In 1915, Albert Einstein unveiled his masterwork – a theory, in his words, ‘of incomparable beauty’: the General Theory of Relativity. It is sometimes overshadowed – wrongly, argues John Gribbin – by his work of 1905, the Special Theory of Relativity and E = mc≤.
Just over 100 years later, the first direct detection of gravitational radiation is seen as the ultimate proof of the General Theory’s accuracy.
The General Theory describes the evolution of the Universe, black holes, the behaviour of orbiting neutron stars, and why clocks run slower on Earth than in space. It even suggests the possibility of time travel.
In this ‘beautifully written and highly accessible account of the genesis of a great theory’ (Physics World), Gribbin vividly illustrates what an incomparable scientist Albert Einstein really was.
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John Gribbin's numerous bestselling books include In Search of Schrödinger's Cat and Six Impossible Things, which was shortlisted for the 2019 Royal Society Science Book Prize. He has been described as 'one of the finest and most prolific writers of popular science around' by the Spectator. In 2021, he was made Honorary Senior Research Fellow in Astronomy at the University of Sussex.