Get 3 months of Audible free - Get this deal
$12.99

Promotions are applied when you make a purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Sold by Hachette Book Group Digital, Inc.. This price was set by the publisher.
Read with our free app
You have subscribed to ! We will pre-order your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, well charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet or computer C no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera, scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle app

  • Why Does E=mc2?: (And Why Should We Care?)
  • To view this video, download

Follow the authors

Brian Cox
Follow
Jeff Forshaw
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Why Does E=mc2?: (And Why Should We Care?) Special Edition, Kindle Edition

by Brian Cox (Author), Jeff Forshaw (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 out of 5 stars 2,016 ratings
4.0 on Goodreads
10,145 ratings
#1 Best Seller in Molecular Physics eBooks

鶹

' + '' + decodeURIComponent(encodedIframeContent) + ''+''); doc.close(); } } this.iframeload = function () { var iframe = document.getElementById(iframeId); iframe.style.display = ''; setTimeout(function () { setIframeHeight(initialResizeCallback); }, 20); } function getDocHeight(doc) { var contentDiv = doc.getElementById("iframeContent"); var docHeight = 0; if(contentDiv){ docHeight = Math.max( contentDiv.scrollHeight, contentDiv.offsetHeight, contentDiv.clientHeight ); } return docHeight; } function setIframeHeight(resizeCallback) { var iframeDoc, iframe = document.getElementById(iframeId); iframeDoc = ((iframe.contentWindow && iframe.contentWindow.document) || iframe.contentDocument); if (iframeDoc) { var h = getDocHeight(iframeDoc); if (h && h != 0) { iframe.style.height = parseInt(h) + 'px'; if(typeof resizeCallback == "function") { resizeCallback(iframeId); } } else if (nTries < MAX_TRIES) { nTries++; setTimeout(function () { setIframeHeight(resizeCallback); }, 50); } } } this.resizeIframe = function(resizeCallback) { nTries = 0; setIframeHeight(resizeCallback); } } return DynamicIframe; });
The international bestseller: an introduction to the theory of relativity by the eminent physicists Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw

What does E=mc2 actually mean? Dr. Brian Cox and Professor Jeff Forshaw go on a journey to the frontier of twenty-first century science to unpack Einstein's famous equation. Explaining and simplifying notions of energy, mass, and light-while exploding commonly held misconceptions-they demonstrate how the structure of nature itself is contained within this equation. Along the way, we visit the site of one of the largest scientific experiments ever conducted: the now-famous Large Hadron Collider, a gigantic particle accelerator capable of re-creating conditions that existed fractions of a second after the Big Bang. A collaboration between one of the youngest professors in the United Kingdom and a distinguished popular physicist, Why Does E=mc2? is one of the most exciting and accessible explanations of the theory of relativity.
Read more
Previous slide of product details
  1. ISBN-13
    978-0786752164
  2. Edition
    Special
  3. Publisher
    Grand Central Publishing
  4. Accessibility
    Learn more
  5. Publication date
    July 14 2009
  6. Language
    English
  7. File size
    1.8 MB
Next slide of product details
This title is only available on select devices and the latest version of the Kindle app. Please refer to the supported devices list before purchase. Available on these devices

See all supported devices

Kindle E-Readers

  • Kindle Touch
  • Kindle Scribe, 1st generation (2024 release)
  • Kindle (11th Generation, 2024 Release)
  • Kindle Paperwhite (5th Generation)
  • Kindle Oasis
  • All New Kindle E-reader
  • Kindle Paperwhite (12th Generation)
  • Kindle Paperwhite
  • Kindle
  • Kindle Paperwhite (10th Generation)
  • Kindle Oasis (10th Generation)
  • All new Kindle paperwhite
  • Kindle Scribe (1st Generation)
  • Kindle (10th Generation)
  • Kindle Oasis (9th Generation)

Fire Tablets

  • Fire HD 10 (11th Generation)
  • Fire HD 8 (10th Generation)

Free Kindle Reading Apps

  • Kindle for Android Phones
  • Kindle for Android Tablets
  • Kindle for iPhone
  • Kindle for iPad
  • Kindle for Web
  • Kindle for PC
  • Kindle for Mac
Popular Highlights in this book
What are Popular Highlights?
Previous page
  1. In science, there are no universal truths, just views of the world that have yet to be shown to be false.
    Highlighted by 381 Kindle readers
  2. The sun, with the earth in tow, is traveling around the Milky Way at 486,000 miles per hour, at a distance of 156,000 trillion miles from the center. At this speed, it takes 226 million years to complete one orbit.
    Highlighted by 378 Kindle readers
  3. Science is a discipline that celebrates uncertainty, and recognizing this is the key to its success.
    Highlighted by 320 Kindle readers
Next page

Product description

Review

Manchester Evening News, 3/6/10
Delivering cutting edge 21st century physics in a digestible form and publicizing science is [Coxs] stock-in trade and he can do it as easily in book form. Along with co-author and fellow Manchester University professor Jeff Forshaw, the enthusiastic rock star physicist and former member of D:Ream tackles Einsteins most famous equation and brings the subject to life. Its a book that will primarily appeal to anyone with an existing interest in science, but if youve ever wanted to understand the basic principles of energy, mass and light theres no better place to learn.

Metapsychology Online Reviews, 3/7/10
The authors manage effectively both to explain why E=mc2 and to convince us that we ought to careCox and Forshaw do remarkably well to keep the reader engaged through their discussion of some particularly difficult mathematical conceptsThe authors demonstrate, with clarity and ease, how Einsteins theory of special relativity is important in all aspects of our lives, from our own existence to the workings of everyday objectsAn entertaining and enlightening read.



ScienceforPeople.com
Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw have summoned up the audacity to write a book on relativity for lay people. Although this has been attempted before, it has rarely been done so wellCox and Forshaw know their stuff[They make] the science sound fresh and funThe book quickly and painlessly explains why E=mc2This book is a wonderful introduction into the wild world of stretchy time, warped space and unbelievable energiesGive this book a shot.

MSNBC.coms Cosmic Log blog, 11/24/09
The restart of the worlds biggest particle smasher, the Large Hadron Collider, should spark interest in recently published books that delve into the big picture surrounding subatomic physics, such as Why Does E=mc2?



Magill Book Review, October 2009
Using minimal mathematics, the authors present an intriguing, accessible description of Albert Einsteins special theory of relativity, how space-time relationships work, and why it is important in the modern worldTeaches readers who are not familiar with physics some complicated topics in a rather simple, straightforward, entertaining mannerRewards of increased knowledge and insights as to how the universe works will be reaped from this book for all those who have any interest in physics and its many applications to everyday life.

Charleston Post and Courier SC, 10/11
A fun romp with science...The often amusing lecture by British physicists Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw is written in plain language and full of fun examples.

Science News, 10/24/09
By exploring each part of Albert Einsteins famous equation, two physicists ultimately explain the theory of relativity.

Discover magazines Bad Astronomy blog
泦Գ.



Tucson Citizen, 3/17/10
A book written by two physicists is enough to give any critic pause. I approached it with much apprehension but quickly discovered that not only is the bulk of the book accessible, it is actually a perfect blend of science and universal truthsBy explaining the theories behind such massive projects as the atomic bomb and nuclear power, Cox and Forshaw build a convincing case that this simple equation contains the very backbone of nature and that by recognizing it for what it us, we can challenge and change many of our perspectives of space and time.

London Sunday Telegraph, 3/14/10
[The book] explain[s] some of physics most fiendish conceptslike the nature of space and the origin of massin sparkling prose.

Choice magazine, January 2010
A popular account of the intellectual interplay between elementary particle physics, relativity theory, and cosmologyIt does a very nice job of explaining the counterintuitive aspects of spacetime and the relationship between time, space, energy, and massReaders of this book will be better prepared to understand the news coming out of CERNRecommended.

The Big Bang Book Club, August 2010 pick

About the Author

Brian Cox is a professor of particle physicist and Royal Society University Research Fellow at the University of Manchester. He divides his time between Manchester in the UK and the CERN laboratory in Geneva, where he heads an international project to upgrade the giant ATLAS and CMS detectors at the Large Hadron Collider. He has received many awards for his work promoting science, including being elected an International Fellow of the Explorers Club in 2002, an organization whose members include Neil Armstrong and Chuck Yeager. He is also a popular presenter on TV and radio, with credits which including a six-part series on Einstein for BBC Radio 4, 3 BBC Horizon programs on Gravity, Time and Nuclear Fusion, and a BBC4 documentary about the LHC at CERN, The Big Bang Machine. He was the Science Advisor on Danny Boyle's movie, the science-fiction thriller Sunshine. Brian also has an unorthodox background in the music business, having toured the world with various bands and played keyboard with D:REAM, who had several UK Top 10 hits including Things Can Only Get Better (re-released & used as Tony Blair's election anthem back in 1997.

Jeff Forshaw is professor of theoretical physics at the University of Manchester, specializing in the physics of elementary particles. He was awarded the Institute of Physics Maxwell Medal in 1999 for outstanding contributions to theoretical physics. He graduated from Oxford University and gained a PhD from Manchester University. From 1992-1995 he worked in Professor Frank Close's group at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory before returning to Manchester in 1995. Jeff is an enthusiastic lecturer and currently teaches Einstein's Theory of Relativity to first year undergraduates. He has co-writing an undergraduate textbook on relativity for Wiley and he is the author of an advanced level monograph on particle physics for Cambridge University Press.

Cox and Forshaw began collaborating on scientific papers in 1998, and have published on topics ranging from Pomerons to Higgs Bosons. Their most successful paper to date deals with physics at the Large Hadron Collider in the absence of a Higgs particle.
?

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B002TJLF7W
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grand Central Publishing
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 14 2009
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ Special
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1.8 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 265 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0786752164
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • 鶹 Rank: #27,417 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 out of 5 stars 2,016 ratings

About the authors

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Previous page
  1. Brian Cox

    Brian Cox

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Brian Cox, PhD, is a leading particle physicist and professor at the University of Manchester, as well as a researcher on one of the most ambitious experiments on Earth, the ATLAS experiment on the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland. A Royal Society research fellow, professor Cox was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 2010. He is the author of Why Does E=MC? and is well known as presenter of the television series Wonders of the Solar System and Wonders of the Universe. He was also the keyboard player in the UK pop band D:Ream in the 1990s.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Jeff Forshaw

    Jeff Forshaw

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Discover more of the authors books, see similar authors, read book recommendations and more.

    See more on the author's page
Next page

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
2,016 global ratings

Review this product

Share your thoughts with other customers
Write a customer review

Top reviews from Canada

  • Jas
    5.0 out of 5 stars Reader friendly physics !
    Reviewed in Canada on July 12, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Dr Cox and his writing partner deliver a page-turning explanation of why you should want to know E=MC2 and this significance of the equation on your life. This is an enjoyable, reader-friendly text telling you why we cannot travel faster than the speed of light, cannot go back in time, and so on. You will be entertained and educated by this book at the same time.
    2 people found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report
  • 鶹 Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
    Reviewed in Canada on January 19, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Great read. Brian Cox is great at taking complex subject matter and (let's face it) dumbing it down for the rest of us. I've read it before, this is my second copy.
    Helpful
     Report
  • P on I
    4.0 out of 5 stars Keep a critical eye on the equations
    Reviewed in Canada on July 20, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Enjoying the book. It's not an easy read and the equations are often wrong. It might be the kindle version has errors that the original did not have. For example kinetic energy is given as 1/2mv.
    There are some leaps of logic that have me scratching my head. Pythagoras equation for a hypotenuse magically becomes h2=a2-b2. Later, it is shown that it works better that way.
    Helpful
     Report
  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Einstein's theories explained for the non-scientist...
    Reviewed in Canada on September 6, 2011
    Verified Purchase
    If you have been searching for a readable, understandable text that uses only Pythagorean mathematical concepts yet fully explains Einstein's basic theories, look no further. The book not only covers the concept of E=mc2, but also goes into the theories of general and specific relativity in a manner that most lay persons will come to understand these far-reaching anomalies.

    You will discover by the end of the text that Einstein was not the intellectual superman that the media and we, the populace, needed him to be. While he was highly intelligent and had uncanny mathematical skills, his hard work, single mindedness and creative view towards problem solving was what propelled him to the tenuous position of intellectual superhero.
    6 people found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report
  • Mark P
    5.0 out of 5 stars well worth reading
    Reviewed in Canada on January 20, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    goid book,but will help to have some prior knowledge.well written and always a great read from Brisn cox
    One person found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report
  • Mr Ronald Carver
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good read
    Reviewed in Canada on October 12, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Excellent explanation, really good starting point for understanding relativity
    2 people found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report
  • Darrell Turcotte
    4.0 out of 5 stars E=mc^2 and what this equation means and why.
    Reviewed in Canada on May 10, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    another excellent book that opens the lid on the universal box of why the two variables are a function of the light constant squared.
    One person found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report
  • C. J. Thompson
    3.0 out of 5 stars Difficult for those without a good mathematical grounding
    Reviewed in Canada on March 14, 2011
    I find the subject matter of this book fascinating and I have enjoyed others touching on the same basic subject. However, although the preface promises to illuminate the subject with mathematics no more difficult than the Pythagorean theorem, I found that this was a bit misleading... There are lots of formulas embedded within the text and, with my very basic mathematical education, I found the going very tough. Ulitimately, I abandoned the book somewhere around three-quarters of the way through. I am not qualified to comment on the accuracy of much these authors have to say but I would counsel those without a lot of experience working with mathematics and physics problems to be cautious in spending money on this book.
    7 people found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English
  • 5.0 out of 5 stars һȷʧΤٹ
    Reviewed in Japan on December 17, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    йűǤ״̬褯СƤ򤤵äǤǰؤϺߤƤޤäΤǣdzˤ꤬Ǥ
    Report
  • Jaume Puigbo Vila
    5.0 out of 5 stars A readable book on XXth century physics
    Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2009
    Verified Purchase
    Francis Ford Coppola has said that happiness consists on learning new things every day. People like Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw help us to become happier. Scientists like these who devote part of their precious time to divulge scientific ideas are the real missionaries of the XXIst century helping to extend the gospel of science, which, contrary to other gospels, it is non dogmatic and subjected to possible disproval by experiment , a feature of science introduced by Muslim scientists (!) according to the book (page 40).
    The book is not only, as it title suggests, an explanation of the famous Einstein formula but a very up-to-date and understandable review of XXth century physics, including cosmology, special and general relativity and the Standard Model with its awe inspiring master equation.
    The book uses, sometimes, very simple mathematics, which the authors suggest the math averse reader to skip, if necessary, but with important results. For instance, making use of the very famous, old and simple Pythagorean theorem Cox and Forshaw prove that the half life of muons accelerated to 99.94% of the speed of light is extended, due to relativistic effects, 29 times, a fact that is verified experimentally.
    There are also several examples of theoretical predictions confirmed experimentally which is one of the beauties of physics. Fred Hoyle's prediction of an energy level of the carbon nucleus which makes it crucially possible the synthesis of heavier elements in the stars, gravitational waves (whose existence has been indirectly confirmed studying a double pulsar) , the masses of the W and Z bosons (confirmed at CERN), the existence of the positron posited by Dirac or Chandrasehar's limit for the mass of white dwarves.
    The story unfolds from Faraday's experiments and Maxwell's equations which lead to the constancy of the speed of light which, in turn, lead to the Special Theory of Relativity, to Minkowski's space time, the conservation of the energy-momentum vector and the famous E=mc2 formula (which is an approximation, by the way). The final chapters are devoted to General Relativity (and its clear effects on the GPS system), the Standard Model (with a good introduction to gauge symmetry) and the Higgs boson, the last particle, among the fundamental particles of the model, to be found experimentally (in the Large Hadron Collider hopefully when they get it working) .
    There are also some curiosities such as that if the Earth was flat we would see a laser fired horizontally bending to its surface. To sum up: a very entertaining book that I hope will make you happier. It made me.
    Report
  • Foolish Fish
    5.0 out of 5 stars Annoyed
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 13, 2010
    Verified Purchase
    A truely challenging read, but nonetheless one which I can thank the authors for. As much as I have stuggled with the likes of Hawking and Green, as a relative (!) novice in basic relativity theory I feel as though I now have at least the rudiments with which to dig deeper. The five stars are undoubtedly deserved for the first couple of chapters alone in which the foundations of modern science are served up in a very easily swallowed pill.

    But I'm left angry. Why does the book have to be tarnished with yet another rant about religion?

    Now, I can understand why a weak-minded fundamentalist such as Dawkins would not bother to investigate the chasm between the politically-serving closed-mindedness and bullyings of organised, state-controlled "religions" on one side, and on the other the actual teachings of the enlightened men whose works have been (and always will be) usurped for self-advancing ladder-climbers. I say I can understand this lack of investigation because Dawkins is an emotive man who lets all his scientific principles of investigation and evidence-based conclusions go out the window when it comes to his ferocious and fundamentalist relgious views (I'm not sure I wouldn't even rather get preached at by some Jesus-soldier or a Mujahadin Jihadist...)

    But for the brilliant, intelligent and deeply human Brian Cox to fall into the same trap... I guess it just makes me sad.

    Sad that Science and millitant Atheism seem to now go unquestioningly together.

    Sad that even Brian Cox, for whom I have tremedous admiration and respect hasn't yet come to the conclusion choosing between science and religion is like choosing between eating breakfast and wearing shoes. Surely, it's not rocket science that they are two completely different things? Ever tried measuring how heavy you are with a ruler? Science and Spiritual practices belong to two completely different realms within the (vast) Human experience.

    Sad that even Brian Cox would choose to come up with the following phrase: "This rather provocative statement sounds superficially profound in the way that Zenlike utterences from fortune-tellers often do. In this case, however, it does turn out to be a great insight[...]" What exactly do Zen Buddhism and fortune-telling have to do with each other? I wonder how much respect Dr Cox could preserve for a computer programmer who wrote in his book: "...this sounds as pretentious as those quantum-physicky utterances of botanists, but in this case, it's actually useful."

    I won't remove a star for this, no matter how annoying, because the rest of the book really is SO interesting. I guess that would be because (most of the time), the duo are talking about something they actually know (a hell of a lot!) about.
    Report
  • Client d'鶹
    5.0 out of 5 stars Scientifiquement correct mais accessible tout le monde.
    Reviewed in France on October 6, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    C'est un livre accessible tout le monde. Mais c'est scientifiquement correct et trs utile pour faire comprendre le concept de vitesse limite, de relativit de temps et espace, de rfrentiels etc. Je suis enseignante en physique et je vais le recommander mes lves.
    Report
  • Romance Leser
    5.0 out of 5 stars Physics for beginners - without the "dumbing down" - great read!
    Reviewed in Germany on February 11, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    I have hated physics since I was a schoolkid. Now, as an adult, I'm stuck with university-physics so I bought this book in the hope of finding something that might interest me - and thus get me to not throw my schoolbooks out of the window in boredom and despair.
    I never thought I could understand any of it, but after having watched Mr Cox on the telly the tiniest spark of hope got kindled. And can you believe it! I understood it all, even the Standard Model. Admittedly, I took a long break halfway through, but the book was just too well-written to not finish it. Next semester chemistry is coming up and all the explanations about atoms, quants etc are going to be a great help. Apart from all the knowledge I received it was some great entertainment! (And it got me an excellent score in physics this semester:))
    Report

Report an issue


Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report