Very few people have never heard of Albert Einstein. Just as famous as George Washington, he revolutionized the field of physics in the 20th century. However, few people know exactly what it was that he did. Everyone knows of the famous E=MC2, but what does it actually mean? This pertains to the Theory of Relativity, perhaps Einstein's most important contribution. But what is it? This we shall explore.
II. Discovery
It began one day in 1905 when a 26-year-old Einstein was riding a city bus, when he wondered what would happen if the bus accelerated to the speed of light. After further research, he published his findings in his 1905 paper on Special Relativity. Building upon theories made by other scientists, this states, among other things, that light in a vacuum remains at a particular contstant speed, regardless of the motion of the light source (the origin of E=MC2), that all things moving at the same velocity will be affected by the same physics, and that all space and time reference frames are equal, which means that there is no "present" time. Over time, this theory was accepted by many scientists, however, there was a problem: it only applied to matter and energy under special circumstances. Therefore, in 1915, einstein publsihed his thesis on General Relativity, which generalized special relativity using Newton's law of universal gravitation. This staes that the curvature of spacetime (all 4 dimensions) is related to the momentum of all mass and energy prestn. This means that the greater the mass and radiational energy of an object, the greater it affects gravity and the more it bends space around it. This led to the prediction of the existence of gravitational waves, time delay, and even black holes.
III. Biography
Albert Einstein was born on March 14, 1879, in Ulm, Wurttemberg, Germany, to Hermann and Pauline Einstein. In 1889, Max Talmud, a medical student, began living with the family part-time. It was he that introduced the young Einstein to science and mathematics, which he would develop a passion for. In 1895, he published his first scientific work, "The Investigation of the Aether in Magnetic Fields", and in 1896, began at the Polytechnic School in Zurich, graduating in 1900. In 1902, he married Mileva Maric, having two children, but divorcing in 1919. That same year, he married Elsa Lowenthal, who eventually died in 1936. Starting in 1903, he began working at a patent office while continuing his academic career, writing papers on thermodynamics and physical principles. A breakthorugh came in 1905, when he published his theories on photons, Browning motion, energy and matter equivalence, and on special relativity. He gained notice, and in 1908, he began teaching in Bern, Prague, and later Berlin, being accepted into multiple scientific societies. In 1921, he won the Nobel Prize for Physics, traveling around the world as a new celebrity. In 1933, as he was Jewish, he left Germany after the rise of the Nazis and became an American citizen. In 1939, In order to prevent the Nazis from developing nuclear weaponry, he became a lead scientist on the Manhattan Project, which developed America's atomic bomb. After another decade of scientific development, Einstein died on April 17, 1955.
IV. Impact on the World
Albert Einstein revolutionized the world of physics. He published hundreds of books and articles, not just on science, but also on philosophy. He helped to develop theories on the atom, light, time, and quantum physicss. His Theory of Relativity changed the way that scientistd thought of space. It opened up an entire new world of possibilities, not just for physics, but for space travel as well. His theories implied everything from wormholes to time warps to black holes. Generally accepted around the world, this theory is the staple for quantum physics and the defintion of spacetime and gravity as we know it today. Einstein's legacy lives on, as many know of E=MC2 and of his many discoveries. In honor of his achievements, he was named man of the century in 1999.
V.Journal Article
In Einstein's own 1936 publication Physics & Reality, he gives insight into not only his scientific interest, but to his philosophical nature as well. He discusses the importance of the scientific method as not only a tool for discovering the world, but for allowing us to think. It was by this that he could discover his theories. He says that in order to set a "real external world", one must be able to recognize bodies crated or observe by the senses, and then to be able to establish their significance. Later he discusses the aim of science, stating that its goal is the comprehension of what our senses experience, and then to be able to make them unite in a particular minimum.
VI. Bibliography
1. Bernstein, J. (1996). Albert Einstein and the Frontiers of Physics. New York: Oxford University Press.2. Einstein, Albert. (2003). Physics & Reality. Daedalus vol. 132.
3. Einstein, Albert. (2001). Relativity: The Special and General Theory. (Lawson, R.W., Translator). London: Routledge.
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