Visualizing Curved Space-Time in 2D

[kevin_13]

General Relativity explains that every single piece of mass alters the space-time fabric, creating a curve. But since we live on a three-dimensional universe shouldn't the curvature alter the fabric in every dimension, creating some kind of weird closed curve that might look as a bubble around the mass.
I really cannot visualize the curvature working in 2D.
I don't know if you understand what I mean, if not sorry I'm not very good at physics
(excuse my ignorance).

 

[bcrowell]

Here is some material that might help you to understand curvature in two spatial dimensions, which is the simplest kind to understand: http://www.lightandmatter.com/html_books/genrel/ch05/ch05.html#Section5.3

The curvature described by general relativity isn't 2-dimensional or 3-dimensional, it's four-dimensional, because time is included as a dimension.

 

[A.T.]

Here are some visualizations of curved 2D space-time:

http://www.physics.ucla.edu/demoweb..._and_general_relativity/curved_spacetime.html
http://www.relativitet.se/spacetime1.html
http://www.adamtoons.de/physics/gravitation.swf

But don't expect to visualize curved or even flat 4D space-time easily.