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Einstein: A Hundred Years of Relativity
An authoritative and richly illustrated biography―published on the centenary of Einstein's general theory of relativity
"The eternal mystery of the world is its comprehensibility … The fact that it is comprehensible is a miracle."
―Albert Einstein, 1936
Albert Einstein's universal appeal is only partially explained by his brilliant work in physics, as Andrew Robinson demonstrates in this authoritative, accessible, and richly illustrated biography. The main narrative is enriched by twelve essays by well-known scientists, scholars, and artists, including three Nobel Laureates. The book presents clearly the beautiful simplicity at the heart of Einstein’s greatest discoveries, and explains how his ideas have continued to influence scientific developments such as lasers, the theory of the big bang, and "theories of everything." Einstein’s life and activities outside of science are also considered, including his encounters with famous contemporaries such as Chaplin, Roosevelt, and Tagore, his love of music, and his troubled family life. The book recognizes that Einstein’s striking originality was expressed in many ways, from his political and humanitarian campaigns against nuclear weapons, anti-Semitism, McCarthyism, and social injustices, to his unconventional personal appearance.
Published in association with the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the book draws on this exceptional resource of Einstein’s private papers and personal photographs.
This new edition, published to recognize the centenary of the publication of Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity, includes an important new afterword by Diana Kormos Buchwald, the director of the Einstein Papers Project at the California Institute of Technology.
The contributors are Philip Anderson, Arthur C. Clarke, I. Bernard Cohen, Freeman Dyson, Philip Glass, Stephen Hawking, Max Jammer, Diana Kormos Buchwald, João Magueijo, Joseph Rotblat, Robert Schulmann, and Steven Weinberg.
"The eternal mystery of the world is its comprehensibility … The fact that it is comprehensible is a miracle."
―Albert Einstein, 1936
Albert Einstein's universal appeal is only partially explained by his brilliant work in physics, as Andrew Robinson demonstrates in this authoritative, accessible, and richly illustrated biography. The main narrative is enriched by twelve essays by well-known scientists, scholars, and artists, including three Nobel Laureates. The book presents clearly the beautiful simplicity at the heart of Einstein’s greatest discoveries, and explains how his ideas have continued to influence scientific developments such as lasers, the theory of the big bang, and "theories of everything." Einstein’s life and activities outside of science are also considered, including his encounters with famous contemporaries such as Chaplin, Roosevelt, and Tagore, his love of music, and his troubled family life. The book recognizes that Einstein’s striking originality was expressed in many ways, from his political and humanitarian campaigns against nuclear weapons, anti-Semitism, McCarthyism, and social injustices, to his unconventional personal appearance.
Published in association with the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the book draws on this exceptional resource of Einstein’s private papers and personal photographs.
This new edition, published to recognize the centenary of the publication of Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity, includes an important new afterword by Diana Kormos Buchwald, the director of the Einstein Papers Project at the California Institute of Technology.
The contributors are Philip Anderson, Arthur C. Clarke, I. Bernard Cohen, Freeman Dyson, Philip Glass, Stephen Hawking, Max Jammer, Diana Kormos Buchwald, João Magueijo, Joseph Rotblat, Robert Schulmann, and Steven Weinberg.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
19 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
Andrew Robinson
462 books76 followers(William) Andrew Coulthard Robinson is a British author and former newspaper editor.
Andrew Robinson was educated at the Dragon School, Eton College where he was a King's Scholar, University College, Oxford where he read Chemistry and finally the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. He is the son of Neville Robinson, an Oxford physicist.
Robinson first visited India in 1975 and has been a devotee of the country's culture ever since, in particular the Bengali poet and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore and the Bengali film director Satyajit Ray. He has authored many books and articles. Until 2006, he was the Literary Editor of the Times Higher Education Supplement<?em>. He has also been a Visiting Fellow at Wolfson College, Cambridge.
He is based in London and is now a full-time writer.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads data base.
Andrew Robinson was educated at the Dragon School, Eton College where he was a King's Scholar, University College, Oxford where he read Chemistry and finally the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. He is the son of Neville Robinson, an Oxford physicist.
Robinson first visited India in 1975 and has been a devotee of the country's culture ever since, in particular the Bengali poet and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore and the Bengali film director Satyajit Ray. He has authored many books and articles. Until 2006, he was the Literary Editor of the Times Higher Education Supplement<?em>. He has also been a Visiting Fellow at Wolfson College, Cambridge.
He is based in London and is now a full-time writer.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads data base.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 22, 2014
I almost gave it a 5 star rating because I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The book was not what I was expecting. When I started reading it I thought it would be about his theories and the first six or seven chapters were. But the rest of the book was an interesting biography of the man himself. Since I had never read a biography of him I found the most interesting part.
The book is probably not one which I would not have purchased. It was given to me as a gift. Now that I've read it I would recommend it to others and will probably pass it on to a few friends of mine who have a strong interest in science and the people who inhabit that world.
The book is probably not one which I would not have purchased. It was given to me as a gift. Now that I've read it I would recommend it to others and will probably pass it on to a few friends of mine who have a strong interest in science and the people who inhabit that world.
February 12, 2024
A series of shorter essays on Einstein's life, work, family, and impact. Each author picks up one aspect of this complicated man and explores him in more detail. I'm not sure any of us can truly understand all of the theories but we can understand motivations. A good read but you need to concentrate.
October 26, 2017
Odlična knjiga koja nam daje uvid u život jednog od najpoznatijih znansvenika ikad, uz Newtona. Njegovi odnosi s kolegama, njegov briljantni um te njegov pacifizam i zalaganje za mir čine ga uistinu posebnim. Svakako preporučam ovu knjigu :)
December 27, 2022
Broad range of scientific and personal observations.
I’d sit and share a meal with this one of a kind.
I’d sit and share a meal with this one of a kind.
September 24, 2012
I decided to read this biography of Einstein because this was the only book that was interesting to pickup for reading. This biography was important to read since it was about physics which possibly could be my career for life.
A diary, autobiograhy or biography. This category was interesting to read because it taught me how to identify what point of view biographies are written.
" Science is not and never will be a closed book. Every important advance brings new questions. Every development reveals, in the long run, new and deeper difficulties." Thus quote was my favourite in this book because this statement is absolutely true. There is always new questions when we find new things and this is endless until we find everything.
I learnt alot about the past of Einstein and how his determination and his complex mind made him the top in the world. Such thinking from him has reveealed so much for scientists. No one is that capable of thinking like him at this stage.
The childhood of Einstein was the most interesting thing in the biography because considering what he was when older and what he was like in the past was different. He was shy and didn't get well treated by his parents becuase they used to call him dum and illeterate. He always used to speak in full sentences. Overall this biography explained alot about Einstein and was a pleasure to read.
Review by Adil Imran
September 26, 2012
i decided to read this book because i'm a science kind of guy so i thought that i'd find it interesting.
this fits into the category 'a book with themes related to those we've studied in therm one'. this is because we studied 'knowledge is power'. i find this interesting because Einstein is possibly one of the most knowledgeable men who has ever lived, yet he had little power in relation to his knowledge, he only really has fame. this is why i disagree with the statement 'knowledge is power'.
my Favorited quote from this book is from Einstein himself: 'do not worry about your difficulties is mathematics, i can assure you that mine are still greater'. i like this quote because it is funny yet true at the same time.
something new i learnt from this book is to never give up (as cliche as it sounds). this is because Einsteins theories were tossed aside and ignored but he kept persisting and now, his theories are some of the biggest breakthroughs in the history of physics.
i didn't have a favorite character because it was a biography of Albert Einstein so he was basically the only character in it. But if i did have to chose a favorite character it would be Einstein because of his persistent manner and that his theories are now some of the biggest in history despite being doubted by others.
this fits into the category 'a book with themes related to those we've studied in therm one'. this is because we studied 'knowledge is power'. i find this interesting because Einstein is possibly one of the most knowledgeable men who has ever lived, yet he had little power in relation to his knowledge, he only really has fame. this is why i disagree with the statement 'knowledge is power'.
my Favorited quote from this book is from Einstein himself: 'do not worry about your difficulties is mathematics, i can assure you that mine are still greater'. i like this quote because it is funny yet true at the same time.
something new i learnt from this book is to never give up (as cliche as it sounds). this is because Einsteins theories were tossed aside and ignored but he kept persisting and now, his theories are some of the biggest breakthroughs in the history of physics.
i didn't have a favorite character because it was a biography of Albert Einstein so he was basically the only character in it. But if i did have to chose a favorite character it would be Einstein because of his persistent manner and that his theories are now some of the biggest in history despite being doubted by others.
April 16, 2012
This book was written in celebration of Einstein’s relativity theory (as noted on title) but it was more than that. It’s a celebration of the Man.
There quite a bit of scientific theories and assumptions etc in this book. I am not very scientific minded and I struggled in my high school physics class. Therefore, most of scientific natured discussions were just too slippery for me to grasp.
Einstein himself proved to be an interesting individual. As my husband puts it, “you gotta be crazy to think up stuff like that.” And my response was, he did not sound crazy at all instead very humanistic – failed marriage, dysfunctional relationships with his sons, unfaithfulness in marriage, loved to joke, and a warm supporter of peace.
There quite a bit of scientific theories and assumptions etc in this book. I am not very scientific minded and I struggled in my high school physics class. Therefore, most of scientific natured discussions were just too slippery for me to grasp.
Einstein himself proved to be an interesting individual. As my husband puts it, “you gotta be crazy to think up stuff like that.” And my response was, he did not sound crazy at all instead very humanistic – failed marriage, dysfunctional relationships with his sons, unfaithfulness in marriage, loved to joke, and a warm supporter of peace.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews