Divided into four parts this book covers recent developments in topics pertaining to gravity
theories including discussions on the presence of scalar fields. Part One is devoted to exact
solutions in general relativity and is mainly concerned with the results of rotating null dust
beams and fluids. Also included is a panoramic vision of new research directions in this area
which would require revising certain theorems and their possible extensions within gravity
theories new aspects concerning the Ernst potentials double Kerr spacetimes and rotating
configurations. In particular there is a detailed discussion of totally symmetric and totally
geodesic spaces in which a method for generating (2+1)-dimensional solutions from
(3+1)-dimensional solutions is given. Part Two deals with alternative theories of gravity all
of which include scalar fields and gauge fields. Here quantum and cosmological effects which
arise from both gravity theories in four and higher dimensions and from metric-affine theories
are investigated. Part Three is devoted to cosmological and inflationary scenarios. Local
effects such as the influence of scalar fields in protogalactic interactions numerical
studies of the collapse of molecular cores as well as the inverse inflationary problem and the
blue eigenvalue spectrum of it are considered. Moreover the role of scalar fields as dark
matter and quantum cosmology in the Bergman-Wagoner and Gowdy theories together with the
relation of the conformal symmetry and deflationary gas universe are likewise presented. The
last part of the book includes some mixed topics which are still in the experimental stage.
Among them are the foundation of the Maxwell theory a discussion on electromagnetic Thirring
problems a note on the staticity of black holes with non-minimally coupled scalar fields and
a study of the Lorentz force free charged fluids in general relativity. Thus this book is the
most up-to-date comprehensive collection of papers on the subject of exact solutions and
scalar fields in gravity and is a valuable tool for researchers in the area.
