Einstein's War : How Relativity Conquered Nationalism and Shook the World

ISBN-13: 9780241376584 / Angielski / Miękka / 2019

Matthew Stanley

Opis

How an unknown German and an Englishman on opposite sides of WWI created a scientific revolutionIn 1916, Arthur Eddington, a war-weary British astronomer, opened a letter written by an obscure German professor named Einstein. The neatly printed equations on the scrap of paper outlined his world-changing theory of general relativity, the first complete revision of our conception of the universe since Isaac Newton.Until then, Einsteins masterpiece of time and space had been trapped behind the physical and ideological lines of battle, unknown. Many Britons were rejecting anything German, but Eddington realized the importance of the letter: perhaps Einsteins esoteric theory could not only change the foundations of science but also lead to international co-operation in a time of brutal war.Few recognize how the Great War, the industrialized slaughter that bled Europe from 1914 to 1918, shaped Einsteins life and work. While Einstein never held a rifle, he formulated general relativity blockaded in Berlin, literally starving. His name is now synonymous with genius, but it was not an easy road.Einstein spent a decade creating relativity and his ascent to global celebrity owed much to against-the-odds international collaboration, including Eddingtons globe-spanning expedition of 1919 - two years before they finally met - to catch a fleeting solar eclipse for a rare opportunity to confirm Einsteins bold prediction that light has weight.We usually think of scientific discovery as a flash of individual inspiration, but here we see it is the result of hard work, gambles and wrong turns. Einsteins War is a celebration of what science can offer when bigotry and nationalism are defeated. Using previously unknown sources and written like a thriller, it shows relativity being built brick-by-brick in front of us, as it happened 100 years ago.

Recenzje

Riveting . . . Stanley lets us share the excitement a hundred years later in this entertaining and gripping book. It's a must read if you ever wondered how Einstein became 'Einstein' Manjit Kumar, author of 'Quantum'

O autorze

Stanley, Matthew Matthew Stanley is professor of the history of science at New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. He has published two academic books and has written for Physics Today, Physics World and the Los Angeles Review of Books. He has a podcast, What the If?!?, and has appeared on documentaries on the History Channel, BBC and NPR. This is his first trade book.