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Learner Reviews & Feedback for Understanding Einstein: The Special Theory of Relativity by Stanford University

4.9
stars
3,151 ratings

About the Course

In this course we will seek to “understand Einstein,” especially focusing on the special theory of relativity that Albert Einstein, as a twenty-six year old patent clerk, introduced in his “miracle year” of 1905. Our goal will be to go behind the myth-making and beyond the popularized presentations of relativity in order to gain a deeper understanding of both Einstein the person and the concepts, predictions, and strange paradoxes of his theory. Some of the questions we will address include: How did Einstein come up with his ideas? What was the nature of his genius? What is the meaning of relativity? What’s “special” about the special theory of relativity? Why did the theory initially seem to be dead on arrival? What does it mean to say that time is the “fourth dimension”? Can time actually run more slowly for one person than another, and the size of things change depending on their velocity? Is time travel possible, and if so, how? Why can’t things travel faster than the speed of light? Is it possible to travel to the center of the galaxy and return in one lifetime? Is there any evidence that definitively confirms the theory, or is it mainly speculation? Why didn’t Einstein win the Nobel Prize for the theory of relativity? About the instructor: Dr. Larry Lagerstrom is the Director of Academic Programs at Stanford University’s Center for Professional Development, which offers graduate certificates in subjects such as artificial intelligence, cyber security, data mining, nanotechnology, innovation, and management science. He holds degrees in physics, mathematics, and the history of science, has published a book and a TED Ed video on "Young Einstein: From the Doxerl Affair to the Miracle Year," and has had over 30,000 students worldwide enroll in his online course on the special theory of relativity (this course!)....

Top reviews

NN

Jun 20, 2023

A totally immersive course. From the instructor's frame of reference, the course took 8 weeks to complete when in fact, it lasted longer by a Lorentz factor of 2.5 according to mine. Time dilation!

RC

May 21, 2018

Excellent course. The instructor did a wonderful job, using a white board and simple props. He made it interesting and made these complex principles understandable. I enjoyed the experience.

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851 - 875 of 1,088 Reviews for Understanding Einstein: The Special Theory of Relativity

By ALEJANDRO S M

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Feb 10, 2021

El mejor profesor que tuve . Un genio !

By Amv s

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Nov 23, 2020

i like how he has simplified the things

By Luke M

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Jul 15, 2020

My first coursera course, I enjoyed it.

By Christopher D

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Aug 30, 2017

Amazing, anyone should take that course

By Varma R

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Oct 26, 2024

Excellent instructor and great content

By Kavitha K

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Oct 1, 2021

Easy to understand and simple LOVE IT

By Chow K M

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Dec 19, 2020

Enjoyed the easy to understand lecture

By Ashwat J

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May 4, 2020

Wonderful presentation. Learned a ton!

By Wayne C L

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Sep 6, 2018

It was a lot of fun to learn all this!

By Nathalie V

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Jun 18, 2017

Very interesting, very well explained.

By Fernando A P S

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Apr 1, 2017

Perfectly explained. Love the teacher.

By Luca R

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Aug 28, 2024

Very clear explanations of the topics

By Daniel H B

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Nov 18, 2021

Great course, Would highly Recommend!

By Angela P M

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Feb 22, 2021

A wonderful course. Congratulations!!

By Mehlam F (

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Jul 15, 2020

Great professor and in depth teaching

By PAVITHRA S

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Jun 20, 2020

A fantastic course for science minds

By Omar R O R

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Apr 17, 2020

It is clear, precise, and enjoyable.

By Steve H

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Jan 12, 2024

Excellent class, excellent teacher!

By Rodrigo P

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Jun 24, 2022

a good course, really good course;)

By mohamed h

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Jun 10, 2022

a very useful well explained course

By Cuautzin H

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Jun 11, 2020

Excelente curso, muy bien explicado

By Bhavya V

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Oct 2, 2018

Awesome Course worth spending time.

By Santos C

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Sep 10, 2017

This was a great course, thank you!

By TAMER G

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Oct 9, 2025

Instructor and coverage were great

By Mitank D

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May 25, 2017

Really this is a fantastic course.