“Einstein’s theory of relativity reminds me of the peasant who asks the engineer how his steam engine works. The engineer explains how the steam goes through the engine, driving the piston up and down and turning the wheels, then the peasant says, ‘Yes, I understand all that, but where’s the horse?’ ” Victor Weisskopf
Since its publication in 1916, Relativity has captured the public’s imagination like no other theory in science. But the real joy of physics comes from understanding, and yet you could read any of the popular explanations written by physicists in the past 100 years and the likelihood is you will not understand.
Einstein’s Beetle is different.
Disguised as a fun and intriguing adventure story, this unique book bridges the gap to the physicist in a way that has never before been achieved to provide the lay reader and young student with an exceptional understanding of the physics. It succeeds because the best person to explain something to a peasant is another peasant who understands.
With an expertise acquired over 25 years from a small library of popular science books, Mark Southworth knows the hurdles you must clear to get to grips with the physics because he’s tripped over every one. He knows the stupid and not-so-stupid questions you want to ask because he’s asked them all. Most importantly, he knows the approach that is needed to fully explain this incredible story and share with you the joy of understanding.
The Fiction
Blackmailed into attending science camp on the family holiday to Arizona, 14-year-old Danny Robinson chooses Bert’s Universal Tour and Expedition only to find he’s the sole student stuck with a crumpled old teacher pretending to be Albert Einstein in a battered old VW Beetle pretending to be a time machine and spaceship.
As the Beetle rockets through space at the Grand Canyon, in a series of madcap experiments and accidents, Bert and Danny rediscover our understanding of Newtonian mechanics through time. But when he experiences a journey through 4-dimensional spacetime, Danny uncovers a mystery surrounding Bert and his Beetle that Newton’s laws cannot explain.
Just who is Bert? What is the true reason for his expedition? And can Einstein’s Special and General theories of relativity make sense of the unbelievable nonsense of it all? With the growing realisation that reality is not as it appears, Danny must find answers to some of the deepest questions of all time.
Newton’s Laws of Motion and Universal Law of Gravitation
Why don’t you land further back down the aisle when you jump straight up on a moving bus? And why is there an equal and opposite reaction to every action? If you are studying GCSE physics or general science, Part I of Einstein’s Beetle imparts a deep understanding of Newton’s laws based on the principle of relative motion, not mathematics. This principle is the source from which the mechanics of all motion flows, so for example, by the time you read that to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, you already completely understand why there has to be.
Einstein’s Special and General theories of relativity and E = mc²
The nature of the spacetime continuum and why nothing can travel faster than the speed of light are questions that fascinate people regardless of age. Building on your new understanding of the principle of relativity it becomes clear in Part II why Einstein extended the principle to our measurements of space and time, energy and mass, and ultimately to a new explanation of gravity.
Whether you are a student of physics or simply interested in understanding one of the greatest achievements in the history of thought, Einstein’s Beetle will not leave you looking for the horse.
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