Advances In Differential Geometry And General Relativity

This volume consists of expanded versions of invited lectures given at The Beemfest: Advances in Differential Geometry and General Relativity (University of Missouri-Columbia) on the occasion of Professor John K. Beem's retirement. The articles address problems in differential geometry in general and in particular, global Lorentzian geometry, Finsler geometry, causal boundaries, Penrose's cosmic censorship hypothesis, the geometry of differential operators with variable coefficients on manifolds, and asymptotically de Sitter spacetimes satisfying Einstein's equations with positive cosmological constant. The book is suitable for graduate students and research mathematicians interested in differential geometry.

Differentilil Geometry and Relativity Theory: An Introduction approaches relativity asa geometric theory of space and time in which gravity is a manifestation of space-timecurvature, rathe1 than a force. Uniting differential geometry and both special and generalrelativity in a single source, this easy-to-understand text opens the general theory of relativityto mathematics majors having a backgr.ound only in multivariable calculus and linearalgebra.The book offers a broad overview of the physical foundations and mathematical details ofrelativity, and presents concrete physical interpretations of numerous abstract concepts inRiemannian geometry. The work is profusely illustrated with diagrams aiding in the understandingof proofs and explanations. Appendices feature important material on vectoranalysis and hyperbolic functions.Differential Geometry and Relativity Theory: An Introduction serves as the ideal textfor high-level undergraduate couues in mathematics and physics, and includes a solutionsmanual augmenting classroom study. It is an invaluable reference for mathematicians interestedin differential and IUemannian geometry, or the special and general theories ofrelativity

One of the most of exciting aspects is the general relativity pred- tion of black holes and the Such Big Bang. predictions gained weight the theorems through Penrose. singularity pioneered In various by te- books on theorems general relativity singularity are and then presented used to that black holes exist and that the argue universe started with a To date what has big been is bang. a critical of what lacking analysis these theorems predict-’ We of really give a proof a typical singul- theorem and this ity use theorem to illustrate problems arising through the of possibilities violations" and "causality weak "shell very crossing These singularities". add to the problems weight of view that the point theorems alone singularity are not sufficient to the existence of predict physical singularities. The mathematical theme of the book In order to both solid gain a of and intuition understanding good for any mathematical theory, one,should to realise it as model of try a a fam- iar non-mathematical theories have had concept. Physical an especially the important on of and impact development mathematics, conversely various modern theories physical rather require sophisticated mathem- ics for their formulation. both and mathematics Today, physics are so that it is often difficult complex to master the theories in both very s- in the of jects. However, case differential pseudo-Riemannian geometry or the general relativity between and mathematics relationship physics is and it is therefore especially close, to from interd- possible profit an ciplinary approach.

Differential Forms and the Geometry of General Relativity provides readers with a coherent path to understanding relativity. Requiring little more than calculus and some linear algebra, it helps readers learn just enough differential geometry to grasp the basics of general relativity. The book contains two intertwined but distinct halves. Designed for advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate students in mathematics or physics, most of the text requires little more than familiarity with calculus and linear algebra. The first half presents an introduction to general relativity that describes some of the surprising implications of relativity without introducing more formalism than necessary. This nonstandard approach uses differential forms rather than tensor calculus and minimizes the use of "index gymnastics" as much as possible. The second half of the book takes a more detailed look at the mathematics of differential forms. It covers the theory behind the mathematics used in the first half by emphasizing a conceptual understanding instead of formal proofs. The book provides a language to describe curvature, the key geometric idea in general relativity.

A self-contained introduction to advanced general relativity.

This collection of papers constitutes a wide-ranging survey of recent developments in differential geometry and its interactions with other fields, especially partial differential equations and mathematical physics. This area of mathematics was the subject of a special program at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton during the academic year 1979-1980; the papers in this volume were contributed by the speakers in the sequence of seminars organized by Shing-Tung Yau for this program. Both survey articles and articles presenting new results are included. The articles on differential geometry and partial differential equations include a general survey article by the editor on the relationship of the two fields and more specialized articles on topics including harmonic mappings, isoperimetric and Poincaré inequalities, metrics with specified curvature properties, the Monge-Arnpere equation, L2 harmonic forms and cohomology, manifolds of positive curvature, isometric embedding, and Kraumlhler manifolds and metrics. The articles on differential geometry and mathematical physics cover such topics as renormalization, instantons, gauge fields and the Yang-Mills equation, nonlinear evolution equations, incompleteness of space-times, black holes, and quantum gravity. A feature of special interest is the inclusion of a list of more than one hundred unsolved research problems compiled by the editor with comments and bibliographical information.