTIIVTY IS NOT A ECULIDEAN CONTINUUM

EXACT FORMULATION OF THE GENERAL PRINCIPLE OF RELATIVITY

THE SOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM OF GRAVITATION ON THE BASIS OF THE GENERAL PRINCIPLE OF RELATIVITY

PART III

CONSIDERATIONS ON THE UNIVERSE AS A WHOLE

COSMOLOGICAL DIFFICULTIES OF NEWTON'S THEORY

Part from the difficulty discussed in Section 21, there is a second fundamental difficulty attending classical celestial mechanics, which, to the best of my knowledge, was first discussed in detail by the astronomer Seeliger. If we ponder over the question as to how the universe, considered as a whole, is to be regarded, the first answer that suggests itself to us is surely this: As regards space (and time) the universe is infinite. There are stars everywhere, so that the density of matter, although very variable in detail, is nevertheless on the average everywhere the same. In other words: However far we might travel through space, we should find everywhere an attenuated swarm of fixed stars of approrimately the same kind and density.

THE POSSIBILITY OF A "FINITE" AND YET "UNBOUNDED" UNIVERSE

THE STRUCTURE OF SPACE ACCORDING TO THE GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY

APPENDIX I

SIMPLE DERIVATION OF THE LORENTZ TRANSFORMATION (SUPPLEMENTARY TO SECTION 11)

APPENDIX II

MINKOWSKI'S FOUR-DIMENSIONAL SPACE ("WORLD") (SUPPLEMENTARY TO SECTION 17)

APPENDIX III

THE EXPERIMENTAL CONFIRMATION OF THE GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY

APPENDIX IV

THE STRUCTURE OF SPACE ACCORDING TO THE GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY (SUPPLEMENTARY TO SECTION 32)

SIDELIGHTS ON RELATIVITY

Contents

ETHER AND THE THEORY OF RELATIVITY

GEOMETRY AND EXPERIENCE

ETHER AND THE THEORY OF RELATIVITY

An Address delivered on May 5th, 1920, in the University of Leyden

GEOMETRY AND EXPERIENCE

An expanded form of an Address to the Prussian Academy of Sciences in Berlin on January 27th, 1921.

ALBERT EINSTEIN REFERENCE ARCHIVE

RELATIVITY: THE SPECIAL AND GENERAL THEORY

BY ALBERT EINSTEIN

Written: 1916 (this revised edition: 1924)

CONTENTS

Preface

Part I: The Special Theory of Relativity

01. Physical Meaning of Geometrical Propositions 02. The System of Co-ordinates 03. Space and Time in Classical Mechanics 04. The Galileian System of Co-ordinates 05. The Principle of Relativity (in the Restricted Sense) 06. The Theorem of the Addition of Velocities employed in Classical Mechanics 07. The Apparent Incompatability of the Law of Propagation of Light with the Principle of Relativity 08. On the Idea of Time in Physics 09. The Relativity of Simultaneity 10. On the Relativity of the Conception of Distance 11. The Lorentz Transformation 12. The Behaviour of Measuring-Rods and Clocks in Motion 13. Theorem of the Addition of Velocities. The Experiment of Fizeau 14. The Hueristic Value of the Theory of Relativity 15. General Results of the Theory 16. Expereince and the Special Theory of Relativity 17. Minkowski's Four-dimensial Space

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!

Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!