Relativity free of Folklore
Galloping with Light
Einstein, Relativity, and Folklore
English original · Spanish edition available
A concept-first journey through Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity and the assumptions that so often obscure it.
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About the book
Galloping with Light revisits the conceptual foundations of Special Relativity for readers who want to understand the physical ideas beneath the formulas. It challenges familiar folklore and uses direct reasoning to separate the theory itself from the stories that have accumulated around it. The same work is also available in Spanish as Cabalgando con la Luz.
Inside the book
The argument, in full.
A symbolic cavalcade beginning with the discovery of fire, following the imagination of an adolescent Einstein, and ending with Apollo 11 placing a laser retroreflector on the Moon. Felix uses that journey—and his own struggle to understand relativity—to rebuild the reader’s intuition about time, distance, and motion.
- 01
Why relativity is not the same thing as subjectivity.
- 02
How everyday intuitions about time, distance, and motion can mislead us.
- 03
Why semantics and epistemology must come before formulas.
- 04
How Einstein’s Special and General Theories of Relativity emerged from earlier physical ideas.
- 05
How popular culture has borrowed Einstein’s prestige to support claims the theory does not make.
Eight-part ebook edition
One complete work, serialized.
Galloping with Light was also presented as eight short ebooks. These are parts of the same work, not eight additional books.
- 1E=mc²: The Most Famous Equation in History… and its Folklore
- 2The Perception of Time… and its Measurement
- 3The Perception of Space… and its Measurement
- 4Who Was Right: Ptolemy or Copernicus?
- 5Galloping with Sound — The Grand Cosmic Conspiracy
- 6Galloping with Light — The Special Theory of Relativity
- 7When Celestial Dynamics Becomes Kinematics Again — General Relativity
- 8The Seduction of Pseudoknowledge
Language editions
One work, two languages.
The Spanish edition is the same book—not a separate work in Felix's bibliography.
English
Galloping with Light
Einstein, Relativity, and Folklore
- Edition
- 2011 edition
- ISBN-13
- 9781456373856
Español
Cabalgando con la Luz
Einstein, Relatividad, y Folclore
- Edition
- 2009 edition
- ISBN-13
- 9788493630546
“A remarkable book. You have “galloped with light” very astutely and imaginatively! Besides being a thorough student of your subject, you are also a skilled pedagogue of it. I hope that you will continue to receive acknowledgments of the fine contribution made by your book.”
“By reading this book anyone can comprehend the immensity of Einstein’s concepts and implications. And not only that: it is read with gusto, and at the end one would like to start all over.”
“I’m impressed at your pedagogical capability to explain advanced physics with words almost only. An absolutely fascinating reading—a cultural odyssey through the roots of physics.”
“An introduction, intellectually accessible and literarily enchanting, to one of the principal components of the scaffold scientists have built for the current understanding of the Universe. Galloping with Light is an illuminating exception, and I hope readers enjoy it as much as I have.”
“Felix lays bare his biography throughout the book. Everywhere his hunger to understand the Theory of Relativity grows like a fire. Each chapter inspires your curiosity about things you know already—a delightful treat for the inquisitive mind.”
“This book is a jewel. I have enjoyed every single chapter. Great for understanding the universe and becoming familiar with those difficult subjects which remain unclear in our minds until someone like Felix Alba shows us how fascinating and fully enjoyable they are.”
“If this reviewer were teaching a course in physics at the college level, Mr. Alba-Juez’s book would be an absolute must on the course reading list.”
“An excellent pick that blends humor, common sense, and knowledge into one entertaining package. Highly recommended.”
“Just finished Galloping with Light and it seriously blew my mind. The author describes Einstein’s Theory of Relativity so well. I highly, highly recommend this book.”
“Reflecting on his own journey of intellectual understanding, Felix Alba-Juez expertly reveals and demystifies Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. By first constructing the etymological and epistemological foundations, a crafted and consolidated description is offered which both educates and delights.”
“Me di cuenta que el autor lo había escrito con un pincel: es una obra de arte. Digerir hasta comprender conceptos abstractos es un reto difícil y este libro lo logra con un estilo audaz. Lo recomiendo ampliamente y agradezco al autor por esta joya educativa.”
“Genial, muchas gracias. Lo recomiendo para cualquiera que quiera introducirse en el mundo de la relatividad. Se explican conceptos complejos de una forma sencilla pero rigurosa.”
“El autor está convencido de que se puede saber mucho pero comprender muy poco. Explica la Relatividad con una claridad asombrosa y en términos no científicos. Después de cuarenta años de docencia, el libro derrumbó parte del andamiaje de mis conocimientos y creó el desafío de reconstruirlos sobre una base más sólida.”