Special and general theory of relativity - one of the most outstanding achievements of human thought.They were formulated at the beginning of the last century and were part of a single human breakthrough in understanding the nature of the world.However, between them there is a striking difference, which is that the first theory, although contrary to conventional notions, was a logical consequence of the generalization of observational data.General relativity also was the product of a thought experiment.In fact, it was this intellectual feat of its creator, the German physicist Albert Einstein.
Albert Einstein published his work, which was first formulated the general theory of relativity in 1915.Like so much of modern physics, this theory contradicts our intuitive notions about the world.Ray Dinverno said: "Indeed, the intellectual leap that took from Einstein to come from special relativity to general - one of the greatest in human history ...".Eynshtneyn himself admitted in a letter to a colleague: "I've never worked with such intensity ... Compared with the general theory of relativity, the original theory - is child's play ...".
According to the special theory of relativity, time and space are not independent substances.Rather, they are different manifestations of a single space-time.The relationship between time and spatial coordinates for different reference frames moving at different speeds.This, in particular, leads to the fact that two events that appear simultaneous to one observer may occur at different times for the other.
However, this theory does not explain the nature of the forces of attraction.It did general relativity.It postulates, in addition to the fundamentals of the special theory, the thesis contained inseparable connection of matter and space-time.She said that the force of gravity due to the curvature of space, what is happening around material objects.In other words, matter indicates space as bend, and space tells matter how to move.
Thus, this theory gives a complete picture, in which the space-time theater forms of existence of matter, and on the other hand, determines the properties of matter.
general theory of relativity - a cornerstone of the fundamental science.Despite this, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1993 alone.She got Astrophysics Halz and Taylor for an explanation of the precession of the binary pulsar - a system consisting of two neutron stars.More recently, in 2011, another Nobel prize was awarded for his contribution to the theory in cosmology and explanation of the universe's expansion.
Although its effects are negligible on Earth and near-Earth space, it has a very important practical applications.Most probably, the most important of them - a global positioning system, such as the American GPS and Russian GLONASS.Excluding the effects of relativity theory, these systems would be at least an order of magnitude less accurate.Thus, if you - the owner of the phone system with GPS, the general theory of relativity works on you.
