Coursera

Understanding Modern Physics I: Relativity and Cosmology (Coursera)

Offered by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology - HKUST,

The 20th century was known as the century of physics. In the past 120 years, concepts such as space, time, energy, entropy and particles were understood to much deeper levels. New paradigms of thinking such as relativity and quantum mechanics emerged. This course is the first course in the Understanding Modern Physics series, which covers an introduction to special relativity, general relativity and cosmology.

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We will find: (i) How space and time are relative to observers, and unified into a more fundamental construction of spacetime; (ii) Why the spacetime is not absolute, but rather curves in response to matter, and how gravity emerge as a result of such spacetime curvature; and (iii) What is the framework to understand the evolution of the whole universe, and how that is related to problems such as the origin of space and matter, and the fate of our universe.

What You Will Learn

Introduction to special relativity, general relativity and cosmology.

Syllabus

WEEK 1: Special Relativity: Relativity of Space and Time
WEEK 2: Special Relativity: Length, Simultaneity and Lorentz Transformation
WEEK 3: Special Relativity: Geometry, Energy and Momentum
WEEK 4: General Relativity
WEEK 5: Cosmology

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