Creative Commons License Copyright © Michael Richmond. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

Introduction and parable of the surveyors

First, we need to go over the structure of this course.

The "big" topics this course will cover are

  1. why is relativity necessary?
  2. spacetime events
  3. invariant quantities
  4. transforming between different observers
  5. relativistic definitions of energy and momentum
  6. consequences of mass-energy

Throughout the semester, I will administer short, multiple-choice quizzes during some class meetings. You must write your answers on a small piece of paper, together with your name, and turn them in once time is up. These quizzes will count for 20 percent of your overall grade in this course.

Let's do one right now, so you can see how they work. You will have THREE MINUTES to answer THREE QUESTIONS.

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To get a feeling for the path that we will follow, consider the parable of the surveyors.

Creative Commons License Copyright © Michael Richmond. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.