Difference between revisions of "Albert Einstein"
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Einstein's initial [[philosophy]] of [[Cosmology]] led him to revise his work on [[General Relativity]] to include a '[[fudge-factor]]' which he termed the [[Cosmological Constant]], and which allowed the [[Steady-State Universe]] model--which Einstein originally accepted--to be accounted for. | Einstein's initial [[philosophy]] of [[Cosmology]] led him to revise his work on [[General Relativity]] to include a '[[fudge-factor]]' which he termed the [[Cosmological Constant]], and which allowed the [[Steady-State Universe]] model--which Einstein originally accepted--to be accounted for. | ||
| − | [[Edwin Hubble]], of whom [[NASA]]'s famous [[Hubble Space Telescope]] is named in honor, later convinced him otherwise. At one point he had Einstein actually making direct [[observation]]s alongside him, and Hubble's [[finding]]s showed conclusively | + | [[Edwin Hubble]], of whom [[NASA]]'s famous [[Hubble Space Telescope]] is named in honor, later convinced him otherwise. At one point he had Einstein actually making direct [[observation]]s alongside him, and Hubble's [[finding]]s showed conclusively that the [[universe]] was indeed [[expand]]ing, as predicted by certain solutions of GR's field equations in the absence of a cosmological constant. Einstein recanted his original [[philosophy]], and accepted as true the notion of a changing [[universe]] having a definite [[begin]]ning. |
| − | He later said of | + | He later said of the Cosmological Constant, <nowiki>"It was the biggest blunder of my life.”</nowiki> |
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==Criticisms== | ==Criticisms== | ||
Revision as of 10:09, March 7, 2007
Albert Einstein (1879-1955) was a German born Nobel Prize winning physicist famous for several great works of theoretical physics. He is perhaps best known for his theories of Special Relativity and General Relativity, but his accomplishments include contributions to many other important works, such as the Photoelectric Effect, Brownian Motion, Bose-Einstein Statistics, his critiques of quantum mechanics via the EPR-Paradox, and later in life, his work in search of a Unified Field Theory.
Biography
His Notoriety
While most science historians would claim that Isaac Newton was arguably the greatest scientist in history, Albert Einstein is surely the most widely recognized scientist in the modern world--no captions are needed on his photographs, and practically every adult in the world immediately recognizes him.
He received the Nobel Prize in 1921 "for his services to Theoretical Physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect".
Einstein's meteoric rise to world fame came after the publication of Sir Arthur Eddington's observations on the bending of starlight passing nearby the Sun, which were taken during the total solar eclipse of May 29, 1919, and which were proclaimed to be the first observational proofs of Einstein's theory of General Relativity.
Effectively overnight, Einstein became famous the world over, and his name has now become synonymous in Western Culture with genius.
Famous Works
Beliefs
His Humility
Einstein's initial philosophy of Cosmology led him to revise his work on General Relativity to include a 'fudge-factor' which he termed the Cosmological Constant, and which allowed the Steady-State Universe model--which Einstein originally accepted--to be accounted for.
Edwin Hubble, of whom NASA's famous Hubble Space Telescope is named in honor, later convinced him otherwise. At one point he had Einstein actually making direct observations alongside him, and Hubble's findings showed conclusively that the universe was indeed expanding, as predicted by certain solutions of GR's field equations in the absence of a cosmological constant. Einstein recanted his original philosophy, and accepted as true the notion of a changing universe having a definite beginning.
He later said of the Cosmological Constant, "It was the biggest blunder of my life.”
Criticisms
References
"The Nobel Prize in Physics 1921"[1]
"On The Electrodynamics Of Moving Bodies"[2]
"Does The Inertia Of A Body Depend Upon Its Energy-Content?"[3]