The Book: How to Teach Relativity to Your Dog

“For the price of a book, Orzel delivers the heady, joyful experience of taking a small college class with a brilliant and funny professor who really knows how to teach. A thoroughly winning romp through a rock-solid presentation of a beautiful subject.”
—Louisa Gilder, author of The Age of Entanglement

“Move over, Krypto—there’s a new superdog in town! Chad Orzel’s dog Emmy, having mastered quantum physics, now helps us understand Einstein’s theories of relativity in a deep and accessible way. Get this dog a cape!”
—James Kakalios, Professor of Physics, University of Minnesota, and author of The Physics of Superheroes and The Amazing Story of Quantum Mechanics

“Dogs are a practical species. They aren’t interested in speculation and conjecture; they like food, walks, and proven physics like Einstein’s relativity. If you really want to further your dog’s education (and learn something yourself in the process), Chad Orzel’s book is the first place you should turn.”
—Sean Carroll, author of From Eternity to Here, Cosmic Variance

“Everyone’s favorite physics-loving canine is back, this time giving us a dog’s eye view of Einstein and relativity. Physics professor Chad Orzel leads Emmy (and us) through an engaging tour of light speed, time dilation, and amazing shrinking bunnies (length contraction)—not to mention what all this means for the search for the elusive ‘bacon boson.’”
—Jennifer Ouellette, author of The Calculus Diaries

“With Nero, the egocentric cat who believes it is the centre of the universe, and Emmy, the student dog whose questions and misunderstandings would drive any teacher to distraction, and whose interest in relativity is how E=mc^2 can turn squirrels into energy, Chad Orzel has created a delightful cast of characters to make his introduction to relativity relatively painless. A cleverly crafted and beautifully explained narrative that guides readers carefully into the depths of relativity. Whether you are a hare or a tortoise, or even a dog, you will enjoy this.”
—Frank Close, author of The Infinity Puzzle

“Emmy may be one smart dog, but her owner also happens to be an uncommonly gifted communicator. Chad Orzel’s treatment of special and general relativity is comprehensive, informative, and amazingly accessible, yet it’s funny too. This is, by far, the most entertaining discussion of the subject that I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading.”
—Steve Nadis, coauthor of The Shape of Inner Space


From the Cover:

Physics professor Chad Orzel and his inquisitive canine companion, Emmy, tackle the concepts of general relativity in the irresistible introduction to Einstein's physics. Through armchair-- and cometimes passenger-seat-- conversations with Emmy about the relative speeds of dog and cat motion or the logistics of squirrel-chasing, Orzel translates complex Einsteinian ideas-- the slowing of time for a moving observer, the shrinking of moving objects, the effects of gravity on light and time, black holes, the Big Bang, and of course E=mc2-- into examples simple enough for a dog to understand.

A lively romp through one of the great theories of modern physics, How to Teach Relativity to Your Dog will teach you everything you ever wanted to know about space, time, and anything else you might have slept through in high school physics class.


How to Teach Relativity to Your Dog is published by Basic Books and can be ordered from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Powell's.

How to Teach Physics to Your Dog is published by Scribner can be ordered from Amazon.com, IndieBound, Barnes and Noble, and Powell's.


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