Review
------
To get at the origins of E=mc2, the -child for
Einsteins's special theory of relativity, [Cox and Forshaw] must
delve into deep principles of science and wield a good deal of
mathematics. They do it well...They have blazed a clear trail
into forbidding territory, from the mathematical structure of
space-time all the way to atom bombs, astrophysics and the origin
of mass. --The New Scientist
"The authors do a great job of answering the question in the
book's title, and of tying it to the cutting edge of 21st century
physics. But they do much more besides. First, they give a real
sense of revelation as the
equation emerges from the seemingly
unrelated concepts of space and time. Second, they're not afraid
to take on questions often asked about the equation."
--BBC
Focus Magazine
Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw, two physicists, have managed to
produce an account of relativity physics accessible to a wide
range of various publics. If you're not a physicist (or not yet a
physicist) and you want to understand what Einstein and
relativity theory are all about, you would do well to read this
book. The writing is clear, sparkling in places, and totally
without vanity. Relativity theory, Einstein's supreme gift to us,
is at the heart of the way science currently looks at physical
reality, and anyone with an adventurous mind should be intrigued
by what two smart physicists say about it in plain language...
Read this book. It's your world, isn't it?
--The Huffington
Post
About the Author
----------------
Brian Cox is a professor of particle physics and Royal
Society University Research Fellow at the University of
Manchester. He divides his time between Manchester in the UK and
the CERN laboratory in Geneva, where he heads an international
project to upgrade the giant ATLAS and CMS detectors at the Large
Hadron Collider. He has received many awards for his work
promoting science, including being elected an International
Fellow of the Explorers Club in 2002, an organisation whose
members include Neil Armstrong and Chuck Yeager. He is also a
popular presenter on TV and radio, with credits which including a
six-part series on Einstein for BBC Radio 4, 3 BBC Horizon
programs on Gravity. Time and Nuclear Fusion, and a BBC4
documentary about the LHC at CERN, "The Big Bang Machine". He was
the Science Advisor on Danny Boyle's movie, the science-fiction
thriller Sunshine. Brian also has an unorthodox background in the
music business, having toured the world with various bands and
played keyboard with D:REAM, who had several UK Top 10 hits
including Things Can Only Get Better (re-released & used as Tony
Blair's election anthem back in 1997. Jeff Forshaw is professor
of theoretical physics at the University of Manchester,
specializing in the physics of elementary particles. He was
awarded the Institute of Physics Maxwell Medal in 1999 for
outstanding contributions to theoretical physics. He graduated
from Oxford University and gained a PhD from Manchester
University. From 1992-1995 he worked in Professor Frank Close's
group at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory before returning to
Manchester in 1995. Jeff is an enthusiastic lecturer and
currently teaches Einstein's Theory of Relativity to first year
undergraduates. He has co-writing an undergraduate textbook on
relativity for Wiley and he is the author of an advanced level
monograph on particle physics for Cambridge University Press.