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Why Does E=mc2? (And Why Should We Care?) Paperback – July 13, 2010

by Brian Cox (Author)

2,069 ratings

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The international bestseller: an introduction to the theory of relativity by the eminent physicists Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw

What does E=mc2 actually mean? Dr. Brian Cox and Professor Jeff Forshaw go on a journey to the frontier of twenty-first century science to unpack Einstein's famous equation. Explaining and simplifying notions of energy, mass, and light-while exploding commonly held misconceptions-they demonstrate how the structure of nature itself is contained within this equation. Along the way, we visit the site of one of the largest scientific experiments ever conducted: the now-famous Large Hadron Collider, a gigantic particle accelerator capable of re-creating conditions that existed fractions of a second after the Big Bang. A collaboration between one of the youngest professors in the United Kingdom and a distinguished popular physicist, Why Does E=mc2? is one of the most exciting and accessible explanations of the theory of relativity.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"If you're not a physicist (or not yet a physicist) and you want to understand what Einstein and relativity are all about, you would do well to read this book. This writing is clear, sparkling in places, and totally without vanity...Read this book. It's your world, isn't it?"
―Dan Agin, Huffington Post

"A mild mannered, digressive, mostly math-free walk-through of the world's most famous equation...[It] remind[s] us that Einstein's equation is not some esoteric idea best pondered by scientific supermen, but a profound insight that continues to change lives...Cox and Forshaw's enthusiasm for their material is plain...You will find them accommodating escorts."
―Boston Globe

"Cox and Forshaw skillfully combine biography with a narrative of discovery, employing some of Einstein's own thought experiments...I expected Cox and Forshaw to lament the current gaps in physics...But they are optimists tempered by hard doses of reality."
―The American Scholar

"Pairs the enthusiasm of newcomers with the knowledge of experts...Cox and Forshaw have aimed their tour of gravity, mass and quantum weirdness squarely at the math-shy general public...A useful reminder of how profoundly strange physics can appear to the novice."
―Physics World

"Master Einstein's famous equation in 266 easy pages: The authors answer their title question without using math more complicated than the Pythagorean theorem, providing a rich history of modern physics along the way."
―Discovery

"Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw tackle the most famous equation of all time in a remarkable comprehensible way...The pair make some surprising points that I haven't seen expressed in quite the same way...Well worth a read."
―New Scientist

"To get at the origins of E=mc2, the poster-child for Einstein's special theory of relativity, [Cox and Forshaw] must delve into deep principles of science and wield a good deal of mathematics. They do it well...They have blazed a clear trail into forbidding territory, from the mathematical structure of space-time all the way to atom bombs, astrophysics and the origin of mass."
―New Scientist

"To move beyond a cursory understanding of Einstein's iconic equation, put yourself in the adept hands of physicists and science educators Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw. Using clear language and a few clearly explained equations, they demystify physics' most counterintuitive claims."
―Seed

"[Cox and Forshaw] bend over backwards to reassure math-challenged readers...This is not only a painstakingly accessible explanation of spacetime, mass, particles, gravity, and a whole bunch of things that are just plain not simple. It's also an explanation, for non-scientists, of what physicists do, and why they want to do it."
―Bookslut.com

"Makes some of science's most famous tenets easily accessible-even for those who barely passed sophomore chemistry...Crisp, engaging prose."―Flavorwire.com (Daily Dose Pick)

"A fun romp with science...The often amusing lecture by British physicists Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw is written in plain language and full of fun examples."―Charleston Post and Courier

"A popular account of the intellectual interplay between elementary particle physics, relativity theory, and cosmology...It does a very nice job of explaining the counterintuitive aspects of spacetime and the relationship between time, space, energy, and mass...Readers of this book will be better prepared to understand the news coming out of CERN...Recommended."
―Choice

"[An] easy-to-read little book...Along the way, [Cox and Forshaw] very cleverly introduce all the ideas we will need to get to the world's most famous equation, E=mc2...Cox and Forshaw have made an important contribution in this area, one that will help school science teachers as much as it will their students."―New York Journal of Books

About the Author

Brian Cox, OBE, FRS, is a Professor of Particle Physics at the University of Manchester and the Royal Society Professor for Public Engagement in Science. His many highly acclaimed BBC television documentaries include, most recently, Human Universe and Forces of Nature.

Jeff Forshaw is a Professor of Theoretical Physics at the University of Manchester, specializing in the physics of elementary particles. He was awarded the Institute of Physics Maxwell Medal in 1999 for outstanding contributions to theoretical physics.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Da Capo Lifelong Books
Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 13, 2010
Edition ‏ : ‎ 37446th
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 249 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0306818760
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0306818769
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.68 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #83,915 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #10 in Molecular Physics (Books)
- #21 in Relativity Physics (Books)
- #62 in Quantum Theory (Books)

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Jeff Forshaw
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Brian Cox
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Brian Cox, PhD, is a leading particle physicist and professor at the University of Manchester, as well as a researcher on one of the most ambitious experiments on Earth, the ATLAS experiment on the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland. A Royal Society research fellow, professor Cox was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 2010. He is the author of Why Does E=MC² and is well known as presenter of the television series Wonders of the Solar System and Wonders of the Universe. He was also the keyboard player in the UK pop band D:Ream in the 1990s.
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Customers find the book well-explained, using math in a way that's easy to understand and offering clear explanations of sophisticated physics. They appreciate the fascinating insights provided, with one customer noting how it takes readers deeply into the theory. The book's rigor receives mixed reviews, with several customers finding it unsatisfactory.

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Enlightenedness Rigor

45 customers mention "Enlightenedness"45 positive0 negative

Customers find the book enlightening, providing good explanations of the subject matter and fascinating insights. One customer notes that it takes readers deeply into the theory, while another mentions it keeps them thinking.

"...I planning to re-read the book to absorb more of this fascinating explanation of nature." Read more

"...Just an ability to read and follow meaningful developments of important and key concepts...." Read more

"...The subject is good and I like what they are trying to say, but this book needs a 2.0 version." Read more

"...(not too long) that sticks to its purpose well and admirably makes clear a challenging subject...." Read more

10 customers mention "Rigor"4 positive6 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the rigor of the book, with several finding it unsatisfactory.

"...Another obvious problem with the book is the graphics. They are terrible...." Read more

"...There are also several examples of theoretical predictions confirmed experimentally which is one of the beauties of physics...." Read more

"I'm sorry to say that this book was a huge disappointment...." Read more

"As others have mentioned, the science may be 100%, but the explanations are not, and have left readers more confused after reading than before...." Read more

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Jaume Puigbo Vila
A readable book on XXth century physics
Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2009
Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Francis Ford Coppola has said that happiness consists on learning new things every day. People like Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw help us to become happier. Scientists like these who devote part of their precious time to divulge scientific ideas are the real missionaries of the XXIst century helping to extend the gospel of science, which, contrary to other gospels, it is non dogmatic and subjected to possible disproval by experiment , a feature of science introduced by Muslim scientists (!) according to the book (page 40).
The book is not only, as it title suggests, an explanation of the famous Einstein formula but a very up-to-date and understandable review of XXth century physics, including cosmology, special and general relativity and the Standard Model with its awe inspiring master equation.
The book uses, sometimes, very simple mathematics, which the authors suggest the math averse reader to skip, if necessary, but with important results. For instance, making use of the very famous, old and simple Pythagorean theorem Cox and Forshaw prove that the half life of muons accelerated to 99.94% of the speed of light is extended, due to relativistic effects, 29 times, a fact that is verified experimentally.
There are also several examples of theoretical predictions confirmed experimentally which is one of the beauties of physics. Fred Hoyle's prediction of an energy level of the carbon nucleus which makes it crucially possible the synthesis of heavier elements in the stars, gravitational waves (whose existence has been indirectly confirmed studying a double pulsar) , the masses of the W and Z bosons (confirmed at CERN), the existence of the positron posited by Dirac or Chandrasehar's limit for the mass of white dwarves.
The story unfolds from Faraday's experiments and Maxwell's equations which lead to the constancy of the speed of light which, in turn, lead to the Special Theory of Relativity, to Minkowski's space time, the conservation of the energy-momentum vector and the famous E=mc2 formula (which is an approximation, by the way). The final chapters are devoted to General Relativity (and its clear effects on the GPS system), the Standard Model (with a good introduction to gauge symmetry) and the Higgs boson, the last particle, among the fundamental particles of the model, to be found experimentally (in the Large Hadron Collider hopefully when they get it working) .
There are also some curiosities such as that if the Earth was flat we would see a laser fired horizontally bending to its surface. To sum up: a very entertaining book that I hope will make you happier. It made me.

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Lost In Spaces
The product listing did not mention it was a used copy
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2024
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
I purchased the book to have a hard copy of an Audible title (which did not include a PDF file of the book's drawings and equations)
It arrived promptly, wrapped in heat-shrink plastic, which held it secure and safe from handling damage.
But it was a used copy ... slight page dog-ears, and a dingy grey tint to all of the page edges.
At least it's not carrying the smell of cigarette smoke... that would have been reason to return it.

The book itself is a delight.
I've read sections while (re)hearing many sections of the audiobook.
I highly recommend many of Brian Cox's books.
This one is a step above and beyond the usual "popular science" presentations, in that it's not afraid to have a new seminal equations. But in no way is it a "math" presentation.
It is a good mix of history, personalities and science.

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Firstboomer
As a non-scientist and math flunky, I followed most of it…
Reviewed in the United States on January 13, 2024
Format: KindleVerified Purchase
I started out wondering why scientific equations are peppered with squares and square roots, i.e., what is it about them that make for satisfying answers. The simplest and ubiquitous formula is Pythagorus’s solution for the length of the hypotenuse in a right triangle. What led him to use the squares of the right angle sides to equal the square of the hypotenuse? It is certainly not intuitively obvious. This book did not answer that directly, but instead explains some of the math and scientific brilliance that led to E=Mc (squared). I planning to re-read the book to absorb more of this fascinating explanation of nature.

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Josh C
For all the astrophysicists out there
Reviewed in the United States on April 20, 2024
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
This is a good read. A little complex if you aren't educated in physics, but you can still read a long pretty easily if not. I would recommend this to the aspiring physicist out there who want to know a little bit about the theory of relativity and Einstein's role in our understanding of modern physics.

5/5 from me!!

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JB - Phils
The book I have been looking for ....
Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2013
Format: KindleVerified Purchase
I have been an amateur follower of physics, astronomy and quantum physics for many years now and have read many books on these subjects. Without doubt, "Why Does E = mc2" is among the best two, if not the best. I finally feel I have a basic understanding of why "C" (the universal constant - miscalled the speed of light) applies in our Einstein macro world and the fundamentals that underpin it - such as causality and "universality" and why we can theoretically go forward, but not backwards in time. Same for Space / Time. Obviously the authors skipped over some of the deeper stuff (such as why other different formulae - other than a variation of Pythagorus - were not investigated in establishing the space - time graph). But I appreciated this simplification process, which helped me better concentrate on the key points. I have never before seen such a good explanation of the Standard Model formula (in fact I have never before seen this amazing formula) and the naming of 12 key components of the Standard Model formula (which I now keep in my notes file in my phone for easy reference). Thank you Brian Cox and Jeff Foreshaw for helping me better understand the world we live in. I very much enjoyed your "tweedy" delivery which made me feel I was your guest in your personal library.

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大顔連
一度紛失したので再購入
Reviewed in Japan on December 17, 2019
Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

中古本でしたが，状態もよく，価格も小さくてお買い得でした。前回は海外線で忘れてしまったので，非常にありがたいです。

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Foolish Fish
Annoyed
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 13, 2010
Verified Purchase
A truely challenging read, but nonetheless one which I can thank the authors for. As much as I have stuggled with the likes of Hawking and Green, as a relative (!) novice in basic relativity theory I feel as though I now have at least the rudiments with which to dig deeper. The five stars are undoubtedly deserved for the first couple of chapters alone in which the foundations of modern science are served up in a very easily swallowed pill.

But I'm left angry. Why does the book have to be tarnished with yet another rant about religion?

Now, I can understand why a weak-minded fundamentalist such as Dawkins would not bother to investigate the chasm between the politically-serving closed-mindedness and bullyings of organised, state-controlled "religions" on one side, and on the other the actual teachings of the enlightened men whose works have been (and always will be) usurped for self-advancing ladder-climbers. I say I can understand this lack of investigation because Dawkins is an emotive man who lets all his scientific principles of investigation and evidence-based conclusions go out the window when it comes to his ferocious and fundamentalist relgious views (I'm not sure I wouldn't even rather get preached at by some Jesus-soldier or a Mujahadin Jihadist...)

But for the brilliant, intelligent and deeply human Brian Cox to fall into the same trap... I guess it just makes me sad.

Sad that Science and millitant Atheism seem to now go unquestioningly together.

Sad that even Brian Cox, for whom I have tremedous admiration and respect hasn't yet come to the conclusion choosing between science and religion is like choosing between eating breakfast and wearing shoes. Surely, it's not rocket science that they are two completely different things? Ever tried measuring how heavy you are with a ruler? Science and Spiritual practices belong to two completely different realms within the (vast) Human experience.

Sad that even Brian Cox would choose to come up with the following phrase: "This rather provocative statement sounds superficially profound in the way that Zenlike utterences from fortune-tellers often do. In this case, however, it does turn out to be a great insight[...]" What exactly do Zen Buddhism and fortune-telling have to do with each other? I wonder how much respect Dr Cox could preserve for a computer programmer who wrote in his book: "...this sounds as pretentious as those quantum-physicky utterances of botanists, but in this case, it's actually useful."

I won't remove a star for this, no matter how annoying, because the rest of the book really is SO interesting. I guess that would be because (most of the time), the duo are talking about something they actually know (a hell of a lot!) about.

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Client d'Amazon
Scientifiquement correct mais accessible à tout le monde.
Reviewed in France on October 6, 2024
Verified Purchase
C'est un livre accessible à tout le monde. Mais c'est scientifiquement correct et très utile pour faire comprendre le concept de vitesse limite, de relativité de temps et espace, de référentiels etc. Je suis enseignante en physique et je vais le recommander à mes élèves.

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Romance Leser
Physics for beginners - without the "dumbing down" - great read!
Reviewed in Germany on February 11, 2013
Format: KindleVerified Purchase
I have hated physics since I was a schoolkid. Now, as an adult, I'm stuck with university-physics so I bought this book in the hope of finding something that might interest me - and thus get me to not throw my schoolbooks out of the window in boredom and despair.
I never thought I could understand any of it, but after having watched Mr Cox on the telly the tiniest spark of hope got kindled. And can you believe it! I understood it all, even the Standard Model. Admittedly, I took a long break halfway through, but the book was just too well-written to not finish it. Next semester chemistry is coming up and all the explanations about atoms, quants etc are going to be a great help. Apart from all the knowledge I received it was some great entertainment! (And it got me an excellent score in physics this semester:))

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V Triplicane
one of the best books to meaningfully scratch the surface of Einstei’s relativity
Reviewed in India on July 26, 2024
Verified Purchase
Absolutely loved the authors’ passion in explaining the esoteric theories in a very understandable fashion. Had to read some of the sections multiple times, taking notes, writing/drawing them down to digest better. Wish I could read it again!

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Top reviews from the United States

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5.0 out of 5 stars A readable book on XXth century physics

4.0 out of 5 stars The product listing did not mention it was a used copy

5.0 out of 5 stars As a non-scientist and math flunky, I followed most of it…

5.0 out of 5 stars For all the astrophysicists out there

5.0 out of 5 stars The book I have been looking for ....

Top reviews from other countries

5.0 out of 5 stars 一度紛失したので再購入

5.0 out of 5 stars Annoyed

5.0 out of 5 stars Scientifiquement correct mais accessible à tout le monde.

5.0 out of 5 stars Physics for beginners - without the "dumbing down" - great read!

5.0 out of 5 stars one of the best books to meaningfully scratch the surface of Einstei’s relativity

A readable book on XXth century physics

The product listing did not mention it was a used copy

As a non-scientist and math flunky, I followed most of it…

For all the astrophysicists out there

The book I have been looking for ....

一度紛失したので再購入

Annoyed

Scientifiquement correct mais accessible à tout le monde.

Physics for beginners - without the "dumbing down" - great read!

one of the best books to meaningfully scratch the surface of Einstei’s relativity