Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time

266 Pages·2000·10.769 MB·English

by  Marcia Bartusiak

Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
EE
instein’s
Unfinished Symphony
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
A L S O B Y M A R C I A B A R T U S I A K
Thursday’s Universe
Through a Universe Darkly
A Positron Named Priscilla
as co-author
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
M A R C I A B A R T U S I A K
EE
instein’s
Unfinished Symphony
Listening to
the Sounds of
Space-Time
JOSEPH HENRY PRESS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
Joseph Henry Press • 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W. • Washington, D.C. 20418
The Joseph Henry Press, an imprint of the National Academy Press, was created
with the goal of making books on science, technology, and health more widely
available to professionals and the public. Joseph Henry was one of the founders
of the National Academy of Sciences and a leader of early American science.
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this
volume are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the
National Academy of Sciences or its affiliated institutions.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Bartusiak, Marcia, 1950-
Einstein’s unfinished symphony : listening to the sounds of space-time
/ by Marcia Bartusiak.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-309-06987-4
1. Space and time. 2. General relativity (Physics) I. Title.
QC173.59.S65 B39 2000
530.11—dc21
00-010544
Cover design by Francesca Moghari.
Illustrations by Rob Wood and Matthew Frey, Wood Ronsaville Harlin, Inc.,
Annapolis, Maryland.
Copyright 2000 by Marcia Bartusiak. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
For Steve
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
Contents
Prelude 1
Space in G Flat 11
The Maestro Enters 23
Starlight Waltz 47
Pas De Deux 67
Bars and Measures 87
Dissonant Chords 115
A Little Light Music 145
Variations on a Theme 171
The Music of the Spheres 187
Finale 207
Coda 225
Bibliography 227
Index 235
vii
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Einstein's Unfinished Symphony: Listening to the Sounds of Space-Time
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/9821.html
Acknowledgments
I
was formally introduced to the sci-
ence of gravitational waves nearly
two decades ago. I was on assign-
ment for Science 85, a magazine (now regrettably gone) that thrived on
covering the cutting edge of science. Stanford University in California
then housed the most advanced instrument yet constructed in the
quest to detect gravitational waves—a hulking, supercooled bar of
metal that resided in a cavernous room on the campus. This five-ton
aluminum bar was the principal subject of my article on the continu-
ing search for the elusive ripples in space-time. The best such a detec-
tor could hope to see, though, was a supernova explosion in our galaxy,
which occurs only a couple of times each century.
While on the west coast, almost as an afterthought, I decided to
drop by Caltech to learn about another detection scheme that prom-
ised to see more sources in the long run but was described as being in
its “infancy” compared to the bars: laser interferometry. Caltech
housed a prototype on campus and during my visit I was shown a
ix
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.