The Grip of Gravity (The Quest to Understand the Laws of Motion and Gravitation)

Gravity is one of the most inexplicable forces of nature, controlling everything, from the expansion of the Universe to the ebb and flow of ocean tides. The search for the laws of motion and gravitation began more than two thousand years ago, a quest that Prabhakar Gondhalekar recounts in The Grip of Gravity. Beginning with Aristotle and concluding with Planck, Gondhalekar outlines a 'genealogy' of gravity and lucidly explains how previous explanations have shaped the most recent development in the field, string theory. In this work, physicist and astronomer Gondhalekar describes experiments, both planned and proposed, and clearly explains natural phenomena like ocean tides, seasons, ice ages, the formation of planets, stars, and exotic objects like black holes and neutron stars, which are all controlled by gravity. Including anecdotes and thumb-nail sketches of the personalities involved, The Grip of Gravity provides an introduction to the foundation of modern physics and shows how the current developments in string theory may lead to a new and radical interpretation of gravity. Prabhakar Gondhalekar is an Honorary Fellow in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College, London. Until his retirement in 1998, he was the head of the Space Astronomy Group at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, where he had been a researcher for 18 years. His research has included a number of topics in galactic and extragalactic astronomy, with his major work focusing on the interstellar medium and active galactic nuclei. Gondhalekar has been awarded Royal Society, Leverhulme Trust, and NATO Research Fellowships to do research in universities in the United States and Israel. Gravity is one of the most inexplicable forces of nature, controlling everything, from the expansion of the universe to the ebb and flow of ocean tides. The search for the laws of motion and gravitation began more than two thousand years ago, a quest that Prabhakar Gondhalekar recounts in the Grip of Gravity. Beginning with Aristotle and concluding with Planck, Gondhalekar outlines a 'genealogy' of gravity and lucidly tells how previous explanations have shaped the most recent development in the field, string theory.In this work, physicist and astronomer Gondhalekar describes experiments, both planned and proposed, and clearly explains natural phenomena like ocean tides, seasons, ice ages, the formation of planets, stars, and exotic objects like black holes and neutron stars, which are all controlled by gravity. Including anecdotes and thumb-nail sketches of the personalities involved, The Grip of Gravity provides an introduction to the foundation of modern physics and shows how the current developments in string theory may lead to a new and radical interpretation of gravity. Gravity is the most enigmatic of all known forces of nature. It controls everything, from ocean tides to the expansion of the Universe. The search for the laws of motion and gravitation started over two thousand years ago. The reader is taken on an exciting journey through the subsequent centuries, identifying the blind alleys, the profound insights and flashes of inspiration that have punctuated this search. Despite the fantastic progress that has been made, the true nature of gravity is still a mystery and this book attempts to show how the current developments in string theory(s) (perhaps the 'Theory of Everything') may lead to a new and radical interpretation of gravity. This book describes the fundamental concepts, developments and experiments, both performed and planned, to increase our understanding of gravity and the natural phenomena in which gravity is the principal player. This story of how we have arrived at our understanding of the laws of motion and gravitation traces both the historical progress and explains the central scientific ideas. Aimed at a 'non-technical' reader this book has an anecdotal approach describing experiments to further understand gravity and natural phenomena. downward towards the centre of the universe, fire towards the extreme, and air and water towards intermediate places. Once in its natural place, each of the four elements remains at rest unless caused to move. Aristotle Greek science Alexandrian science Islamic science Kepler Galileo Newton Einstein Dicke Hubble Eddington Planck Chronology Suggestions for further reading Notes Index

tells The Story Of How We Have Arrived At Our Current Understanding Of The Laws Of Motion And Gravitation.

Prabhakar Gondhalekar. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 348-349) And Index. You can see an extract at http://www.fathom.com/feature/122510/index.html