V ? V ?K? , 3 2 2 R ? /?x K i i g V T G g ?T , ? G g g 4 ? R ? ? G ? T g g ? h h ? 2 2 2 2 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? h ?S , ?? ?? 2 2 2 2 2 c ?t ?x ?x ?x 1 2 3 S T S T? T?. ? ̃ T S 2 2 2 2 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? h . ?? 2 2 2 2 2 c ?t ?x ?x ?x 1 2 3 g h h ?? g T T g vacuum M n R n R Acknowledgements n R Chapter I Pseudo-Riemannian Manifolds I.1 Connections M C n X M C M F M C X M F M connection covariant derivative M ? X M ×X M ?? X M X,Y ?? Y X ? Y ? Y ? Y X +X X X 1 2 1 2 ? Y Y ? Y ? Y X 1 2 X 1 X 2 ? Y f? Y f?F M fX X ? fY X f Y f? Y f?F M X X ? torsion ? Y?? X X,Y X,Y?X M . X Y localization principle Theorem I.1. Let X, Y, X , Y be C vector ?elds on M.Let U be an open set

The book presents state-of-the-art results on the analysis of the Einstein equations and the large scale structure of their solutions. It combines in a unique way introductory chapters and surveys of various aspects of the analysis of the Einstein equations in the large. It discusses applications of the Einstein equations in geometrical studies and the physical interpretation of their solutions. Open problems concerning analytical and numerical aspects of the Einstein equations are pointed out. Background material on techniques in PDE theory, differential geometry, and causal theory is provided.

The book's principal aim is to clarify fundamental concepts, decipher mathematical structures used to model space-time and relativistic worlds, and to disclose their physical meaning. After each chapter, philosophical implications of the presented material are commented upon.Both special and general theories of relativity are presented in the book with the stress on their global aspects. Although global mathematical methods are extensively used throughout the book, the definitions of new concepts, short comments and examples make reading smooth without the need to consult other textbooks or review papers.

This work examines the mathematical aspects of nonlinear wave propagation, emphasizing nonlinear hyperbolic problems. It introduces the tools that are most effective for exploring the problems of local and global existence, singularity formation, and large-time behaviour of solutions, and for the study of perturbation methods.

Accelerating Expansion explores some of the philosophical implications of modern cosmology, focused on the significance that the discovery of the accelerating expansion of the Universe has for our understanding of time, geometry, and physics. The appearance of the cosmological constant in the equations of general relativity allows one to model universes in which space has an inherent tendency towards expansion. This constant, introduced by Einstein but subsequently abandoned by him, returned to centre stage with the discovery of the accelerating expansion. This pedagogically-oriented essay begins with a study of the most basic and elegant relativistic world that involves a positive cosmological constant, de Sitter spacetime. It then turns to the relatives of de Sitter spacetime that dominate modern relativistic cosmology. Some of the topics considered include: the nature of time and simultaneity in de Sitter worlds; the sense in which de Sitter spacetime is a powerful dynamical attractor; the limited extent to which observation can give us information about the topology of space in a world undergoing accelerated expansion; and cosmologists' favourite sceptical worry about the reliability of evidence and the possibility of knowledge, the problem of Boltzmann brains.