Einstein for the 21st Century

by Galison, Peter L.

• ISBN13: 9780691135205
• ISBN10: 0691135207
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-04-01
• Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr

Summary

More than fifty years after his death, Albert Einstein's vital engagement with the world continues to inspire others, spurring conversations, projects, and research, in the sciences as well as the humanities.Einstein for the 21st Centuryshows us why he remains a figure of fascination. In this wide-ranging collection, eminent artists, historians, scientists, and social scientists describe Einstein's influence on their work, and consider his relevance for the future. Scientists discuss how Einstein's vision continues to motivate them, whether in their quest for a fundamental description of nature or in their investigations in chaos theory; art scholars and artists explore his ties to modern aesthetics; a music historian probes Einstein's musical tastes and relates them to his outlook in science; historians explore the interconnections between Einstein's politics, physics, and philosophy; and other contributors examine his impact on the research, projects, and conversations of our time. Uniquely cross-disciplinary,Einstein for the 21st Centuryserves as a testament to his legacy and speaks to everyone with an interest in his work. The contributors are Leon Botstein, Lorraine Daston, E. L. Doctorow, Yehuda Elkana, Yaron Ezrahi, Michael Friedman, Juuml;rg Frouml;hlich, Peter L. Galison, David Gross, Hanoch Gutfreund, Linda Henderson, Dudley Herschbach, Gerald Holton, Caroline Jones, Susan Neiman, Lisa Randall, Juuml;rgen Renn, Matthew Ritchie, Silvan S. Schweber, and A. Douglas Stone.

Author Biography

Peter L. Galison is the Pellegrino University Professor of the History of Science and of Physics at Harvard University. Gerald Holton is the Mallinckrodt Research Professor of Physics and Research Professor of the History of Science at Harvard. Silvan S. Schweber is professor emeritus of physics and the Richard Koret Professor in the History of Ideas at Brandeis University.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. ix
Solitude and World
Who Was Einstein? Why Is He Still So Alive?	p. 3
A Short History of Einstein's Paradise beyond the Personal	p. 15
Einstein's Jewish Identity	p. 27
Einstein and God	p. 35
Einstein's Unintended Legacy: The Critique of Common-Sense Realism and Post-Modern Politics	p. 48
Subversive Einstein	p. 59
Einstein and Nuclear Weapons	p. 72
Art and World
Einstein and 20th-Century Art: A Romance of Many Dimensions	p. 101
Rendering Time	p. 130
Into the Bleed: Einstein and 21st-Century Art	p. 150
Einstein and Music	p. 161
Seeing the Unseen	p. 176
Science and World
The Assassin of Relativity	p. 185
Space, Time, and Geometry: Einstein and Logical Empiricism	p. 205
Einstein as a Student	p. 217
Learning from Einstein: Innovation in Science	p. 239
Einstein and 'h: Advances in Quantum Mechanics	p. 257
Einstein's Unknown Contribution to Quantum Theory	p. 270
Einstein and the Quest for a Unified Theory	p. 287
Energy in Einstein's Universe	p. 299
Notes	p. 311
Contributors	p. 341
Index	p. 349
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