Albert Einstein (1879-1955):



Albert Einstein (1879-1955):

"I will never stop pondering on the question of the essence of light."

Keep these questions in mind as you take notes on the PBS documentary Einstein Revealed (1996):

1) What type of person was Einstein? How did he interact with others, particularly those closest to him?

2) What were his main theoretical contributions to physics? How did he develop these ideas over time?

3) How does Einstein fit into the story of unification in science, specifically in physics?

(1905) Annus Mirabilis ( The "Miracle Year")

Papers published in Annalen der Physik

1) "On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies" ( Special Theory of Relativity

speed of light (c) is constant for all observers

rejects absolute time ( the flow of time NOT constant

simultaneity ( could observers agree WHEN events took place?

Thought experiment (Gedanken): railway car & lightning strikes

2) Photoelectric Effect ( quantum theory

light as quanta or discrete bundles of energy called photons

Einstein applied the notion of light as quanta to the photoelectric effect

3) Brownian Motion ( kinetic theory of heat & atomic theory

irregular motions of small particles such as pollen or dust in a liquid ( explained by motion of molecules

(1907) begins working on the problem of gravitation

Thought experiment (Gedanken): elevator & rocket ship

principle of equivalence: gravitational force = force of acceleration

if acceleration bends light, then so does gravity

(1911) attends the First Solvay Conference, Brussels, Belgium

(1912) made Professor of Theoretical Physics at ETH (Federal Polytechnic), Zurich, Switzerland

(1913) Max Planck offers him a job at the University of Berlin

(1914-1918) The First World War

Einstein calls humans an "idiotic and rotten species."

(1915) General Theory of Relativity

mathematics of 4-dimensional space-time developed by Hermann Minkowski

Marcel Grossman assists Einstein with the mathematics of non-Euclidean geometry

uses curved or warped space-time to explain gravity

applies his theory successfully to small irregularities in Mercury's orbit

(1919) British eclipse expedition to South Atlantic

Arthur Eddington observes the curvature of distant starlight around the sun

vindication of Einstein's calculations according to general relativity

Einstein the Hero-Scientist: a symbol of hope, peace, & the power of science

(1921) awarded the Nobel Prize especially for work on the photoelectric effect

(1920s) growing anti-Semitism and rise of the Nazi Party in Weimar Germany

some scientists reject Einstein's work & others' as "immoral, Jewish physics"

(1927) Fifth Solvay Conference

The Rise of Quantum Mechanics( physics of the very small, sub-atomic particles

Werner Heisenberg & Niels Bohr: randomness & uncertainty inherent in nature

Einstein never accepts quantum theory: "God does not play dice . . ."

(1929-39) The Great Depression

(1933) Adolf Hitler comes to power

Einstein emigrates to United States ( Princeton, New Jersey

(1939-1945) The Second World War

(1939) Einstein's letter to FDR ( urges nuclear research

(1940) Einstein becomes an American citizen

(1941) Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7

America enters the war

Manhattan Project begins

(1945) first atomic bomb detonated at Trinity site, New Mexico on July 16: "I have become death, destroyer of worlds"

atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima & Nagasaki in early August ending WWII

(1955) Einstein dies of heart failure in Princeton, NJ on April 16

Web Resources:

Einstein Revealed: Nova (PBS)

Time Magazine: Person of the Century

Nobel e-Museum

Professor Stephen Hawking's website

E = Mc2 by David Bodanis

J. Robert Oppenheimer

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