Two Time USA Memory Champion, memory training expert and memory keynote Ron White is happy to shares his thoughts on one of his favorite historical characters, Albert Einstein.
Albert Einstein is, without a doubt, one of the most revered men in history, and he left a legacy that will endure forever in the fields of energy, gravity, light, and time.
In 1921, Einstein won the Nobel Prize in Physics, “For his services to theoretical physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the ‘photoelectric effect’ (photons),” which showed how the photoelectric effect was caused by absorption of “quanta” of light (now called photons).
Einstein’s most famous work is the Theory of Relativity (E=mc²). A simplistic explanation of this work is that tried to prove that energy is proportionate to the amount of mass that an object holds, and they can be interchangeable. In the end, it brought us a deeper understanding of the meaning of gravity. Later Einstein expanded this theory to include applications across uniform and non-uniform systems of motion and the large-scale effects of gravity.
“When you sit with a nice girl for two hours, it seems like two minutes. When you sit on a hot stove for two minutes, it seems like two hours that’s relativity.‖ Albert Einstein (German-American physicist, 1879-1955)
The Theory of Relativity opened up the world to other discoveries – such as the Bose-Einstein Condensate. Bose sent a paper to Einstein concerning this work with photons and offering his own ideas on the subject. Einstein translated the paper himself from English to German and submitted his ideas on quantum statistic of quanta (photons) in Bose’s name to “Zeitschrift für Physik”, that published it. Einstein then went on to extend Bose’s ideas to material particles (matter) in two other papers.
Using the Bose-Einstein Condensate in 1955, two scientists from the University of Colorado at Boulder’s NIST-JILA lab, Eric Cornell and Carl Wieman, produced the first gaseous condensate – using cooled gas of “rubidium” atoms. This discovery won them the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physics. Beyond that, in 2010 the first photon BEC was observed. This just goes to show that ideas that Einstein worked on have gone on to produce other amazing discoveries.
This Theory of Relativity also led to Einstein’s involvement in one of the most devastating inventions of all time – the atomic bomb.
Along with a group of scientists, Einstein convinced President Franklin D. Roosevelt that the Germans were working on a plan to build the first atomic bomb around the time of World War II, and it was not just a pipe dream, but possible. This communication gave way to the “Manhattan Project,” and the development of the first two atomic weapons that ended the war when dropped on Japan.
Although we attribute significant theories and scientific breakthroughs to Einstein he was an actual recognized and successful inventor. In 1926 he, along with his former student, co-invented an absorption refrigerator that had no moveable parts and ran on heat alone. Although he chose not to pursue this field of work, his invention did allow him the income to live well and continue to develop his other research projects.
The next time you look up and wonder why the sky is blue, you have Albert Einstein to thank. The question of “Why is the sky blue?” had baffled scholars and scientists for centuries. Einstein always enjoyed finding out the answer to unusual questions, so he worked on it until he discovered the secret – that the atmosphere scatters light particles, which allows the blue spectrum to show through.
One of the most fascinating men of all time, Albert Einstein’s life was full amazing insight, humor and graciousness. He was a man of integrity, and held great store in friendships. The one thing that people who study Einstein come away with is that he enjoyed taking the most complex thoughts and ideas and breaking them down so even the simplest of men could understand them.
“The whole of science is nothing more than a refinement of everyday thinking.” – Albert Einstein
His wondrous insights will continue to be passed on, built upon, and used to develop more exciting discoveries. He indeed can be honestly called, “A Man For All Ages.”
Resources:
Albert Einstein Inventions: http://www.inventionpop.com/AlbertEinsteinInventions.html
TNT Tonight: http://www.txt2nite.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1691
Carolus Chess – 1879-1955 Albert Einstein: http://sites.google.com/site/caroluschess/famous-people/explorers-and-inventors/albert-einstein
Wikkipedia – “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bose%E2%80%93Einstein_condensate