Gravitation (book)
Encyclopedia
In physics
, Gravitation is a very important reference book on Einstein's theory of gravity by Charles W. Misner
, Kip S. Thorne
, and John Archibald Wheeler
. Often considered the "Bible" of General Relativity
by researchers for its prominence. It is frequently called MTW after its authors' initials. Its size and shape are similar to a large telephone book. It was originally published by W. H. Freeman and Company in 1973.
The book, a massive tome of over 1200 pages, covers many aspects of General Relativity and also considers some extensions of it
as well as experimental confirmations. The book is divided into two "tracks", the second of which covers more advanced topics for more capable or determined students. MTW uses the −+++ metric convention
. A substantial fraction of the book consists of boxes which add supplementary substance to the already thorough main text.
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, Gravitation is a very important reference book on Einstein's theory of gravity by Charles W. Misner
Charles W. Misner
Charles W. Misner is an American physicist and one of the authors of Gravitation. His specialties include general relativity and cosmology. His work has also provided early foundations for studies of quantum gravity and numerical relativity....
, Kip S. Thorne
Kip Thorne
Kip Stephen Thorne is an American theoretical physicist, known for his prolific contributions in gravitation physics and astrophysics and for having trained a generation of scientists...
, and John Archibald Wheeler
John Archibald Wheeler
John Archibald Wheeler was an American theoretical physicist who was largely responsible for reviving interest in general relativity in the United States after World War II. Wheeler also worked with Niels Bohr in explaining the basic principles behind nuclear fission...
. Often considered the "Bible" of General Relativity
General relativity
General relativity or the general theory of relativity is the geometric theory of gravitation published by Albert Einstein in 1916. It is the current description of gravitation in modern physics...
by researchers for its prominence. It is frequently called MTW after its authors' initials. Its size and shape are similar to a large telephone book. It was originally published by W. H. Freeman and Company in 1973.
The book, a massive tome of over 1200 pages, covers many aspects of General Relativity and also considers some extensions of it
Alternatives to general relativity
Alternatives to general relativity are physical theories that attempt to describe the phenomena of gravitation in competition to Einstein's theory of general relativity.There have been many different attempts at constructing an ideal theory of gravity...
as well as experimental confirmations. The book is divided into two "tracks", the second of which covers more advanced topics for more capable or determined students. MTW uses the −+++ metric convention
Sign convention
In physics, a sign convention is a choice of the physical significance of signs for a set of quantities, in a case where the choice of sign is arbitrary. "Arbitrary" here means that the same physical system can be correctly described using different choices for the signs, as long as one set of...
. A substantial fraction of the book consists of boxes which add supplementary substance to the already thorough main text.