I am in high school now and I want to get the basic idea of what relativity. Can anyone suggest me a book or website for it? I am also curious about the mathematics behind it. Is it possible for me to understand relativity in mathematical terms while still in high school? (Let's assume I know everything till Grade 12)
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1$\begingroup$ If you're looking for a gentle introduction, take a peek at amazon.com/Road-Reality-Complete-Guide-Universe/dp/0679776311/… It will not teach how to solve problems in General Relativity, but the first 500 or so pages will give you a bird's eye view of all of the math that you will need to learn in order to attempt solutions in GR. $\endgroup$– Solomon SlowCommented Apr 3, 2016 at 16:53
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2$\begingroup$ How comfortable are you with calculus? Relativity (both special and general) is most simply explained using differential geometry. This probably seems scary, but the amount of differential geometry you need to understand special relativity is very small and is pretty straightforward. But you need to be comfortable with doing integrations. $\endgroup$– John RennieCommented Apr 3, 2016 at 17:48
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$\begingroup$ Voting to re-open. I think this is not really a duplicate since the other question is just about general relativity, whereas this question just asks about "relativity" which could cover either form, with special relativity probably being a better starting point for someone who hasn't studied either and is just at the end of high school. $\endgroup$– HypnosiflCommented Apr 4, 2016 at 1:58
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$\begingroup$ @jameslarge Gentle introduction? No, I don't think so at all. Wonderful text for the post graduate, graduate student, or professor, but is not even specifically about relativity. I would not recommend that to a someone in high school, at all. $\endgroup$– anon01Commented Apr 4, 2016 at 2:12
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$\begingroup$ When I was in high school in the 70's I really enjoyed Space and Time in Special Relativity by N. David Mermin. But 1968 is getting to be a long time ago, though. I notice on his web site lassp.cornell.edu/mermin he has an interesting link to a talk on what he "has learned since then" about teaching it. $\endgroup$– user55515Commented Apr 4, 2016 at 2:54
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2 Answers
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For online sources, there are some good introductions to special relativity here and here. For a print book An Illustrated Guide to Relativity seems like a good intro. Another good one is Spacetime Physics by Wheeler and Taylor, which I think for the most part just requires algebra though there may be some sections/problems that use some basic calculus. General relativity can't really be understood in depth with grade 12 math, but the book General Relativity from A to B is a good conceptual introduction. Also some good conceptual explanations on this site. And if your high school taught you some calculus, that is enough to get started on analyzing particular solutions in general relativity even if it's not enough for the full theory (which requires differential geometry using tensors)--see the book Exploring Black Holes by Wheeler and Taylor. Timaeus also mentions in a comment that Schutz's Gravity from the Ground Up is another good introduction to general relativity that doesn't require more advanced mathematical knowledge, one of the amazon reviews mentions it doesn't require math beyond basic algebra, and to some extent substituted downloadable computer simulations for analyses that would otherwise require more math.
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1$\begingroup$ Tachiuchi's books is very good (we use it in our modern physics class), but I always feel that it needs supplementing with material on using these concepts in a less artificial context and giving practice in using the combination of space-time diagrams to understand the problem and then applying the math to get to answers. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 3, 2016 at 15:58
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$\begingroup$ @dmckee - Thanks for the advice, I added Spacetime Physics by Wheeler and Taylor as another good introductory reference. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 3, 2016 at 16:23
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1$\begingroup$ @Hypnosifl Gravity From the Ground Up also has low math prerequisites. $\endgroup$– TimaeusCommented Apr 4, 2016 at 1:31
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It's not uncommon for high school physics course to have a unit on Special Relativity so the easiest place to start might just be the relativity chapter in your physics text. One of the beauties of Special Relativity is that you can go a long with math no more complicated that you would cover in high school.
General Relativity, which deals Gravitation and acceleration, is much more involved mathematically.
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1$\begingroup$ Please, no. Most of these treatments are outdated in presentation, emphasis, and nomenclature and will indoctrinate students in concepts that get in the way of learning the subject well. See the discussion under physics.stackexchange.com/q/133376 and many other posts around the site. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 3, 2016 at 15:56
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$\begingroup$ @dmckee I agree with the suggestion of reading that posted question you linked as it has good discussion. But, the OP is not that old (apparently) and I would think that his high-school text is updated. Usually, public high-schools update science texts frequently for two reasons: (1) the teachers recommend it as staying up with fast changing fields; (2) the book publishers push it as a means of selling more books to the public schools. $\endgroup$– K7PEHCommented Apr 4, 2016 at 2:33