Physics: Theory of Relativity
These sites are for high school physics students to research the effects of special and general relativity. Games, interactive diagrams, videos, audio files, and equations all help to explain Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. There is a link to an eThemes Resources on Albert Einstein.
Grades
- 12
Links
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The Physics Classroom
This site has four lessons: Relativity, Time Dilation, Length Contraction, and Relativistic Mass. There are many examples and practice problems.
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Nobel Prize: Relativity
Einstein won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921 and Nobel sponsors this site. There are many topics including a timeline under the link, "History of Special Relativity."
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Einstein Light
See the animations and film clips featured on this site. Some movies take time to load. You can select explanations with or without mathematics.
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World of Physics: Special Relativity
Read Eric Weisstein's explanation of special relativity. Weisstein uses equations and vectors. NOTE: The site has a link to a guestbook.
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PBS: Einstein's Big Idea
Read articles, take a quiz, play an interactive game, listen to audio files, and many more resources about Einstein.
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Relativity Tutorial
See space-time diagrams on this site. Read the discussion of Galilean relativity and topics including Light Cones in Curved Space-time, Principle of Equivalence, and Time Dilation.
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How Did Einstein Discover Relativity?
Read this essay by John Stachel, Professor Emeritus at Boston University.
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Albert Einstein and the Theory of Relativity
See these animated diagrams that are part of a college level astronomy class.
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The Light Cone: An Illuminating Introduction to Relativity
This site has animations and a visual explanation of the Twin Paradox. NOTE: RealPlayer is required.
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Spacetime Wrinkles
This site is all about black holes. There are many videos that require RealPlayer. There are sound files, text, and movie thumbnails to accompany the videos.
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General Relativity
See the actual image of Einstein's 1916 paper on General Relativity. Click on the image to make it bigger.
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Theory: Special Relativity
Explore just one of the many topics, Peculiar Relativistic Effects. Stanford Linear Accelerator Center operates this site for the US Department of Energy. NOTE: The site has a guestbook.
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eThemes Resource: Famous People: Albert Einstein
Learn about one of the greatest physicists of the 20th century - Albert Einstein. Read about his life, discoveries, and theories. Learn here about two parts of the Relativity Theory: Special Relativity and General Relativity. Includes audio files, quizzes, animations, 3D simulations, and photographs.
