Einstein For Dummies (For Dummies (Math & Science)) |  | Author: Carlos I. Calle
Publisher: For Dummies
List Price: $19.99
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Rating:  13 reviews
Sales Rank: 106723
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Pages: 384
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 7.3 x 0.9
ISBN: 0764583484
Dewey Decimal Number: 530.092
EAN: 9780764583483
ASIN: 0764583484
Publication Date: June 10, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Genius demystified, the Dummies way!
In 1905, Albert Einstein revolutionized modern physics with his theory of relativity. He went on to become a twentieth-century icon-a man whose name and face are synonymous with "genius." Now, at last, ordinary readers can explore Einstein's life and work in this new For Dummies guide. Physicist Carlos Calle chronicles Einstein's career and explains his work-including the theories of special and general relativity-in language that anyone can understand. He shows how Einstein's discoveries affected everything from the development of the atom bomb to the theory of quantum mechanics. He sheds light on Einstein's personal life and beliefs, including his views on religion and politics. And he shows how Einstein's work continues to affect our world today, from nuclear power to space travel to artificial intelligence.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 13
 Well written, Hard to put down September 27, 2009
Thomas C. Cayton (San Francisco, CA)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Dr. Calle demonstrates an exceptional ability to translate complex information into simplified English. In addition, the book focuses on sharing information that constantly intrigues the reader. I looked forward to coming back to this book from front to back cover. This is a great book if you are new to relativity and quantum physics, or a good refresher for those of us who have been away from this topic for some time.
I did not expect to see mathamatical equations in the book based on the title. The material was presented such that math was not needed and most likely would have been distracting at this introductory level. Another excellent book and very similar in both content and illustrations is "Relativity and its Roots", by Banesh Hoffmann, copyright 1983. One other book worth reading at a slightly more complex level is Einstein's own book "Relativity, the Special and the General Theory", 1916. Both of these books have some basic math and further help describe this most interesting subject.
I wish I read these books before I obtained my degree in Chemistry, I would have picked physics as my major.
Excellent Intro to Einstein & his theories August 18, 2009
Richard Eltzroth (Cotopaxi, Colorado United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Having had a course in Special Relativity in college, I had some idea what this was going to be about. But it was a pleasant surprise to find that it was much more and better than I expected. I'm not much of a fan of the "Dummies" books since they're often too "dumbed down" to be of much use. But this one was just right.
Here is a book that about anyone truly interested in science or astronomy can understand and enjoy. The author, with his NASA background, is quite up-to-date and knowledgeable about modern physics. He is easy to follow and explains the history of physics and Einstein very well. Giving the life story of Einstein, showing his successes as well as his shortcomings, makes the story even more interesting. Einstein's take on religion is also good.
There are no math equations (it might have been interesting to see at least some in an appendix maybe), but there are good examples and drawings to help explain the various theories.
Don't be put off by the book's title; this is a good read.
 Einstein for dummies June 24, 2009
Richard Maloon
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
Not the best of books . Needs more math. Not much more useful than many other books.
A dummy no more! February 3, 2009
5th Grade Teacher (California)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I found this book to be simple to read and thoroughly enjoyable. I have always been fascinated by Einstein's Theory, and then I found this book. It is enlightening and fascinating. The concept is difficult to wrap your head around, but after reading this book, you will be able to explain it to your friends with ease. I have also read The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene, which is also excellent, just full a lot of technical science teminology, which bogs it down.
Very good for beginners December 18, 2008
B. Style
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Very little appreciation for formal math or physics is needed to enjoy this book. Someone with a reasonably analytic outlook could pick up this book and gain a fair amount of insight. Anyone who already has even a basic understanding of relativity should probably skip this book. The key points covered are that in special relativity, space-time is a continuum where the only constant is the speed of light -- different observers in different inertial frameworks will see the same events unfold at different rates. In general relativity, the big insight is that the effect of gravitational attraction is equivalent to acceleration and it is impossible to distinguish between the two. General relativity explains this effect as mass/energy causing space-time to curve in a way that causes an observer to cover distance at an increasing rate while approaching a concentration of mass/energy -- i.e. someone standing on the earth opposing the pull of gravity is equivalently experiencing acceleration. The book also contains a fair amount of biographical information on Einstein, and also does a broad/shallow survey of the "rest" of physics and briefly touches on the role of relativity there.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 13
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