Relativity: An Exposition without Mathematics

12mo (17 cm), 78, [2] pp. Printed wrappers (wrappers slightly dusted). A popular scientific introduction to Einstein's theory of relativity, first published in June 1927 and reprinted seven times within five years, reflecting the remarkable public interest in modern physics during the interwar period. Written by James Rice, M.A., Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Liverpool, the book was expressly intended for readers without mathematical training, explaining one of the most revolutionary scientific theories of the twentieth century in clear, non-technical language. Organized into seven chapters--Space; The Newtonian Theory; Absolute Space and Time; The Optical Phenomena; The Electromagnetic Theory of Light and Matter, and Lorentz's Solution of the Absolute Motion Difficulty; The Special Theory of Relativity; and The General Theory--the exposition begins with the classical mechanics of Galileo and Newton before tracing the experimental and theoretical developments that undermined the concept of absolute space and time, including the Michelson–Morley experiment, the Fitzgerald contraction hypothesis, and Lorentz's electron theory. Rice then presents Einstein's special and general theories of relativity in an accessible historical framework, emphasizing their physical significance rather than mathematical formulation, and concludes with a concise bibliography for further reading. A lucid and well-constructed popular account representative of the early efforts to introduce Einstein's ideas to the educated general reader.…