A First Course in General Relativity

Аннотация

Clarity, readability, and rigor combine in the second edition of this widely used textbook to provide the first step into general relativity for undergraduate students with a minimal background in mathematics. Topics within relativity that fascinate astrophysical researchers and students alike are covered with Schutz’s characteristic ease and authority – from black holes to gravitational lenses, from pulsars to the study of the Universe as a whole. This edition now contains recent discoveries by astronomers that require general relativity for their explanation; a revised chapter on relativistic stars, including new information on pulsars; an entirely rewritten chapter on cosmology; and an extended, comprehensive treatment of modern gravitational wave detectors and expected sources.