The internationally renowned physicist Harald Fritzsch deftly explains the meaning and far-flung implications of the general theory of relativity and other mysteries of modern physics by presenting an imaginary conversation among Newton, Einstein, and a fictitious contemporary particle physicist named Adrian Haller -- the same device Fritzsch employed to great acclaim in his earlier book An Equation That Changed the World, which focused on the special theory of relativity.

Einstein's theory of gravitation, his general theory of relativity, touches on basic questions of our existence. Matter, according to Einstein, has no existence independent of space and time. It is even capable of bending the structure of space and changing the course of time -- it introduces a "curvature." Gravity emerges not as an actual physical force but as a consequence of space-time geometry. Even the apple that drops from the tree follows the curvature of time and space.

In this entertaining and involving account of relativity, Newton serves as the skeptic and asks the questions a modern reader might ask. Einstein himself does the explaining, while Haller explains the new developments that have occurred since the general theory was proposed. The result is an intellectual roller-coaster ride in which concepts that have entered the vernacular become clear for the first time: the Big Bang, "black holes," elementary particles, and much more.

With a foreword written by G *#x0027;t HooftIn the 1960s, Leipzig was the center of resistance in East Germany. Harald Fritzsch, then a physics student, contemplated escape. But before he left, he wanted to demonstrate to the government that they had gone too far when they destroyed St. Paul's Church in May 1968. He accomplished that by unrolling a protest transparency in spectacular fashion. Despite the great efforts of the secret police, the STASI, the government was unable to find out who was responsible for this act. Soon after, together with a friend, Fritzsch began his journey to Bulgaria in order to escape into Turkey by traversing the Black Sea in a folding canoe. This was a daredevil endeavor, never done before.In this book, Harald Fritzsch - now a world-renowned physicist - portrays in captivating detail an authentic picture of the East German regime and the events of the late 1960s. Today, 40 years later, he critically takes stock of the events since German reunification.

Imagine a meeting of Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, and a present-day physicist - and imagine what we might learn from their conversation. Such an opportunity is precisely what Harald Fritzsch offers in An Equation That Changed the World. Following the style of Galileo's Dialogue on the Two Chief World Systems, and addressed to readers without specialized knowledge in physics and higher mathematics, this book lets us listen in on an imaginary meeting of the scientists who created classical physics and modern relativity. As Newton and Einstein propound their different views of space and time, and as the fictional professor Adrian Haller brings to the table recent developments in modern physics, we are introduced to the theory of relativity. We learn its source, its workings, and the way it has revolutionized our view of the physical world. Harald Fritzsch, writes a reviewer for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, "seems to be an atypical case of a scientist who has a real interest in making the results of science known to nonscientists". His masterly work reveals the intellectual process of scientific discovery that leads from puzzlement to questions to answers and resolution, and, in turn, to new questions and consequences. Decoding Einstein's famous equation, E=mc(superscript 2), Fritzsch illuminates the concepts of space and time in classical mechanics and special relativity. He provides lucid accounts of an extraordinary range of phenomena - from subatomic particles to fusion energy to antimatter - and probes fundamental questions of cosmology. With minimal use of technical terminology or mathematical formulas, Fritzsch not only explains relativity but compels us to see its relevancefor the human race and the survival of our planet.