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Relativity, wide-ranging physical theories formed by the German-born physicist Albert Einstein. Special relativity is limited to objects that are moving with respect to inertial frames of reference. General relativity is concerned with gravity, one of the fundamental forces in the universe.
For 100 years, the general theory of relativity has been a pillar of modern physics. The basic idea is so elegant that you don’t need superpowers to understand it. Begin with Isaac Newton’s first law of motion: An object remains in uniform motion unless acted on by a force.
Special relativity also produced the most famous equation ever written: E = mc2. It says that the energy ( E) associated with an object – an atom, a person or a whole galaxy – is equal to its total mass ( m) multiplied by the square of the speed of light (c). As the speed of light is about 300,000 km s -1, this means there is a whole lot of ...
Jun 9, 2021 · Proposed in 1916, Einstein’s general theory of relativity explained that gravity was a special force that existed because of the curvature of space-time itself. Space-time, according to this theory, is not flat. Thus, orbiting bodies travel in geodesics—the shortest distance between two points. This is the nearest thing to a straight line.
The general theory of relativity (or general relativity for short) is a major building block of modern physics. It explains gravity based on the way space can 'curve', or, to put it more accurately, it associates the force of gravity with the changing geometry of space-time. History of general relativityAlbert Einstein settled on his 'general
Einstein's special theory of relativity states that the same laws of physics hold true in all inertial reference frames and that the speed of light is the same for all observers, even those moving with respect to one another. In this video segment, adapted from NOVA, one of Einstein's thought experiments is re-created to reinforce one consequence of special relativity: that events that are ...
Introduction to Relativity. Relativity is a theorem formulated by Albert Einstein, which states that space and time are relative, and all motion must be relative to a frame of reference. It is a notion that states’ laws of physics are the same everywhere. This theory is simple but hard to understand. It states: There is no absolute reference ...
