Was Einstein Right?: Putting General Relativity to the Test [Paperback]

Clifford M. Willis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1988

This book is an examination of the way in which Einstein's general theory of relativity - the theory of gravitation and of space-time, has held up under today's exacting scrutiny of planetary probes, radio astronomy, atomic clocks and electronic super-computers. Clifford M. Will, who has devoted two decades to this question, brings to the general reader a full account of the people, ideas and machines that have put Einstein's theory to the test, covering tests from about 1960 to check the predictions of general relativity accurately and aims to find new predictions to check. He tells the story of relativity from the first faint photographs in 1919 confirming Einstein's prediction of the bending of starlight in the sun's gravitational field, to the design of the delicate gyroscopes now being prepared for a critical space shuttle experiment in the 1990s.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In a word, the answer is yes! According to Will, every test that physicists have been able to devise to date has yielded results consistent with the theory of general relativity. What is surprising is how well he is able to explain the implications of this highly complex theory without using any mathematics beyond geometry. He also shows why use of the most sophisticated technology available is required to measure the effects predicted by Einstein and his followers. All in all a pleasing book for the educated layperson who wishes to gain some insight into this most esoteric subject. Harold D. Shane, Mathematics Dept., Baruch Coll., CUNY
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

A revised and updated edition of the acclaimed account for general readers of how Einstein's theory of relativity holds up after more than seventy years. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; New ed of 2 Revised ed edition (July 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465090877
• ISBN-13: 978-0465090877
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,787,058 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a saga of modern science, April 8, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Was Einstein Right? 2nd Edition: Putting General Relativity To The Test (Paperback)

Everyone knows that Einstein revolutionized the theory of gravity. But only experiment can tell whether he got it right. Will recounts in clear and nontechnical language the story of how Einstein's theory was put to the test in earth- and satellite-based experiments from the 1950's to the 1980's. He describes how it is actually possible to see space curve by making very accurate measurements in the solar system, and he explains how those measurements were made by the Mariner probe to Mars, by radar surveying of the planets, and by bouncing laser beams off the moon. From these highlights to the three naked Stanford professors whose experiment is still waiting to go up in the Shuttle, Will sets out every aspect of this fascinating story

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, February 28, 1998

By 

Ivy Merriot [e-mail] (Bozeman, MT) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Was Einstein Right? 2nd Edition: Putting General Relativity To The Test (Paperback)

"Was Einstein Right" is the first book (out of 37 on relativity which I own) that I offer someone interested in learning about Einstein's theories. It is interesting, clear and to the point. I have re-bought this book three times, as my copies are lent out and don't always make it back! haha I don't blame them!

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars out of date, August 16, 2009

By 

Benjamin Crowell - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Was Einstein Right? 2nd Edition: Putting General Relativity To The Test (Paperback)

If this was 1995, I'd give this book five stars. It's an excellent, readable book on an important scientific topic. The trouble is that this second edition, which dates back to 1993, is now out of date. It came before some important tests of General Relativity (Gravity Probe B, Cassini-Huygens), and it also came before the discovery of the nonzero cosmological constant.