3 ms·

When I first started asking friends about SR/GR, they pointed me to 'Gravitation' by Misner, Thorne, and Wheeler. I really appreciated the "dual track" nature o

When I first started asking friends about SR/GR, they pointed me to 'Gravitation' by Misner, Thorne, and Wheeler. I really appreciated the "dual track" nature of the book, and for a long time it acted as my "What do I need to learn next, to understand the concept I was trying to read about?" Many times, I've tried to get other people interested as I was to pick it up, and I've noticed something; the ones who want a textbook tend to stick with it. The ones who take a look and say "No no, I don't want all of that technical stuff", don't actually want to learn, they just want to magically know. I'll never have the knowledge or abilities of a graduate student in this field, but I think there's value in learning what I can, while (in a positive way) knowing where I am in relation to the field I'm interested in. And stay away from pop-sci, it does more harm than good once it gets you interested in science.

mindcrime 10y ago
When I first started asking friends about SR/GR, they pointed me to 'Gravitation' by Misner, Thorne, and Wheeler. I really appreciated the "dual track" nature of the book, and for a long time it acted as my "What do I need to learn next, to understand the concept I was trying to read about?" Looks like it's out of print? Used copies on Amazon are north of $150.00. Shame... luckily a pdf is "out there" for those who are willing to circumvent copyright law.
- GregBuchholz 10y ago
  Here's a couple of tips for getting books like that when they are otherwise not "out there". Try an inter-library loan from your local library. Chances are there is a library out there somewhere which will lend it to you. Also, on the out-of-print books on Amazon with sky-high prices. You'll note that all of the listing agents have tens to hundreds of thousands of feedback reviews. Usually there are several of those that have automated bots that keep their offering at the lowest price. So you merely create a listing to sell it yourself, slowly walk it down in price, and watch the bots follow you down. When it gets to a low enough level, buy it and cancel your own listing.
  - mindcrime 10y ago
    Usually there are several of those that have automated bots that keep their offering at the lowest price. So you merely create a listing to sell it yourself, slowly walk it down in price, and watch the bots follow you down. When it gets to a low enough level, buy it and cancel your own listing. Hey, that sounds like a pretty nifty idea. I'll look into that down the road. Thanks!
- Aelinsaar 10y ago
  I think the authors would appreciate you learning more than you giving money for an out of print book, that probably doesn't net them (or their estates) a dime. It really is a good read, and the first book that really helped me to begin to understand the Schwarzschild geometry, just what the hell a "4-vector" was, and in general how many mathematical concepts relate to heuristic ones.

mindcrime 10y ago

GregBuchholz 10y ago
Here's a couple of tips for getting books like that when they are otherwise not "out there". Try an inter-library loan from your local library. Chances are there is a library out there somewhere which will lend it to you. Also, on the out-of-print books on Amazon with sky-high prices. You'll note that all of the listing agents have tens to hundreds of thousands of feedback reviews. Usually there are several of those that have automated bots that keep their offering at the lowest price. So you merely create a listing to sell it yourself, slowly walk it down in price, and watch the bots follow you down. When it gets to a low enough level, buy it and cancel your own listing.
- mindcrime 10y ago
  Usually there are several of those that have automated bots that keep their offering at the lowest price. So you merely create a listing to sell it yourself, slowly walk it down in price, and watch the bots follow you down. When it gets to a low enough level, buy it and cancel your own listing. Hey, that sounds like a pretty nifty idea. I'll look into that down the road. Thanks!
Aelinsaar 10y ago
I think the authors would appreciate you learning more than you giving money for an out of print book, that probably doesn't net them (or their estates) a dime. It really is a good read, and the first book that really helped me to begin to understand the Schwarzschild geometry, just what the hell a "4-vector" was, and in general how many mathematical concepts relate to heuristic ones.