Search

Our understanding of the physical universe underwent a revolution in the early twentieth century - evolving from the classical physics of Newton, Galileo, and Maxwell to the modern physics of relativity and quantum mechanics. The dominant figure in this revolutionary change was Albert Einstein. In a single year, 1905, Einstein produced breakthrough works in three areas of physics: on the size and the effects of atoms; on the quantization of the electromagnetic field; and on the special theory of relativity. In 1916 he produced a fourth breakthrough work, the general theory of relativity. A Student's Guide to Einstein's Major Papers focuses on Einstein's contributions, setting his major works into their historical context, and then takes the reader through the details of each paper, including the mathematics. This book helps the reader appreciate the simplicity and insightfulness of Einstein's ideas and how revolutionary his work was, and locate it in the evolution of scientific thought begun by the ancient Greek natural philosophers.

Over the last decade, astrophysical observations of neutron stars — both as isolated and binary sources — have paved the way for a deeper understanding of the structure and dynamics of matter beyond nuclear saturation density. The mapping between astrophysical observations and models of dense matter based on microscopic dynamics has been poorly investigated so far. However, the increased accuracy of present and forthcoming observations may be instrumental in resolving the degeneracy between the predictions of different equations of state. Astrophysical and laboratory probes have the potential to paint to a new coherent picture of nuclear matter — and, more generally, strong interactions — over the widest range of densities occurring in the Universe. This book provides a self-contained account of neutron star properties, microscopic nuclear dynamics and the recent observational developments in multimessenger astronomy. It also discusses the unprecedented possibilities to shed light on long standing and fundamental issues, such as the validity of the description of matter in terms of pointlike baryons and leptons and the appearance of deconfined quarks in the high density regime.It will be of interest to researchers and advanced PhD students working in the fields of Astrophysics, Gravitational Physics, Nuclear Physics and Particle Physics.Key Features: Reviews state-of-the-art theoretical and experimental developments Self-contained and cross-disciplinary While being devoted to a very lively and fast developing field, the book fundamentally addresses methodological issues. Therefore, it will not be subject to fast obsolescence. Omar Benhar is an INFN Emeritus Research Director, and has been teaching Relativistic Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Electrodynamics and Structure of Compact Stars at “Sapienza” University of Rome for over twenty years. He has worked extensively in the United States, and since 2013 has served as an adjunct professor at the Center for Neutrino Physics of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Prof. Benhar has authored or co-authored three textbooks on Relativistic Quantum Mechanics, Gauge Theories, and Structure and Dynamics of Compact Stars, and published more than one hundred scientific papers on the theory of many-particle systems, the structure of compact stars and the electroweak interactions of nuclei.Alessandro Lovato is a physicist at Argonne National Laboratory and an INFN researcher in Trento. His research in theoretical nuclear physics focuses on consistently modeling the self-emerging properties of atomic nuclei and neutron-star matter in terms of the microscopic interactions among the constituent protons and neutrons. He has co-authored more than eighty scientific publications on the theory of many-particle systems, the structure of compact stars, and the electroweak interactions of nuclei. He is at the forefront of high-performance computing applied to solving the quantum many-body problem.Andrea Maselli is an Associate Professor at the Gran Sasso Science Institute, in L'Aquila, where he teaches Gravitation and Cosmology and Physics of Black Hole. His research focuses on strong gravity, which plays a crucial role in many astrophysical phenomena involving black hole and neutron stars, representing natural laboratories to test fundamental physics. Prof. Maselli has co-authored more than eighty scientific papers on the modelling of black holes and neutron stars in General Relativity and extension thereof, their gravitational wave emission, and on tests of gravity in the strong filed regime. He is active in various collaborations aimed at developing next generation of gravitational wave detectors, such as the LISA satellite, the Einstein Telescope, and the Lunar Gravitational Wave Antenna.Francesco Pannarale is an Associate Professor at “Sapienza” Univeristy of Rome, where

In early April 1911 Albert Einstein arrived in Prague to become full professor of theoretical physics at the German part of Charles University. It was there, for the first time, that he concentrated primarily on the problem of gravitation. Before he left Prague in July 1912 he had submitted the paper “Relativität und Gravitation: Erwiderung auf eine Bemerkung von M. Abraham” in which he remarkably anticipated what a future theory of gravity should look like.At the occasion of the Einstein-in-Prague centenary an international meeting was organized under a title inspired by Einstein's last paper from the Prague period:'Relativity and Gravitation, 100 Years after Einstein in Prague'. The main topics of the conference included: classical relativity, numerical relativity, relativistic astrophysics and cosmology, quantum gravity, experimental aspects of gravitation and conceptual and historical issues.The conference attracted over 200 scientists from 31 countries, among them a number of leading experts in the field of general relativity and its applications. This volume includes abstracts of the plenary talks and full texts of contributed talks and articles based on the posters presented at the conference. These describe primarily original results of the authors. Full texts of the plenary talks are included in the volume'General Relativity, Cosmology and Astrophysics--Perspectives 100 Years after Einstein in Prague', eds. J. Bičák and T. Ledvinka, published also by Springer Verlag.

This volume contains the proceedings from the conference'The Labyrinth of Star Formation'that was held in Crete, Greece, in June 2012, to honour the contributions to the study of star formation made by Professor Anthony Whitworth of Cardiff University.The book covers many aspects of theoretical and observational star formation: low-mass star formation; young circumstellar discs; computational methods; triggered star formation; the stellar initial mass function; high-mass star formation and stellar clusters. Each section starts with a review paper, followed by papers discussing recent theoretical and observational work.This volume summarises our current understanding of star formation and is useful for both graduate students and researchers alike.

This collection of papers from the Space Telescope Science Institute Symposium on massive stars addresses the many aspects of astrophysics in which these stars play an important role. Review papers are presented from both observational and theoretical work by world experts in the study of these rare stars. Topics discussed include star formation in the local and distant universe, the feedback effects of the massive stars, mass loss from massive stars, and explosions of massive stars. The combination of papers produces a comprehensive overview of up-to-date research in the field, making this book an invaluable resource for professional researchers and for students of astrophysics.

Combining research methods from various areas of mathematics and physics, Probabilistic Models of Cosmic Backgrounds describes the isotropic random sections of certain fiber bundles and their applications to creating rigorous mathematical models of both discovered and hypothetical cosmic backgrounds.Previously scattered and hard-to-find mathematical and physical theories have been assembled from numerous textbooks, monographs, and research papers, and explained from different or even unexpected points of view. This consists of both classical and newly discovered results necessary for understanding a sophisticated problem of modelling cosmic backgrounds.The book contains a comprehensive description of mathematical and physical aspects of cosmic backgrounds with a clear focus on examples and explicit calculations. Its reader will bridge the gap of misunderstanding between the specialists in various theoretical and applied areas who speak different scientific languages.The audience of the book consists of scholars, students, and professional researchers. A scholar will find basic material for starting their own research. A student will use the book as supplementary material for various courses and modules. A professional mathematician will find a description of several physical phenomena at the rigorous mathematical level. A professional physicist will discover mathematical foundations for well-known physical theories.

This volume guides early-career researchers through recent breakthroughs in mathematics and physics as related to general relativity. Chapters are based on courses and lectures given at the July 2019 Domoschool, International Alpine School in Mathematics and Physics, held in Domodossola, Italy, which was titled “Einstein Equations: Physical and Mathematical Aspects of General Relativity”. Structured in two parts, the first features four courses from prominent experts on topics such as local energy in general relativity, geometry and analysis in black hole spacetimes, and antimatter gravity. The second part features a variety of papers based on talks given at the summer school, including topics like:Quantum ergosphereGeneral relativistic Poynting-Robertson effect modellingNumerical relativityLength-contraction in curved spacetimeClassicality from an inhomogeneous universeEinstein Equations: Local Energy, Self-Force, and Fields in General Relativity will be a valuable resource for students and researchers in mathematics and physicists interested in exploring how their disciplines connect to general relativity.

The proceedings of MG16 give a broad view of all aspects of gravitational physics and astrophysics, from mathematical issues to recent observations and experiments. The scientific program of the meeting included 46 plenary presentations, 3 public lectures, 5 round tables and 81 parallel sessions arranged during the intense six-day online meeting. All talks were recorded and are available on the ICRANet YouTube channel at the following link: www.icranet.org/video_mg16.These proceedings are a representative sample of the very many contributions made at the meeting. They contain 383 papers, among which 14 come from the plenary sessions.The material represented in these proceedings cover the following topics: accretion, active galactic nuclei, alternative theories of gravity, black holes (theory, observations and experiments), binaries, boson stars, cosmic microwave background, cosmic strings, dark energy and large scale structure, dark matter, education, exact solutions, early universe, fundamental interactions and stellar evolution, fast transients, gravitational waves, high energy physics, history of relativity, neutron stars, precision tests, quantum gravity, strong fields, and white dwarf; all of them represented by a large number of contributions.The online e-proceedings are published in an open access format.

This book collates papers presented at two international conferences (held at the Australian National University in 2018 and Birkbeck College London in 2019) exploring the relationships between big history and astrobiology and their wider implications for society. These two relatively new academic disciplines aim to integrate human history with the wider history of the universe and the search for life elsewhere. The book will show that, despite differences in emphasis, big history and astrobiology share much in common, especially their interdisciplinary approaches and the cosmic and evolutionary perspectives that they both engender.Specifically, the book addresses the unified, all-embracing, nature of knowledge, the impact of big history on humanity and the world at large, the possible impact of SETI on astrobiology and big history, the cultural signature of Earth's inhabitants beyond our own planet, and the political implications of a planetary worldview. The principal readership is envisaged to comprise scholars working in the fields of astrobiology, big history and space exploration interested in forging interdisciplinary links between these diverse topics, together with educators, and a wider public, interested in the societal implications of the cosmic and evolutionary perspectives engendered by research in these fields.

'It is strongly biased towards the author's speciality of galaxy morphology, and particularly to bars and rings. To be fair, these are often given fairly short shrift in other textbooks, so this is a useful source of detail on such topics from an expert. In addition, references to original technical papers are given throughout which makes the book a handy introduction to the literature (which students may well find useful).'The Observatory MagazineThe main goal of the book is to introduce the reader to the world of spiral galaxies, how spirals were discovered, what they represent from a physical point of view, and what people have learned about the universe and the nature of galaxies in general from the study of spirals. Topics include early discoveries of nebulae, the island universe concept, the structure of spirals as seen both visually with telescopes and in images obtained with different filters, the role of spirals in the discovery of interstellar dust and dark matter, the different kinds of spiral galaxies and the importance of bars and rings, how different non-spiral galaxy types such as elliptical galaxies and S0 galaxies connect to spirals, and how spirals have contributed to our understanding of star formation and evolution, galaxy formation and evolution, the cosmological distance scale, and the universal expansion. The Milky Way as a spiral galaxy is also discussed.The book is profusely illustrated and not only a discourse on the spirals, but is also a personal reminiscence based on the author's studies of spiral galaxies over the past 45 years.

In this comprehensive and interdisciplinary volume, former NASA Chief Historian Steven Dick reflects on the exploration of space, astrobiology and its implications, cosmic evolution, astronomical institutions, discovering and classifying the cosmos, and the philosophy of astronomy. The unifying theme of the book is the connection between cosmos and culture, or what Carl Sagan many years ago called the “cosmic connection.”As both an astronomer and historian of science, Dr. Dick has been both a witness to and a participant in many of the astronomical events of the last half century. This collection of papers presents his reflections over the last forty years in a way accessible to historians, philosophers, and scientists alike. From the search for alien life to ongoing space exploration efforts, readers will find this volume full of engaging topics relevant to science, society, and our collective future on planet Earth and beyond.

Unlike most traditional introductory textbooks on relativity and cosmology that answer questions like “Does accelerated expansion pull our bodies apart?”, “Does the presence of dark matter affect the classical tests of general relativity?” in a qualitative manner, the present text is intended as a foundation, enabling students to read and understand the textbooks and many of the scientific papers on the subject. And, above all, the readers are taught and encouraged to do their own calculations, check the numbers and answer the above and other questions regarding the most exciting discoveries and theoretical developments in general relativistic cosmology, which have occurred since the early 1980s. In comparison to these intellectual benefits the text is short. In fact, its brevity without neglect of scope or mathematical accessibility of key points is rather unique. The authors connect the necessary mathematical concepts and their reward, i.e. the understanding of an important pieceof modern physics, along the shortest path.The unavoidable mathematical concepts and tools are presented in as straightforward manner as possible. Even though the mathematics is not very difficult, it certainly is beneficial to know some statistical thermodynamics as well as some quantum mechanics. Thus the text is suitable for the upper undergraduate curriculum.

This book presents a collection of focused review papers on the advances in topics in modern astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology and planetary science. The chapters are written by expert members of an EU-funded ERASMUS+ program of strategic partnership between several European institutes.The 13 reviews comprise the topics: Space debris, optical measurementsMeteors, light from comets and asteroidsExtrasolar enigmas: from disintegrating exoplanets to exo-asteroidsPhysical conditions and chemical abundances in photoionized nebulae from optical spectraObservational Constraints on the Common Envelope PhaseA modern guide to quantitative spectroscopy of massive OB starsExplosion mechanisms of core-collapse supernovae and their observational signaturesLow-mass and substellar eclipsing binaries in stellar clustersGlobular cluster systems and Galaxy FormationHot atmospheres of galaxies, groups, and clusters of galaxiesThe establishment of the Standard Cosmological Model through observationsExploiting solar visible-range observations by inversion techniques: from flows in the solar subsurface to a flaring atmosphereStarburst galaxies The book is intended for the general astronomical community as well as for advanced students who could use it as a guideline, inspiration and overview for their future careers in astronomy.

After an extensive introduction to the asymptotic safety approach to quantum gravity, this thesis explains recent key advances reported in four influential papers. Firstly, two exact solutions to the reconstruction problem (how to recover a bare action from the effective average action) are provided. Secondly, the fundamental requirement of background independence in quantum gravity is successfully implemented. Working within the derivative expansion of conformally reduced gravity, the notion of compatibility is developed, uncovering the underlying reasons for background dependence generically forbidding fixed points in such models. Thirdly, in order to understand the true nature of fixed-point solutions, one needs to study their asymptotic behaviour. The author carefully explains how to find the asymptotic form of fixed point solutions within the f(R) approximation. Finally, the key findings are summarised and useful extensions of the work are identified. The thesis finishes by considering the need to incorporate matter into the formalism in a compatible way and touches upon potential opportunities to test asymptotic safety in the future.

This volume includes papers about practical aspects of operating accelerators for a variety of purposes, from basic research to materials science. All discussions after the presentation of the papers are reproduced here. This is very helpful, as often the most important points are brought out in the discussions.

Vladimir Naumovich Gribov is one of the creators of modern theoretical physics. The concepts and methods that Gribov has developed in the second half of the 20th century became cornerstones of the physics of high energy hadron interactions (relativistic theory of complex angular momenta, a notion of the vacuum pole — Pomeron, effective reggeon field theory), condensed matter physics (critical phenomena), neutrino oscillations, and nuclear physics.His unmatched insights into the nature of the quantum field theory helped to elucidate, in particular, the origin of classical solutions (instantons), quantum anomalies, specific problems in quantization of non-Abelian fields (Gribov anomalies, Gribov horizon), and the role of light quarks in the color confinement phenomenon.The fifth memorial workshop which marked Gribov's 85th birthday took place at the Landau Institute for Theoretical Physics, Russia, in June 2015. Participants of the workshop who came to Chernogolovka from different parts of the world presented new results of studies of many challenging theoretical physics problems across a broad variety of topics, and shared memories about their colleague, great teacher and friend.This book is a collection of the presented talks and contributed papers, which affirm the everlasting impact of Gribov's scientific heritage upon the physics of the 21st century.

This book explores a wide range of topics relating to scientific and religious learning in the work of Bishop Robert Grosseteste (c. 1168–1253) and does so from various perspectives, including those of a twenty-first century scientists, historians, and philosophers as well as several medievalists. In particular, it aims to contribute to our understanding of where to place Grosseteste in the history of science (against the background of the famous claim by A.C. Crombie that Grosseteste introduced what we now might call “experimental science”) and to demonstrate that the polymathic world of the medieval scholar, who recognized no dichotomy in the pursuit of scientific and philosophical/theological understanding, has much to teach those of us in the modern world who wrestle with the vexed question of the relationship between science and religion. The book comprises an edited selection of the best papers presented at the 3rd International Robert Grosseteste Conference (2014) on the theme of scientific and religious learning, especially in the work of Grosseteste.

This book celebrates the investigative power of phenomenology to explore the phenomenological sense of space and time in conjunction with the phenomenology of intentionality, the invisible, the sacred, and the mystical. It examines the course of life through its ontopoietic genesis, opening the cosmic sphere to logos. The work also explores, on the one hand, the intellectual drive to locate our cosmic position in the universe and, on the other, the pull toward the infinite. It intertwines science and its grounding principles with imagination in order to make sense of the infinite. This work is the first of a two-part work that contains papers presented at the 62nd International Congress of Phenomenology, The Forces of the Cosmos and the Ontopoietic Genesis of Life, held in Paris, France, August 2012. It features the work of scholars in such diverse disciplines as biology, anthropology, pedagogy, and psychology who philosophically investigate the cosmic origins of beingness. Coverage in this first part includes: Toward a New Enlightenment: Metaphysics as Philosophy of Life, Transformation in Phenomenology: Husserl and Tymieniecka, Biologically Organized Quantum Vacuum and the Cosmic Origin of Cellular Life, Plotinus'Enneads'and Self-Creation, The Creative Potential of Humor, Transcendental Morphology – A Phenomenological Interpretation of Human and Non-Human Cosmos, and Cognition and Emotion: From Dichotomy to Ambiguity. ​

This book contains contributions from the Spanish Relativity Meeting, ERE 2012, held in Guimarães, Portugal, September 2012. It features more than 70 papers on a range of topics in general relativity and gravitation, from mathematical cosmology, numerical relativity and black holes to string theory and quantum gravity. Under the title'Progress in Mathematical Relativity, Gravitation and Cosmology,'ERE 2012 was attended by an exceptional international list of over a hundred participants from the five continents and over forty countries. ERE is organized every year by one of the Spanish or Portuguese groups working in this area and is supported by the Spanish Society of Gravitation and Relativity (SEGRE).This book will be of interest to researchers in mathematics and physics.

Tom Kibble is an inspirational theoretical physicist who has made profound contributions to our understanding of the physical world. To celebrate his 80th birthday a one-day symposium was held on March 13, 2013 at the Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College, London. This important volume is a compilation of papers based on the presentations that were given at the symposium.The symposium profiled various aspects of Tom's long scientific career. The tenor of the meeting was set in the first talk given by Neil Turok, director of the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, who described Tom as “our guru and example”. He gave a modern overview of cosmological theories, including a discussion of Tom's pioneering work on how topological defects might have formed in the early universe during symmetry-breaking phase transitions. Wojciech Zurek of Los Alamos National Laboratory continued with this theme, surveying analogous processes within the context of condensed matter systems and explaining the Kibble-Zurek scaling phenomenon. The day's events were concluded by Jim Virdee of Imperial College, who summarized the epic and successful quest of finding the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN. At the end of the talk, there was a standing ovation for Tom that lasted several minutes.In the evening, Steven Weinberg gave a keynote presentation to a capacity audience of 700 people. He talked eruditely on symmetry breaking and its role in elementary particle physics. At the banquet dinner, Frank Close of Oxford University concluded the banquet speeches by summarizing the significance of Tom's contributions to the creation of the Standard Model.

These are the proceedings of an international meeting hosted by the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the dedication of the UKIRT, the United Kingdom InfraRed Telescope. The volume comprises 31 professional level papers. The first part of the book has 10 thorough reviews of the conception, design and build of the telescope, as well as accounts of some its key instruments such as IRCAM (the common-user infrared camera), CGS4 (the fourth Cooled Grating Spectrometer) and the Wide Field Camera. The second part of the book comprises 14 reviews of scientific achievements during its twenty years of visitor mode operations. The final part of the book is a series of 7 reviews of the results from the multiple surveys being done as part of UKIDSS (UKIRT Infrared Deep Sky Survey). The authors are all experts in their respective fields, for example instrument scientists, operations staff and leading astronomers.

This work celebrates the investigative power of phenomenology to explore the phenomenological sense of space and time in conjunction with the phenomenology of intentionality, the invisible, the sacred, and the mystical. It examines the course of life through its ontopoietic genesis, opening the cosmic sphere to logos. The work also explores, on the one hand, the intellectual drive to locate our cosmic position in the universe and, on the other, the pull toward the infinite. It intertwines science and its grounding principles with imagination in order to make sense of the infinite.This book is the second of a two-part work that contains papers presented at the 62nd International Congress of Phenomenology, The Forces of the Cosmos and the Ontopoietic Genesis of Life, held in Paris, France, August 2012. It features the work of scholars in such diverse disciplines as biology, anthropology, pedagogy, and psychology who philosophically investigate the cosmic origins of beingness.Coverage in this second part includes: Communicative Virtues of A-T. Tymieniecka's Phenomenology of Life, Intentionality of Time and Quantum – Phenomenological Sense of Space, Consciousness of the Cosmos: A Thought Experiment Through Philosophy and Science Fiction, The Cosmos and Bodily Life on Earth Elucidated within the Historicity of Human Existence, Novel as Path - Mamardashvili's Lectures on Proust, and Comments on Max Scheler's Thought and Philosophical Counseling.

The concepts of dark matter and the cosmic web are some of the most significant developments in cosmology in the past century. They have decisively changed the classical cosmological paradigm, which was first elaborated upon during the first half of the 20th century but ran into serious problems in the second half. Today, they are integral parts of modern cosmology, which explains everything from the Big Bang to inflation to the large scale structure of the Universe.Dark Matter and Cosmic Web Story describes the contributions that led to a paradigm shift from the Eastern point of view. It describes the problems with the classical view, the attempts to solve them, the difficulties encountered by those solutions, and the conferences where the merits of the new concepts were debated. Amidst the science, the story of scientific work in a small country occupied by the Soviet Union and the tumultuous events that led to its breakup are detailed as well.This book is accompanied by a website which contains additional material: copies of the originals of some crucial papers, astronomical movies, and movies which showcase the private life of the author.

These proceedings are devoted to a wide variety of both theoretical and experimental areas in particle physics. The topics include physics at accelerators and studies of Standard Model and Beyond, neutrino and astroparticle physics, cosmology, CP Violation and rare decays, hadron physics, and new developments in quantum field theory. The papers of the volume reveal the present status and new development in the above mentioned items. In particular, the first results on measurement of LHC pp collision events are also reported.

This book presents a comprehensive review of a diverse range of subjects in physics written by physicists who have all been taught by or are associated with K C Hines. Ken Hines was a great mentor with far-reaching influence on his students who later went on to make outstanding contributions to physics in their careers. The papers provide significant insights into statistical physics, plasma physics from fluorescent lighting to quantum pair plasmas, cosmic ray physics, nuclear reactions, and many other fields.

'Relativistic Astrophysics and Cosmology'have developed into important and fruitful research areas with a hitherto unprecented public interest. The year 2005, which marked the 100th anniversary of the'annus mirabilis', that year in which Albert Einstein published three of his most important scientific papers, was the perfect opportunity to review and to present the current scientific understanding of relativistic topics including cosmological models, cosmology related measurements, the large scale properties of the Universe, dark matter and dark energy, the theory of gravity, black holes, theory and measurements, active galactic nuclei, clusters of galaxies, jets. Each of these subjects is addressed and the book represents a useful reference tool both for the expert and the new-comer in these fields.

An unparalleled history of astronomy presented in the words of the scientists who made the discoveries. Here are the writings of Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, Newton, Halley, Hubble, and Einstein, as well as that of dozens of others who have significantly contributed to our picture of the universe. From Aristotle's proof that the Earth is round to the 1998 paper that posited an accelerating universe, this book contains 100 entries spanning the history of astronomy. Award-winning science writer Marcia Bartusiak provides enormously entertaining introductions, putting the material in context and explaining its place in the literature. Archives of the Universe is essential reading for professional astronomers, science history buffs, and backyard stargazers alike.

The r-process is a major mechanism for producing elements heavier than Fe. In this book, a summary of recent developments in theoretical, experimental and observational studies of the r-process are presented in 25 contributions. The collected papers are up to date, comprehensive and yet concise. The topics covered include experiments on nuclei far from stability, nuclear theory input for the r-process, observational and theoretical studies on abundances of heavy nuclei, and astrophysical models of the r-process.The proceedings have been selected for coverage in:• Index to Scientific & Technical Proceedings® (ISTP® / ISI Proceedings)• Index to Scientific & Technical Proceedings (ISTP CDROM version / ISI Proceedings)• CC Proceedings — Engineering & Physical Sciences

This book contains the proceedings of the 10th Hellenic Relativity Conference, held in Greece in 2002. It includes several plenary lectures given by leading experts on brane-world cosmology, radiative space-times, detection of gravitational waves, gamma-ray bursts and quantum gravity. There are a large number of contributed papers, organized into three broad subject areas: cosmology and brane gravity, mathematical relativity and astrophysical relativity, and the detection of gravitational waves.

String phenomenology offers a bridge between the excitement and novelty that typified theoretical physics in recent years and experimental reality. The First International Conference on String Phenomenology concentrated on cosmological and phenomenologically oriented applications of string theory. The aim was to bring together experimental and theoretical physicists to discuss the triumphs and challenges that high energy physics faces in its attempt to uncover the next layers of fundamental matter and interactions. The main theme was the application of string theory, but the conference also accommodated alternative approaches to physics beyond the Standard Model. The conference featured plenary talks reviewing the major topics, as well as parallel sessions for contributed papers describing new results in the major areas of the conference. It covered diverse topics, from collider and neutrino physics to fibre bundles on Calabi-Yau three folds.The proceedings have been selected for coverage in:• Index to Scientific & Technical Proceedings (ISTP CDROM version / ISI Proceedings)

This invaluable book presents selected papers of S Chandrasekhar, co-winner of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983 and a scientific giant well known for his prolific and monumental contributions to astrophysics, physics and applied mathematics. The reader will find here most of Chandrasekhar's articles that led to major developments in various areas of physics and astrophysics. There are also articles of a popular and historical nature, as well as some hitherto unpublished material based on Chandrasekhar's talks at conferences. Each section of the book contains annotations by the editor.

This unique volume is a collection of papers on various problems in astrophysics and cosmology — from planetary motion to the arrow of time — that are closely linked by the common spirit, technique and methodology of chaos.

The James Webb Space Telescope is transforming the universe right before our eyes—and here, for the first time, is the inside account of how the mission originated, how it performs its miracles of science, and what its revolutionary images are revealing.Pillars of Creation tells the story of one of the greatest scientific achievements in the history of civilization, a $10 billion instrument with a staggeringly ambitious goal: unlocking the secrets of the cosmos. Award-winning science writer Richard Panek stands us shoulder to shoulder with senior scientists as they conceive the mission, meet decades-long challenges to bring it to fruition, and, now, use its unprecedented technology to yield new discoveries about the origins of our solar system, to search for life on planets around other suns, and to trace the growth of hundreds of billions of galaxies all the way back to the birth of the first stars. The Webb telescope has captured the world's imagination, and Pillars of Creation shows how and why—including through sixteen pages of awe-inspiring, full-color photos. At once a testament to human ingenuity and a celebration of mankind's biggest leap yet into the cosmos, Panek's eye-opening book reveals our universe as we've never seen it before—through the lens of the James Webb Space Telescope, a marvel that is itself a pillar of creation.

The concept of entropy arises in diverse branches of science, including physics, where it plays a crucial role. However, the nature of entropy as a unifying concept is not widely discussed—it is dealt with in a piecemeal manner within different contexts. The interpretation of the concept is also subtly different in each case. This book will draw these diverse threads together and present entropy as one of the crucial physical concepts. It will cover a range of different applications of entropy, from the classical theory of thermodynamics, the statistical approach, entropy in quantum theory, information theory and finally, its manifestation in black hole physics. Each will be presented in a manner suitable for undergraduates and interested laypersons with no previous knowledge. The book will take an overview of these areas and see to what extent the concept of entropy is being treated in the same way in each, and how it differs.Key Features: Provides an accessible introduction to the exciting topic of entropy, setting out its manifestations in classical thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, and information theory Covers applications in black holes, quantum theory, and Big Bang cosmology

A leading astronomer and gifted teacher takes readers on a wondrous tour—'perfect for anyone who enjoyed Astrophysics for People in a Hurry'(Publishers Weekly)—of how science confronts the big questions about the origins, destiny, and fundamental nature of our universe Humans have learned a lot about the world around us and the universe beyond. We have made powerful insights and created profound theories about the universe and everything in it. Surely the ultimate theory must be waiting, just beyond our current knowledge. Well, maybe. In Into the Unknown, astrophysicist Kelsey Johnson takes us to the edge of scientific understanding about the universe: What caused the Big Bang? What happens inside black holes? Are there other dimensions? She doesn't just celebrate what we know but rather what we don't, and asks what it means if we never find that knowledge. Exploring the convergence of science, philosophy, and theology, Johnson argues we must reckon with possibilities—including those that may be beyond human comprehension. The very places where we run smack into total ignorance are the places where the most important questions—about the philosophy of knowledge, the nature of our cosmos, and even the existence of God—await. As accessible as it is profound, Into the Unknown invites each of us to join in the great quest for knowledge.

Get the Summary of Thomas Hertog's On the Origin of Time in 20 minutes. Please note: This is a summary & not the original book. The late 1990s revolutionized cosmology, revealing the universe's accelerated expansion due to dark energy and tracing its history back to the 13.8-billion-year-old big bang. The European Space Agency's 2009 satellite confirmed the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation, essential for galaxy formation. The universe's finely tuned properties, such as the neutron-to-proton mass ratio, support life...

This Second Edition is a comprehensive update, integrating the latest research and theoretical advancements in the field of de Sitter (dS) group representations. Building on the success of the first edition, the book offers a more in-depth analysis of mathematical aspects, conceptual foundations, and practical implications related to the dS group, including its Lie manifold, Lie algebra, and co-adjoint orbits, viewing the latter as potential classical elementary systems within the context of dS spacetime. Additionally, the examination of unitary irreducible representations (UIRs) sheds light on the potential existence of quantum elementary systems within the dS spacetime framework. The authors emphasize consistency with Wigner's approach to elementary systems, incorporate Wigner's principles and exploring projective UIRs of the dS group, and provide a deeper insight into the nature of dS elementary systems. Particular attention is paid to: the “smooth” transition from classical to quantum theory, the physical content under vanishing curvature, and the thermal interpretation from a quantum perspective. The book also focuses on the physical interpretation of elementary systems in curved spacetimes, recognizing the limitations of traditional concepts derived from flat Minkowski spacetime and the Poincaré group.

This is a practical guide to using a small astronomical telescope of a size that corresponds to most “first” telescopes – around 75-150 mm, i.e. 3-6 inches, in diameter.Visual Astronomy with a Small Telescope is for people who are sufficiently interested in astronomy to have purchased a small telescope or received one as a gift, but who are still developing experience of using one. They may have looked at the Moon and major planets and be wondering, “What's next?” There are many books catering for casual star-gazing and many more advanced books dealing with astrophotography and astrophysics, but this is for someone who has acquired their first telescope or soon will and wants to make the most of it.It explains how the optics of the telescope function, so the reader understands what their telescope can do and how eyepieces should be selected and used depending on the type of object being observed. It details different types of astronomical objects, their astrophysical significance, and how to observe them. It contains 43 detailed, clear charts and describes 380 objects suitable for visual observation with a small telescope and explains how to locate them without needing a computer-controlled telescope. It will help readers make the most of their telescopes to successfully observe the Universe and kick-start a life-long interest in star-gazing.• Presents essential information on optics, astronomy and astrophysics for anyone with a small telescope. • Contains 43 detailed charts, based on the constellations and showing stars down to magnitude 8.5, and identifies 380 objects suitable for visual observation with a small telescope. • Written by a Professor of Astrophysics with experience as both an amateur astronomer and a professional observational astronomer using telescopes at both small and major observatories around the world.

This open access book is about spontaneous symmetry breaking, which is a classic area of theoretical physics that lies at the core of many fascinating phenomena such as ferromagnetism, superfluidity, superconductivity, or the Higgs mechanism. The book brings an up-to-date overview of spontaneous symmetry breaking and of modern effective field theory description thereof. The topics covered include the classification of Nambu–Goldstone bosons, nonlinear realization of internal and spacetime symmetries and the construction of the corresponding effective actions, and selected applications. With in-depth exposition of conceptual foundations and numerous illustrative examples, the book is accessible to anybody having taken a basic course on quantum field theory. It serves as a self-contained text for graduate students and junior researchers in diverse areas of physics, but also as a useful reference for experts.

This book highlights a comprehensive coverage of X­‐ray and Gamma‐ray astrophysics. The first and the second parts discuss, respectively, X-ray and Gamma-ray experimental techniques and observatories. The third part is devoted to science, including galactic and extragalactic sources. The fourth and last parts are dedicated to analysis techniques in X-ray and Gamma-ray astronomy: spectral analysis, imagining analysis, timing analysis, and polarimetric analysis. Presenting the state of the art in X-ray and gamma-ray astronomy, this is both a valuable book for students and an important reference resource for researchers in the field.

In recent decades, twistor theory has grown into an irreplaceable tool for the study of scattering amplitudes in gauge theory and gravity. This book introduces the reader to cutting-edge advances in twistor theory and its applications to general relativity. The problem of graviton scattering in four dimensions is shown to be dual to dramatically simpler computations in a two-dimensional CFT known as a twistor sigma model. Twistor sigma models are the first step toward a holographic description of gravity in asymptotically flat space-times. They underpin the infinitely many asymptotic symmetries of flat space physics discovered in celestial holography, and extend them to exciting new arenas like curved space-times. They also yield intrinsically mathematical results in the field of hyperkähler manifolds. This volume will be of broad interest to students and researchers looking for an accessible entry point into twistor geometry, scattering amplitudes, and celestial holography. It will also provide an invaluable reference for specialists by bringing together results from a host of different disciplines.

What is space? What is time? Where did the universe come from? The answers to mankind's most enduring questions may lie in science's greatest enigma: black holes.A black hole is a region of space where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape. This can occur when a star approaches the end of its life. Unable to generate enough heat to maintain its outer layers, it shrinks catastrophically down to an infinitely dense point. When this phenomenon was first proposed in 1916, it defied scientific understanding so much that Albert Einstein dismissed it as too ridiculous to be true. But scientists have since proven otherwise. In 1971, Paul Murdin and Louise Webster discovered the first black hole: Cygnus X-1. Later, in the 1990s, astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope found that not only do black holes exist, supermassive black holes lie at the heart of almost every galaxy, including our own. It would take another three decades to confirm this phenomenon. On 10 April 2019, a team of astronomers made history by producing the first image of a black hole.A Crack in Everything is the story of how black holes came in from the cold and took cosmic centre stage. As a journalist, Marcus Chown interviews many of the scientists who made the key discoveries, and, as a former physicist, he translates the most esoteric of science into everyday language. The result is a uniquely engaging page-turner that tells one of the great untold stories in modern science.

• Connects the philosophy of the I Ching with key recent advances in cosmology, such as the Big Bang theory, Roger Penrose's cyclic conformal cosmology, and his and Stuart Hameroff's cosmic quantum brain dynamics• Explains the Taoist cosmology of Heaven-Humanity Oneness in the context of Teilhard de Chardin's evolutionism, Thomas Berry's cosmogenetic trinity, and Brian Swimme's 12 cosmological powers• Examines the holographic unity of Heaven, Earth, and Humankind at microcosmic, mesocosmic, and macrocosmic scalesIs the universe inert and empty, or is it in some way responsive to consciousness? Breathing new life into a question that has perplexed philosophers since ancient times and scientists for the last century, physicist Zhen G. Ma, Ph.D., offers a quantitative “theory of everything” that beautifully integrates ancient I Ching philosophy, Eastern Taoism, modern cosmology, and the quantum brain dynamics of consciousness. Sharing insights from his years of research on space physics and black-hole spacetime—complemented by studies in quantum brain dynamics and cosmological powers with Brian Swimme at the California Institute of Integral Studies—Ma explains how his integrated theory draws primarily on two key paradigms in the philosophy of cosmology and consciousness: Swimme's cosmic creation story of the universe as a green dragon and Roger Penrose and Stuart Hameroff's cosmic consciousness.Extending these theories further, Ma shows how they harmonize not only with the ancient Eastern philosophy of the oneness of heaven and humanity, but also with a holographic cosmic principle that connects the quantum-plasma brain with the universe and earth with heaven. He then looks at this holographic unity in the cyclic process of birth, growth, decay, and death and shows how it resonates with Einstein-Friedmann's cosmological dynamics and Hawking-Penrose's quantum gravity model.Demonstrating a quantitative paradigm of everything, Ma shows how humanity is inextricably and holistically blended into the cosmic fabric of the universe.

How the Einsteinian revolution can be understood as the result of a long-term evolution of science The revolution that emerged from Albert Einstein's work in the early twentieth century transformed our understanding of space, time, motion, gravity, matter, and radiation. Beginning with Einstein's miracle year of 1905 and continuing through his development of the theory of general relativity, Einstein spurred a revolution that continues to reverberate in modern-day physics. In The Einsteinian Revolution, Hanoch Gutfreund and Jürgen Renn trace the century-long transformation of classical physics and argue that the revolution begun by Einstein was in fact the result of a long-term evolution. Describing the origins and context of Einstein's innovative research, Gutfreund and Renn work to dispel the popular myth of Einstein as a lone genius who brought about a revolution in physics through the power of his own pure thought. We can only understand the birth of modern physics, they say, if we understand the long history of the evolution of knowledge.Gutfreund and Renn outline the essential structures of the knowledge system of classical physics on which Einstein drew. Examining Einstein's discoveries from 1905 onward, they describe the process by which new concepts arose and the basis of modern physics emerged. These transformations continued, eventually resulting in the establishment of quantum physics and general relativity as the two major conceptual frameworks of modern physics—and its two unreconciled theoretical approaches. Gutfreund and Renn note that Einstein was dissatisfied with this conceptual dichotomy and began a search for a unified understanding of physics—a quest that continued for the rest of his life.

Experimental physicist at CERN and acclaimed science presenter Harry Cliff offers an eye-opening account of the inexplicable phenomena that science has only recently glimpsed, and that could transform our understanding of the fundamental nature of reality.Something strange is going on in the cosmos. Scientists are uncovering a catalogue of weird phenomena that simply can't be explained by our long-established theories of the universe. Particles with unbelievable energies are bursting from beneath the Antarctic ice. Unknown forces seem to be tugging on the basic building blocks of matter. Stars are flying away from us far faster than anyone can explain. After decades of fruitless searching, could we finally be catching glimpses of a profound new view of our physical world? Or are we being fooled by cruel tricks of the data? In Space Oddities, Harry Cliff, a physicist who does cutting-edge work on the Large Hadron Collider, provides a riveting look at the universe's most confounding puzzles. In a journey that spans continents, from telescopes perched high above the Atacama Desert to the subterranean caverns of state-of-the-art particle colliders to balloons hovering over the frozen icesheets of the South Pole, he meets the men and women hunting for answers—who have staked their careers and reputations on the uncertain promise of new physics. The result is a mind-expanding, of-the-moment look at the fields of physics and cosmology as they transform before us. With wonder, clarity, and a dose of humor, Cliff investigates the question: Are these anomalies accidents of nature, or could they be pointing us toward vast, hidden worlds?

“A rich and rewarding history of one of the most astounding ideas in physics and astronomy” (Marcia Bartusiak) – that the universe we know isn't the only one Our books, our movies—our imaginations—are obsessed with extra dimensions, alternate timelines, and the sense that all we see might not be all there is. In short, we can't stop thinking about the multiverse. As it turns out, physicists are similarly captivated. In The Allure of the Multiverse, physicist Paul Halpern tells the epic story of how science became besotted with the multiverse, and the controversies that ensued. The questions that brought scientists to this point are big and deep: Is reality such that anything can happen, must happen? How does quantum mechanics “choose” the outcomes of its apparently random processes? And why is the universe habitable? Each question quickly leads to the multiverse. Drawing on centuries of disputation and deep vision, from luminaries like Nietzsche, Einstein, and the creators of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Halpern reveals the multiplicity of multiverses that scientists have imagined to make sense of our reality. Whether we live in one of many different possible universes, or simply the only one there is, might never be certain. But Halpern shows one thing for sure: how stimulating it can be to try to find out.

Tauchen Sie ein in die faszinierende Welt des alten Ägyptens, wo der Nachthimmel nicht nur ein Schauplatz für himmlische Phänomene war, sondern die Bühne, auf der Götter und Sterne das Schicksal der Menschen bestimmten. In diesem umfassenden Werk beleuchtet Gernot Schilling die tiefgreifende Verbindung zwischen Astronomie, Astrologie und den religiösen Praktiken des Pharaonen-Reiches. Erfahren Sie, wie die alten Ägypter den Kosmos nicht nur als physische Realität, sondern als göttliches Gefüge verstanden, das jeden Aspekt ihres täglichen Lebens durchdrang. Die Himmelskörper – von der allmächtigen Sonne bis hin zu den unvergänglichen Sternen – spielten eine zentrale Rolle in der ägyptischen Mythologie und prägten Rituale, Tempelarchitektur und den Glauben an das Leben nach dem Tod. Mit präzisen historischen Analysen und lebendigen Schilderungen nimmt dieses Buch Sie mit auf eine Reise durch die Jahrtausende und enthüllt, wie die ägyptischen Priester durch ihre Kenntnisse der Himmelsbewegungen Einfluss auf die Politik und das alltägliche Leben ausübten. Der göttliche Kosmos Ägyptens ist ein Muss für alle, die das tiefe Wissen und die spirituelle Weisheit dieser antiken Hochkultur verstehen möchten.

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) is a grand vision project to build the most sensitive radio telescope in the world. This open access book tells the story of its development – a story of transformational science, innovative engineering, and global collaboration. Its journey has been long and complex, reflecting the many issues faced in creating an affordable design, choosing a site, and developing a viable global organisation starting from a simple working group of far-sighted and persistent astronomers in 1993.The book begins with the emergence of the SKA concept and the first working group. It traces the development of global scientific and engineering collaborations and ever more comprehensive governance structures for the SKA, the involvement and roles of funding agencies and governments, and the long, political site selection process. This occurred alongside efforts to overcome technical barriers and the difficult process of selecting technology. It follows these themes up to the point in 2012 when the project had just transitioned from a collaboration to a legal entity and the dual site decision was made – a pivotal moment when it was clear the SKA arrays would be built. The book is based on the authors'personal experience at the leading edge of the project over many years, as well as access to hitherto unpublished material from project archives, interviews, and presentations from many of the key players at a specially convened conference. It has a Foreword written by John Womersley, former Chair of the Agencies SKA Group and SKA Organisation Board. The book is intended for an audience ranging from funding agencies and governments involved in major research infrastructures, to historians of science and professional researchers studying mega-projects, to the astronomy and physics communities in general and interested lay readers.

Evolutionary History in Theological Perspective: Exploring the Scientific Story of the Cosmos develops a new theological interpretation of evolutionary history. Exploring both secular and theological interpretations of evolutionary history, this new interpretation hinges on the similarities between individual redemption and the eschatological story of cosmic redemption as mediated by the Holy Spirit throughout evolutionary history. This new lens is then applied to relevant questions raised by the evolutionary process (especially suffering), and helps overcome the current shortcomings of contemporary interpretations of evolutionary history.

A moral cosmology was the ordinary background knowledge of prescientific peoples, who took the divinity and the moral rules of the heavenly bodies for granted. That unified world view was disrupted by the European Enlightenment, which divided moral cosmology into physics and ethics: physics tells us what is, ethics tells us what we ought to do. While knowledge of physics has become hard, and understanding ethics has become shifting and uncertain, nostalgia for a unified cosmic understanding continues. Moral Cosmology: On Being in the World Fully and Well demands that we search for one world and learn to be truly at home in that world once again. Albert Borgmann argues that a basic understanding of quantum physics and relative theory offers the widest possible background for the renewal of a moral cosmology, inviting us into a deeper understanding that can inform the focal occasions and practices that we implicitly know to be valuable. We may not always be able to completely understand or explain the depth of the world gathered and disclosed in these focal occasions, but to greet it with celebration deepening into wonder orients us and makes it possible for us to be at home in the universe.