Special Relativity: For the Enthusiastic Beginner

I was a physics major 30 years ago and went into an unrelated field. Back then I concentrated on Biophysics. My only exposure to Special Relativity was a 1 hour lecture which taught me essentially nothing. This is my first real exposure to SR. I am self studying in the hopes of understanding particle physics one day. This text is very aptly named. It is for the enthusiastic beginner. If you are not enthusiastic about learning SR, then read an easier book. You are going to burn out of this one. As Prof. Morin says, SR is counterintuitive. He does an excellent job of explaining SR in detail and has an excellent writing style, but you don't learn physics by reading. You have to really think about it over and over again before it starts to sink in. I had to read each chapter 3 times before I could move on to the next. I still don't feel I have a good grasp. SR is just one of those topics that you have to read about many times over many years before it really starts to make sense. This is an excellent place to start. I will read Tsamparlis one day, but before I do that I will reread this one. The explanations in this book are excellent, but the real strength of this book are the worked out problems. It is nice to see his solution once you have struggled with the problem for some time. No other book has this many worked out problems. In short, if you plan to study advanced physics, you will have to master this material at this level before you move on to advanced work. For some it may be better suited as a second read on SR than a first, but if you plan to move on to more advanced material, this is probably the best preparation for it as far as SR goes. A final note: Prof Morin starts the book with a plea to buy the book as it will inevitably show up on the internet for free one day. The good professor put a lot of work into this book. It is only $20. The paper quality and print quality are excellent. Please buy the book or kindle version. Give the good professor his due.

The subtitle of this book – “For enthusiastic beginners”, may make this book seem like it is a beginning or introductory text, and while some of it is indeed for beginners it is much more. The book covers aspects of Special Relativity, such as Rapidity (a mathematical function used to solve some advanced problems) and four-vectors (another mathematical approach that is used for complex problems), which are not covered in basic texts. It is not the type of book that one reads casually, but is rather one that requires a considerable amount of time and effort – effort to absorb the material and even more effort to solve the numerous problems contained in the book, as the book is focused on problem solving with numerous solved examples and solved problems, plus exercises that are meant as homework problems for a course on Special Relativity, the solutions of which are therefore not provided. The book includes remarks – commentaries by the author that might be added by him if you were taking a class in person. The book has wide 2.5 inch outside margins for figures that also allow ample room for margin notes. I highly recommend this book for beginners (but for ones enthusiastic enough to tackle the problems contained in the book) and also for the more advanced student that wants a book that focuses on problem solving, covering the material discussed below. What is in the book – 1) Chapter 1 - Kinematics, Part 1. This chapter covers the basics of Relativity – the Loss of Simultaneity, Time Dilation, Length Contraction and Velocity addition. This chapter, which comprises about a quarter of the book, is the most physical in the treatment of Relativity. It also discusses a bit of the historical development of the subject of Relativity. It is an excellent primer for the beginner. 2) Chapter 2 - Kinematics Part 2 – This is a much more advanced approach to the subjects covered in Chapter 1. It derives and uses the Lorentz Transformations and Minkowski Diagrams. It is a much more advanced and difficult treatment than that of Chapter 1 and would appeal to more advanced students. 3) Chapter 3 - Dynamics – This chapter covers Energy and Momentum and the interaction between particles. While some of this is also covered basic texts, the approach here and the numerous solved problems should be of interest to advanced beginners and for those seeking insights into problem solving. 4) Chapter 4 - 4-Vectors. This is a highly mathematical chapter, suitable for the most advanced beginners and beyond. 5) Chapter 5 – General Relativity. This is a very short introduction to the subject of General Relativity, focusing on the Equivalence Principle. It gives a feeling of what General Relativity is all about, without going into any of the complex mathematics that is required for a more in depth treatment. As such is it very good for the beginner. The book also contains 8 appendices, covering such topics as additional derivations of some equations covered in the text, problem solving strategies and the Taylor series. Like the rest of the book, these appendices are focused on the student and are meant to improve his or hers problem solving capabilities.

Very easy to read.

A very digestible primer for those interested in special relativity. The material is presented in a fashion that would be accessible to a gifted HS student or the average physics undergrad. Lots of worked examples and problem sets complement the text.

My dad got me this textbook (I'm 15) because I'm interested in relativity. David Morin does an excellent job going in-depth on a very difficult topic. Although some calculus may be helpful, I have so far been able to understand everything without it. Contrary to the single one-star review, you do not need differential or integral calculus (calculus is used in several places but it is not necessary for general understanding), although some mathematical proficiency is necessary. Do not remove it from your inventory because you think the math will be too hard. Almost all major concepts (except postulates, inherently) are proven step-by-step with carefully worked scenarios and diagrams. Although many aspects of relativity are counterintuitive, Morin makes visualization easy, especially with the help of the diagrams. He predicts any questions you may have and addresses them either as remarks after each section or in the appendix at the end. His writing has personality that makes an already interesting topic enjoyable to read. This being said, it is not meant to be skimmed through. Special relativity is a very complex topic so if you wish to gain anything from the textbook without much prior knowledge, it must be read carefully, and it may still take some time to grasp certain concepts. I suppose this is why you must be "enthusiastic".

I bought this book years ago. I was postponing just because the font was too small for me. Finally, I bit the bullet and finished reading. What a wonderful book! It is simply the best. Now, I am planning to buy other books written by the same author.

C'est une très bonne introduction à la relativité restreinte, accessible aux non universitaires. Un niveau de terminale scientifique est amplement suffisant pour comprendre tous les concepts présentés. C'est un excellent ouvrage, qui plus est fort bien écrit.

For those who want to enter into the amazing physics of special relativity with a real helpfull guide, this book is the perfect choice. The experience of the author in teaching this subject is reflected in the numerous remarks and solved problems that help the reader to understand the different topics. You never get bored or overwhelmed by the information and examples provided, as the writing style is close to listening to a great teacher. Trying to solve the worked out problems is a must, if you want to get a greater insight of the topic, but the effort has a reward: explanations on each solved problems are of great quality. I enjoyed this reading very much. If something to be improved had to be said, maybe some of the drawings and sketches in the book are sometimes too small and lack of some additional clarification. But this does not affect the overall quality of this book.

Absolutely incredible. As an undergraduate physicist looking for detailed, subtle remarks on really getting a grasp for introductory special relativity - this book has been a pleasure to read so far. Packed with problems and solutions, not to mention INDICATION OF DIFFICULTY. This book is a rare find and has brought back my love for physics - David Morin, what a legend. If you don't want to buy the paper copy buy the Kindle edition - I can't recommend it enough!

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