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Einstein summary

Name: Einstein
Rating: 4.4 (149 reviews)
Author: Walter Isaacson

Walter Isaacson

His Life and Universe

4.4 (149 ratings)

19 mins

8 key ideas

Audio & text

What is Einstein about?

In an attempt to understand what motivated this peerless scientist, Walter Isaacson’s insightful biography (2008) delves into Einstein’s personal life. And, as it turns out, there are many factors that shaped Einstein – his rebellious nature, his fervent curiosity and his commitment to individual freedom.

About the Author

Walter Isaacson is a major American biographer who has explored the lives of prominent historical figures such as Steve Jobs, Benjamin Franklin, and Henry Kissinger. Currently the President and CEO of Aspen Institute, Isaacson is the former CEO and chairman of CNN.

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Einstein
summarized in 8 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 8

Einstein’s secular family, outsider status and unusual early development shaped his character.

We all know that Einstein achieved extraordinary things over the course of his illustrious professional life. But how did it all begin?

Einstein was born into an independent-minded family that valued learning. His father, for instance, gave his son a compass when the boy was four-years-old and sick in bed. Upon examining it, the young Einstein started trembling and grew cold with excitement. This experience instilled in him a sense of scientific wonder that would last throughout his entire life.

Around the same time, his mother arranged violin lessons, which proved pivotal. The instrument became a constant companion throughout Einstein’s life; later, he would puzzle out complex problems while playing music.

The visit of a medical student, Max Talmud, to Einstein’s childhood home was another formative experience. Talmud introduced the future scientist to the works of Aaron Bernstein and Kant, and to geometry.

Einstein’s unusual mental development also played a key role in shaping the man he would become: He was slow to develop linguistically and he didn’t ace his university mathematics courses. And yet, by the age of 12 he had mastered applied arithmetic. By 13, he was reading Kant.

Later, Einstein reflected that these developmental irregularities allowed him to preserve a childlike wonder about those things that adults took for granted, things like space and time.

Additionally, Einstein’s Jewish background made him an outsider in Germany, and this sense of otherness proved formative. Although his teachers were liberal, he suffered anti-Semitic attacks from other children. As a result, he developed a detached aloofness, which may have contributed to his willingness later to break off from the scientific herd.

At the time, he also developed a lasting contempt for authority. The young Einstein was such a persistent classroom rebel – he despised the rote drilling and formal authority that characterized the German school system – that he got himself kicked out of school.

Although Einstein was a difficult and aloof companion, he was abundantly generous and loved by many.

Einstein’s unusual childhood produced a brilliant but complicated man. As an adult, Einstein struggled with intimate relationships because he often put work ahead of all else.

This was evident in both of his marriages, neither of which was ideal. Although his first wife, Mileva Marić, was arguably the love of his life, the relationship quickly disintegrated; Einstein’s cruel behavior was largely to blame. For instance, he once wrote to another woman that his wife’s jealousy was a flaw typical of a woman of such “uncommon ugliness.”

1905 was the pivotal year in which Einstein upended classical physics.

Einstein’s work was marked by two major revolutionary periods: the first came in 1905; the second followed a decade later. After this second period, he spent the remaining years of his life trying in vain to come up with a unified theory that would reconcile his earlier insights – but more on that later.

For now, let’s return to Einstein’s miracle year. In 1905, while working in the patent office in Bern (where he spent seven years, unable to secure a position as an assistant doctoral scientist), Einstein wrote four papers that revolutionized physics.

Einstein’s key theory was that although time, space and distance are relative, nothing’s faster than the speed of light.

The Special Theory of Relativity was divided into two postulates: The principle of relativity and the light postulate. So, let’s tackle them one by one.

First, the principle of relativity states that, as long as you are moving at a constant speed, the fundamental laws of physics are invariant, regardless of the state of motion.

Einstein produced the General Theory of Relativity by building upon his earlier work.

Eventually, Einstein expanded the Special Theory of Relativity into the General Theory of Relativity. The journey began in 1907, with what Einstein later called “the happiest thought of my life.” It dawned upon him that when someone falls, they don’t feel their own weight.

This realization led to the Equivalence Principle, which states that the local effects of gravity and acceleration are equivalent. In other words, it’s impossible to conduct an experiment to determine whether something occurred due to gravity or acceleration.

Einstein became conservative in response to the emergence of quantum mechanics.

By formulating the Theory of Relativity equation, Einstein laid the foundation for studying the nature of the cosmic universe. For instance, his 1917 cosmological theory posited that because gravity bends back on itself, space must have no borders. In other words, we live in a finite universe without boundaries.

But for Einstein, there was a hitch: The concept of a static universe would have to be discarded, because gravity was needed to hold together all the world’s matter. Thus, the universe must always be either expanding or contracting.

Although he was too skeptical of authority to join movements, Einstein was politically vocal.

Whether the subject was science, politics or religion, Einstein wasn’t shy about sharing his opinion. And over the course of his life, he became more and more politically vocal – especially after he fled Europe for the United States due to growing anti-Semitism in the years leading up to the Second World War.

Although these events bound him more closely to the Jewish people, it’s worth noting that Einstein didn’t share traditional Jewish beliefs, largely because he resisted the notion of free will: Einstein was a determinist, whereas Judaism teaches that man can shape his own life.

Even in the last week of his life, Einstein’s curiosity and rebelliousness never wavered.

Having suffered from stomach trouble throughout his life, Einstein died, from an aneurysm on his abdominal aorta, in 1955.

And although he was ill in the months leading up to his death, he didn’t stop working and exploring. Even as a 76-year-old man, he preserved the same persistence and curiosity that had characterized his childhood.

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Best quote from Einstein

Long live impudence! It is my guardian angel in this world. – Einstein

—Walter Isaacson

Who should read Einstein

Anyone who’s interested in Einstein
Anyone who’s interested in physics and the history of science
Anyone seeking to summon the courage to follow their dreams

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Einstein summary

What is Einstein about?

About the Author

Einstein
summarized in 8 key ideas

Einstein’s secular family, outsider status and unusual early development shaped his character.

Although Einstein was a difficult and aloof companion, he was abundantly generous and loved by many.

1905 was the pivotal year in which Einstein upended classical physics.

Einstein’s key theory was that although time, space and distance are relative, nothing’s faster than the speed of light.

Einstein produced the General Theory of Relativity by building upon his earlier work.

Einstein became conservative in response to the emergence of quantum mechanics.

Although he was too skeptical of authority to join movements, Einstein was politically vocal.

Even in the last week of his life, Einstein’s curiosity and rebelliousness never wavered.

Key ideas in Einstein

Einstein’s secular family, outsider status and unusual early development shaped his character.

Although Einstein was a difficult and aloof companion, he was abundantly generous and loved by many.

1905 was the pivotal year in which Einstein upended classical physics.

Einstein’s key theory was that although time, space and distance are relative, nothing’s faster than the speed of light.

Einstein produced the General Theory of Relativity by building upon his earlier work.

Einstein became conservative in response to the emergence of quantum mechanics.

Although he was too skeptical of authority to join movements, Einstein was politically vocal.

Even in the last week of his life, Einstein’s curiosity and rebelliousness never wavered.

Best quote from Einstein

Who should read Einstein

Categories with Einstein

Books like Einstein

Discover the Blinkist catalogue

Popular titles

Most popular categories

Trending Collections

Einstein summary

What is Einstein about?

About the Author

Einstein summarized in 8 key ideas

Einstein’s secular family, outsider status and unusual early development shaped his character.

Although Einstein was a difficult and aloof companion, he was abundantly generous and loved by many.

1905 was the pivotal year in which Einstein upended classical physics.

Einstein’s key theory was that although time, space and distance are relative, nothing’s faster than the speed of light.

Einstein produced the General Theory of Relativity by building upon his earlier work.

Einstein became conservative in response to the emergence of quantum mechanics.

Although he was too skeptical of authority to join movements, Einstein was politically vocal.

Even in the last week of his life, Einstein’s curiosity and rebelliousness never wavered.

Key ideas in Einstein

Einstein’s secular family, outsider status and unusual early development shaped his character.

Although Einstein was a difficult and aloof companion, he was abundantly generous and loved by many.

1905 was the pivotal year in which Einstein upended classical physics.

Einstein’s key theory was that although time, space and distance are relative, nothing’s faster than the speed of light.

Einstein produced the General Theory of Relativity by building upon his earlier work.

Einstein became conservative in response to the emergence of quantum mechanics.

Although he was too skeptical of authority to join movements, Einstein was politically vocal.

Even in the last week of his life, Einstein’s curiosity and rebelliousness never wavered.

Best quote from Einstein

Who should read Einstein

Categories with Einstein

Books like Einstein

Discover the Blinkist catalogue

Popular titles

Most popular categories

Trending Collections

Einstein
summarized in 8 key ideas