Reinventing Gravity

A Physicist Goes Beyond Einstein

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Science, Physics, General Physics
Cover of the book Reinventing Gravity by John W. Moffat, HarperCollins e-books
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: John W. Moffat ISBN: 9780061982187
Publisher: HarperCollins e-books Publication: October 6, 2009
Imprint: HarperCollins e-books Language: English
Author: John W. Moffat
ISBN: 9780061982187
Publisher: HarperCollins e-books
Publication: October 6, 2009
Imprint: HarperCollins e-books
Language: English

Einstein's gravity theory—his general theory of relativity—has served as the basis for a series of astonishing cosmological discoveries. But what if, nonetheless, Einstein got it wrong?

Since the 1930s, physicists have noticed an alarming discrepancy between the universe as we see it and the universe that Einstein's theory of relativity predicts. There just doesn't seem to be enough stuff out there for everything to hang together. Galaxies spin so fast that, based on the amount of visible matter in them, they ought to be flung to pieces, the same way a spinning yo-yo can break its string. Cosmologists tried to solve the problem by positing dark matter—a mysterious, invisible substance that surrounds galaxies, holding the visible matter in place—and particle physicists, attempting to identify the nature of the stuff, have undertaken a slew of experiments to detect it. So far, none have.

Now, John W. Moffat, a physicist at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Canada, offers a different solution to the problem. The cap­stone to a storybook career—one that began with a correspondence with Einstein and a conversation with Niels Bohr—Moffat's modified gravity theory, or MOG, can model the movements of the universe without recourse to dark matter, and his work chal­lenging the constancy of the speed of light raises a stark challenge to the usual models of the first half-million years of the universe's existence.

This bold new work, presenting the entirety of Moffat's hypothesis to a general readership for the first time, promises to overturn everything we thought we knew about the origins and evolution of the universe.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Einstein's gravity theory—his general theory of relativity—has served as the basis for a series of astonishing cosmological discoveries. But what if, nonetheless, Einstein got it wrong?

Since the 1930s, physicists have noticed an alarming discrepancy between the universe as we see it and the universe that Einstein's theory of relativity predicts. There just doesn't seem to be enough stuff out there for everything to hang together. Galaxies spin so fast that, based on the amount of visible matter in them, they ought to be flung to pieces, the same way a spinning yo-yo can break its string. Cosmologists tried to solve the problem by positing dark matter—a mysterious, invisible substance that surrounds galaxies, holding the visible matter in place—and particle physicists, attempting to identify the nature of the stuff, have undertaken a slew of experiments to detect it. So far, none have.

Now, John W. Moffat, a physicist at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Canada, offers a different solution to the problem. The cap­stone to a storybook career—one that began with a correspondence with Einstein and a conversation with Niels Bohr—Moffat's modified gravity theory, or MOG, can model the movements of the universe without recourse to dark matter, and his work chal­lenging the constancy of the speed of light raises a stark challenge to the usual models of the first half-million years of the universe's existence.

This bold new work, presenting the entirety of Moffat's hypothesis to a general readership for the first time, promises to overturn everything we thought we knew about the origins and evolution of the universe.

More books from HarperCollins e-books

Cover of the book Stop Being Your Symptoms and Start Being Yourself by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Seek by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Lexi James and the Council of Girlfriends by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Immaculate Reception by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book All Things Beautiful by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Modoc by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Come to Win by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book A Rogue's Embrace by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book These Is My Words by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book When a Stranger Loves Me by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Among the Great Apes by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Making Sense of Adoption by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book The Writing Life by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Everything Is Under Control by John W. Moffat
Cover of the book Ugly Man by John W. Moffat
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy