Tidal forces and curvature

General Relativity (Fall, 2008)

Lecture Playlist

  1. Newtonian Gravity and the equivalence principle

  2. Tidal forces and curvature

  3. Essential tools: tensors and the metric

  4. Tensor mechanics

  5. Covariant differentiation and geodesics

  6. The flat space of special relativity

  7. The Riemannian curvature tensor

  8. Equations of motion in curved space

  9. Gravitation in the Newtonian approximation

  10. Energy-momentum tensor and Einstein's equations

  11. Accelerated coordinates

  12. World lines and Schwarzschild solution

September 29, 2008

Review preliminary mathematics.
Einstein:  the laws of nature in a gravitational field are equivalent to the laws in an accelerated frame.
Study bending of light due to curvature of space.
Tidal forces and curvature cannot be transformed away.
Minkowski metric.
Space-time curvature is due to mass.

Topics: 
  • Tidal forces and curvature
References