Physics 312: Relativity and Cosmology
Einstein and Beyond

Introduction Most people have heard of Einstein's theories of special and general relativity. Not only do they form the basis for most of modern physics, but they have captured the popular imagination in many ways, with their most speculative predictions exploited (often incorrectly) by science fiction writers and movie-makers. What is perhaps less well-known is that relativity is central to real world phenomena such as the global positioning system (GPS), the shining of the sun and nuclear power. We will spend about the first half of this course exploring the concepts behind and the theories of special and general relativity. We will discuss time dilation, length contraction, curved space-time and black holes. In the second half of the course we will then apply what we have learned to the largest system possible - the universe - when we study modern cosmology. In applying general relativity to the universe, we shall discover that the universe is expanding (and what that means), we will find that the universe must have a beginning (the big bang), and that the afterglow of that early epoch can be measured even today (the Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation). The topics studied in this course are so far from our everyday experience that the intuition you have built up during your life so far will probably not be helpful to you (in fact, it will be your biggest hindrance. Many of the things we will study are counterintuitive, but this does not mean that they are wrong, unobservable, irrelevant to the "real world," or not understandable. It is important to remind yourself of this and to think very carefully about what you mean when you say (or are tempted to say) that something does or does not "make sense." This course is intended to quite challenging, but, rest assured, if you work hard and ask questions when you don't understand, you will be able to do well and acquire an understanding of some of the most exciting physics we know of. Administrative Information Lectures: Tuesdays and Thursdays 2:00pm-3:20pm, Room 106, Physics Building. Instructor: Prof. Mark Trodden, 209 Physics Building, x2564, trodden[at]physics.syr.edu Office Hours: Tuesdays 12:30pm - 1:55pm in Physics 209 Texts: Unfortunately, there is no true textbook for a course like this. For the first half of the course, the closest things available is the set of Notes on Relativity and Cosmology (Adobe Reader needed), prepared by Prof. Don Marolf when he taught this course. These are useful for parts of the current course and not for others. It is very important to note that this course reader contains administrative information, assignments and exam times that are left over from a previous year. None of these are relevant to our course. I am putting this warning here and will repeat it in class, so will expect that you fully understand to get all administrative information from this web site. For the second half of the course, a recommended (but not required) text is An Introduction to Modern Cosmology, by Andrew Liddle, available from the bookstore and other places. Grading There will be homework, two exams, and a project. The breakdown of the final grading is: Project: 20% Exams: 30% each (making 60% together) Homework: 20% Homework Homework will usually be assigned weekly, sometimes every two weeks. In general, it will be assigned on a Thursday and will be due the following Thursday. I encourage you to work together on the homework, but the homework you turn in must represent your own understanding and be written up by you alone. Homework that is simply copied will not be accepted. Homework must be turned in on time at the beginning of class. If this is not possible due to some exceptional circumstances, it is your responsibility to contact me before class (as far in advance as possible) to discuss the matter. Doing the homework will be an important part of learning the material in this course and I strongly recommend that you begin to work on it early and not leave the homework for the last minute. Exams Under no circumstances will I even consider make up exams without a doctor's or dean's note. If I receive one of these notes I will then consider individual cases to decide whether to offer one. Final project presentations will take place during the last two classes of the semester. All students must attend both classes. The Project The general guidelines are that the project should: In some way demonstrate your understanding of topics covered in this course, but contain a deeper appreciation of some subset of the material. Be written in your own words. Be about the same amount of work as a term paper. Include references to outside sources as appropriate for the project. Projects will be graded on a combination of creativity, initiative, and the understanding of course material (and outside reading) that they demonstrate. The rule of thumb should be that your project should be something that you are proud of and not something that is quickly thrown together. Each project must be approved by me, so you need to discuss your project with me before you begin. You are welcome to continue to consult with me while you work on your project. Each of you need to settle on a project with me by March 20 (shortly after Spring Break). Obviously, you should come and talk to me even earlier in order to bounce a few ideas around before making a final decision. It is a good idea to start thinking about your project early!!! You will be asked to give a (very) short presentation about your project at the end of the semester. The projects are due at the start of class on Thursday, April 24. Some suggestions for projects are: A standard report/term paper on a topic related to relativity, gravity, or cosmology. Building a set of relativity/cosmology web pages either as an electronic "term paper" or for educational purposes. Writing a piece of carefully-documented code that demonstrates some important aspect of gravity, relativity, or cosmology. A "magazine article" dealing with some of the topics discussed in this course. The project is an opportunity for you to get what you want out of this course and to extend the course in a direction that you would like it to go. I will therefore expect that your project will demonstrate either substantial creativity on your part or some further reading beyond what we will cover in class. This reading can be from books or magazines such as Scientific American, Physics World, or Physics Today. For example, you might wish to study one of the following topics in more detail: Black holes (their structure, collisions, or hawking radiation) The big bang Higher dimensional theories of physics (Kaluza-Klein theories or `braneworlds') Experimental tests of relativity, or experiments in cosmology. Gravitational waves Feel free to talk with me about where and how to locate references on these and other subjects. The project must be your own work. In particular, wholesale copying of entire sentences from your sources is not allowed. In addition, you must reference all sources you use in your project.

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