(Article written for School Children)
For Part I, Check: http://physics-de-pristine.blogspot.com/2011/12/dr-einstein-gains-center-stage-part-i.html
For Part II Check: http://physics-de-pristine.blogspot.com/2012/01/dr-einstein-gains-center-stage-part-ii.html
Part-3
In next five years he served at some of the most prestigious universities of Europe and finally was posted as professor at the famous ETH polytechnic at zurich his Alma matter ! But unfortunately during this period a great gulf was developing on domestic front. His simple wife though herself a highly educated woman (being his college mate when both studied in ETH ) could not adjust to his excessive obsession with science . This gulf only widened and resulted in divorce . Her happiness was sacrificed at altar of science. But Einstein was an extremely cultured person and gave away all his Nobel prize money to her when they parted . Though he married another woman subsequently he showed great respect to relatives of his first wife for many decades. Such was Dr Einstein's obsession with science. It is said that out side the world of science Einstein was just like a child and somebody had to be there to protect him.
During this period he traveled frequently to several universities in Europe to discuss the extremely perplexing topics of theoretical physics. He was everywhere welcomed with great respect and affection. He was not completely satisfied with special relativity theory because it did not encompass problems of gravity and the nature of electromagnetic radiations. He wanted to be in touch with universities “where the future was being brewed” i.e places where young scientists of new school of theoretical physics struggled with the new ideas. He came into contact with all the leading young scientists of the day who produced the 20th centuries scientific revolution.
He was a popular teacher and was very devoted to his pupils. He gave full freedom to students and asked them to question him in science matters as much as they wanted.He cultivated a kind of friendship with them treating them as equals in pursuit of science. He met them often at the “Terrassee café "(in Zurich) after the weekly scientific discussions in Zurich university.He also loved the deep democratic traditions of Switzerland which was his country of adaptation.In contrast to several countries of Europe where militarism was on the rise and every country was arming to the teeth, Switzerland firmly remained a neutral state.
When he was engrossed with a scientific problem and felt tired he loved to walk in beautiful Swiss scenic places . He enjoyed sailing in small sail boats on the many small lakes along with his close family members . He loved hearing classical music and himself was an expert player of violin and piano. He sometimes loved smoking the pipe when engrossed in his research work. It was his experience that during such trips his subconscious mind solved the tough problems on hand !
He was offered a place at the famed German university at Prague in Czechoslovakia. He loved the position because the university had a vast library and the place had great historical significance for physicists and astronomers.The famed scientist and philosopher Dr Ernst Mach worked as rector. Centuries back the famed astronomer Tycho Brahe worked at a planetarium nearby with powerful telescopes and gathered very accurate astronomical data on a vast scale on observations of planets .The ready availability of this data helped the great Kepler to formulate his laws about planetary motion .( These laws in turn helped Newton in formulating the universal theory of gravitation.)
(The head of the physics department of Prague university was aware of Planck's praise of Einstein as the new Copernicus and so very much wanted Einstein to join as professor. Einstein had to take citizenship of the then state of Austria –Hungary to get the professorship at Prague. He loved the great palaces and parks, and artistically built cathedrals and also enjoyed the classical music concerts of Czech,Russian and German orchestras. He stayed there for only eighteen months. He was much benefited by the extensive laboratory facilities of the maths department of university which were very useful in his research on some aspects of the general theory of relativity .
But the “elder statesmen of science” like prof Max Planck and prof Nernst , who were great admirers of young Einstein the "L'Enfant terrible" of theoretical physics, felt that great progress would occur in theoretical physics under Einstein's captaincy if he is entrely relieved of teaching duties. Prof Kliener had an idea of creating a chair of theoretical physics at ETH which was under control of Zurich university and to invite Einstein for the post . The university authorities asked for opinion of Dr.Marie Curie ad Dr Henri Poincare in the matter. Their opinions are worth mentioning.Both felt that there would be no better choice.Madame Curie felt that Einstein was still very young, that “he would surely prove himself as one of the greatest theoreticians of the future” and that “the the university would be honoring itself by appointing him to the new chair”. Dr. Henri Poincare felt that “the university which can capture this young master would be gaining much honor”. They were really prophetic words.
During this time offers came to Dr Einstein from universities of Utrecht and Vienna and New York’s Columbia university. But they were politely declined . He was offered the chair at ETH his Alma matter for a period of ten years. He joined in 1912.his lectures were well attended . His weekly “colloquiums “(unofficial lecture-cum-discussions) were attended by students as well as professors .
Dr Marie Curie (who received Nobels in both physics and chemistry for her research in field of radio activity)visited him with her two daughters and stayed at his house to discuss at length the great ferment in physics created by new discoveries ( electron, x-radiation,Rutherford's theory of atomic nucleus, Einstein's ideas about photons and her own researches.)
He signed a a thought provoking manifesto on philosophy and science along with famous intellects like Dr Ernst Mach and Dr Sigmund Freud (the famous psychologist) . Einstein mentioned at the meeting held on the occasion that his new ideas in the new gravitation theory which he would announce soon(the general theory of relativity to encompass physical and astronomical phenomena in entire universe) would likely anger scientists! Physicists all over Europe felt that in young Dr Einstein they saw a new star on the firmament of physics.
He was convinced that photons of e.m.radiations are effected by gravity just like any material particles. He published a paper in Annalen der Physik in 1911 suggesting an experiment for astronomers to verify his theory. The experiment was to be conducted only during a total solar eclipse. He predicted that light rays coming from a far away predesignated bright star should be bent at the edge of sun's disc and this can be observed during the eclipse.He also predicted that when photons emanating from a star (a heavy gravitational body) fall on earth (a very light gravitational body ) the wavelength of the incoming radiation should lengthen and show a special Doppler effect in addition to all other Doppler effects (due to high velocity movement of stars and galaxies in space due to the Big Bang) . This paper of 1911 induced sir Arthur Eddington to think of an expedition during a total solar eclipse in 1919 to verify Einstein's ideas. The scientific world was truly stunned to learn that Einstein's predictions about shift of the position of the designated star were found to be true beyond any experimental error!
He was getting a large number of invitations from universities to lecture on his new relativity ideas. One such invitation came from the great prof Lorenz of Leiden university. Dr Lorenz forecast long before discovery of electron that such a negative particle should exist inside all atoms and also proposed that the electromagnetic fields created by such negative particles(electrons) would even affect the dimensions of bodies traveling at speeds near the speed of light.Dr Einstein treated his invitation to Leiden university as a great honor.
Dr Einstein was also invited to deliver lectures at the first Solway Congress of scientists which was to be held at Berlin in October 1911. Prof Solway was a famous industrial chemist who discovered a process to produce soda (caustic soda) and also owned huge factories that accounted for most of its world production . Prof Solway decided to use a part of his great wealth for advancement of science.
It was an “experts only “ congress attended by the great scientists who had rewritten laws of physics . All the expenses for the invitees were borne by the organizers who held the conference at the palatial "Hotel Metrople" All the great physicists of Europe were there---Planck,Nernst and Reuber of Germany,Henri Poincare (the greatest mathematician of that time )and Madame Marie Curie and Lorgan from France, Sir James Jeans and Rutherford from England and prof Einstein and prof Hosen Djorl represented Austria- Hungary
Einstein was at the center of the new scientific unrest arising out of new discoveries and new theories of that time. The theme of the conference was “radiation and quanta”, which was a hot topic which dealt with the incompatibility between quantum theory,wave theory and Einstein's new idea of photons. But Einstein,(deeply engrossed in his continuing research on his coming theory of general relativity which could most likely provide an answer to the scientific unrest existing at that time) did not participate in the main deliberations on that topic. Heread a paper on a less important subject--- "discrepancies in specific heat measurements". However he discussed serious scientific and philosophic problems on equal terms with scientists like Planck,Nernst,Lorentz, Rutherford,Madame Curie etc most of whom were all far elder to him.
Dr Einstein and Dr Ernest Rutherford of England were two contrasting figures at the conference and it was commented at that time that “Einstein was all calculation and Rutherford all experiment”
Dr Einstein thanked the famed German scientist prof Nernst for inducing prof Solway (friend of Dr Nernst) to organize the conference. The photo of the rare gathering of the greatest brains of the time gathering at first Solway congress is a much treasured photo even now among lovers of physics.
In1923 the theory of quantum mechanics which was a new revolution in physics was proposed. The theory was proposed by very youthful intellectuals, all later day Nobel laureates,namely Louis de Broglie,Ervin Shroedinger,Werner Heisenberg,Wolfgang Pauli,Paul Dirac etc. The theory was based on uncertainty principle and probability theory.It states that most subatomic phenomena like appearance of electron in a certain orbit at a certain moment or emission of a particular em radiation quantum from a certain orbit, fission of a particular atom inside natural uranium at a certain moment etc are decided by probability theory and uncertainty principle (i.e not by fixed physical laws based on "cause and effect" theory)
Dr Einstein would not agree and based his arguments strictly on principle of cause and effect i.e. "every action should take place accurately based on an earlier action and we should be able to foretell correctly based on past activity" .The supporters and opponents of quantum mechanics were at the same time uncompromising enemies and closest of friends! The first group(supporting quantum mechanics) was led by Dr Niels Bohr and Max Born and the other group supporting application of laws of cause and effect was ably led by Dr Einstein !(At subsequent Solway conferences Dr Einstein praised Niels Bohr's theory, about Hydrogen spectra and structure of Hydrogen atom based on quantum theory ,as the great work of a genius.He wrote as late as 1949 that Dr Bohr's work “appeared like a a miracle even now”)
Still greater honors awaited Dr Einstein. Dr Max Planck and DrNernst( both of whom he greatly respected for their erudition and age) personally visited Dr Einstein in Zurich and asked him to accept the post of director of Prussian Academy of Sciences(renamed as the Kaiser Wilhelm institute of physics) and to be simultaneously an honorary professor of Berlin university. There would be absolutely no teaching work and he could devote entire time to his path breaking researches which would decide the future course of theoretical physics. The German government on such recommendation from the greatest scientists of the day went out of the way by doubling the salary of the post to 12000 German Marks! Though Einstein did not like the rise of aggressive militarism in Germany he accepted the offer strictly from the angle of benefiting science. He conveyed his gratefulness to all concerned for the honor and affection and joined the new place on DEC 7th 1913.
The later progress in his illustrious career would make a long story. Dr Max Born (life long friend and admirer of Einstein and one of the chief developers of quantum mechanics) commenting on the general theory of relativity which came in 1916 said that “it was the greatest feat of human thinking about nature ,the most amazing combination of philosophical penetration ,physical intuition and mathematical skill”
The idea of " curvature of space" resulting from the huge gravitation from other galaxies existing every where in universe, explaining discrepancies in calculation of solar orbit of planet mercury on the basis of space curvature,understanding of inertia as the total effect of gravitation from other stars and galaxies , defining extent of universe, the idea of treating all matter also as a single field filling the entire space of the universe, the idea of dark matter , the theory about bending of light rays into a closed curve around the periphery of universe due to gravitational attraction from the entire matter of the universe ----all these ideas of Einstein still make a great and most exciting reading! There is truly no exaggeration in words of Max Planck that Dr Einstein is the Copernicus of modern era who revised our idea of universe.
There were also important events effecting his private life.After the first world war anti Jewish feelings reached a high pitch under the demoniac Hitler. Einstein migrated to U.S.A. to escape persecution and even danger to his life.His great work at Princeton university has not been touched here in this essay. His great work for world peace after the second world war has also not been mentioned . His researches to learn about structure of the universe(the Einstein universe) and his persistence with idea of curvature of space and prediction of several phenomena that may occur in faraway stars etc(that led directly to the starting of a new science of cosmology) have also not been mentioned. But a small pump can not pump all water from a big reservoir.
NB:The writer took a few historic details in life of Dr Einstein from the book "Einstein-the life and times " by Ronald.w.Clark published by Harper & Collins and Avon books,New York. This is gratefully acknowledged
By Sastry Polavarapu (Admin of PDEP)
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