What
we provide here is Terry Freeman's course on Einstein's
theory of relativity. The notes have been specifically
written for high school students.
This
is a course on the Theory of Relativity, designed for senior secondary
school students. While the course is intended to cover the relevant
section of the current Physics stage 6 syllabus of the New South
Wales Higher School Certificate, we will need to consider other
fundamental aspects that will supplement your understanding of
the subject. These notes will be presented at a level that should
help most students and we will try not go beyond the level or
content that is appropriate for high school students. The sections
of the syllabus have been identified in red.
For
these notes we use Einstein as the authority, this is because
he had the genius to clearly think through, construct and summarise
what is regarded as one of the greatest theories of the twentieth
century. Hence Einstein's explanations of his theories are still
regarded as being as clear and simple as any that were written
after his discoveries. We will take as our text Relativity,
the Special and the General Theory by Albert Einstein.
The text was first produced in 1916 and the authorised translation,
used here, is by R. W. Lawson, published by Three Rivers Press,
New York (ISBN 0-517-88441-0). You will also find copies from
the internet here or
here.
The
original author (Einstein) claims: "The work presumes a standard
of education corresponding to that of a university matriculation
examination, and, despite the shortness of the book, a fair amount
of patience and force of will on the part of the reader." The
current NSW HSC is equivalent to university matriculation and
it should be no surprise that the theory requires "patience and
force of will". The writer of these notes is unaware of an easier
or clearer text that introduces the theory of relativity in a
suitable manner.
Please note that the special relativity notes can
be viewed using Acrobat Reader, which has been included on this
cd here.
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