Einstein Defiant
by Edmund Blair Bolles
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"I find the idea quite intolerable that an electron exposed to radiation should choose of its own free will, not only its moment to jump off, but also its direction. In that case, I would rather be a cobbler, or even an employee in a gaming house, than a physicist." -Albert Einstein A scandal hovers over the history of 20th century physics. Albert Einstein -- the century's greatest physicist -- was never able to come to terms with quantum mechanics, the century's greatest theoretical show more achievement. For physicists who routinely use both quantum laws and Einstein's ideas, this contradiction can be almost too embarrassing to dwell on. Yet Einstein was one of the founders of quantum physics and he spent many years preaching the quantum's importance and its revolutionary nature. The Danish genius Neils Bohr was another founder of quantum physics. He had managed to solve one of the few physics problems that Einstein ever shied away from, linking quantum mathematics with a new model of the atom. This leap immediately yielded results that explained electron behavior and the periodic table of the elements. Despite their mutual appreciation of the quantum's importance, these two giants of modern physics never agreed on the fundamentals of their work. In fact, they clashed repeatedly throughout the 1920s, arguing first over Einstein's theory of "light quanta"(photons), then over Niels Bohr's short-lived theory that denied the conservation of energy at the quantum level, and climactically over the new quantum mechanics that Bohr enthusiastically embraced and Einstein stubbornly defied. This contest of visions stripped the scientific imagination naked. Einstein was a staunch realist, demanding to know the physical reasons behind physical events. At odds with this approach was Bohr's more pragmatic perspective that favored theories that worked, even if he might not have a corresponding explanation of the underlying reality. Powerful and illuminating, Einstein Defiant is the first book to capture the soul and the science that inspired this dramatic duel, revealing the personalities and the passions -- and, in the end, what was at stake for the world. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Not a bad book, in particular it did a great job of clarifying the background world history of the early years of quantum mechanics; however it also was not a great book.
I was hoping for a book that covered the physics of the Einstein-Bohr disagreements, but this was very definitely a book written by a historian with little understanding of the physics.
I was hoping for a book that covered the physics of the Einstein-Bohr disagreements, but this was very definitely a book written by a historian with little understanding of the physics.
Anyone interested in the development of modern physics will love this book. It gives a fascinating look into the century's most famous genius and the challenges (scientific, philosophical, and societal) he faced as he worked on his revolutionary ideas.
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Author Information
13 Works 609 Members
Edmund Blair Bolles : Educated in St. Louis and Philadelphia, he spent two years in Tanzania, East Africa, as a Peace Corps volunteer. Bolles currently lives in New York
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Einstein Defiant
- Alternate titles
- Einstein Defiant
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- Members
- 82
- Popularity
- 386,256
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (3.93)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 4
- UPCs
- 1
- ASINs
- 1
