Albert Einstein, perhaps the best known scientist of the 20th century,
was born in Ulm, Germany in 1879. Although he did not talk until the age
of three, young Einstein showed great interest in nature and a brilliant
ability to understand difficult mathematical concepts. After repeated business
failures the family left Germany for Milan, Italy. One year later Einstein
finished secondary school in Arrau, Switzerland and entered the Swiss National
Polytechnic in Zürich. He often cut classes and used the time to study
physics on his own. After graduating in 1900, he worked as a tutor and
substitute teacher in Bern, Switzerland for two years. In 1905 Einstein
received his doctorate from the University of Zürich for a theoretical
dissertation on the dimensions of molecules and he also published three
theoretical papers of central importance to the development of 20th-century
physics. In the first of these papers, on Brownian motion, he made predictions
about the motion of particles that are randomly distributed in a fluid.
In the second paper, on the photoelectronic effect, he made hypotheses
concerning the nature of light.
Einstein`s third major paper in 1905 "On the Electrodynamics of Moving
Bodies", contained what became known as the special theory of relativity.
Einstein did have important supporters. His early chief patron was the
German physicist Max Planck.
His first academic appointment was at the University of Zürich
in1909. In 1911 he moved to the German-speaking university at Prague, and
in 1912 he returned to the Swiss National Polytechnic in Zürich. Finally,
in 1913, he was appointed director of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for
Physics in Berlin. After 1919, Einstein became internationally renowned.
He accrued honors and awards from various world scientific societies, including
the Nobel Prize in physics in 1922.
The two social movements that received his full support were pacifism
and Zionism. During World War I he was one of a handful of German academics
willing to publicly decry Germany`s involvement in the war. After the war
his continued public support of pacifist and Zionist goals made him the
target of vicious attacks by anti-Semitic and right-wring elements in Germany.
When Hitler came to power, Einstein immediately decided to leave Germany
for the United States and took a position at the Institute for Advanced
Study at Princeton, New Jersey.
After the war, Einstein was active in the cause of international disarmament
and world government. During the late 1940s and early `50s he spoke out
on the need for the nation`s intellectuals to make any sacrifice necessary
to preserve political freedom.
Einstein died in Princeton on April 18, 1955.
If you want to learn more about Einstein have a look at our
school web page (in German)
Albert Einstein, perhaps the best known scientist of the 20th century,
was born in Ulm, Germany in 1879. Although he did not talk until the age
of three, young Einstein showed great interest in nature and a brilliant
ability to understand difficult mathematical concepts. After repeated business
failures the family left Germany for Milan, Italy. One year later Einstein
finished secondary school in Arrau, Switzerland and entered the Swiss National
Polytechnic in Zürich. He often cut classes and used the time to study
physics on his own. After graduating in 1900, he worked as a tutor and
substitute teacher in Bern, Switzerland for two years. In 1905 Einstein
received his doctorate from the University of Zürich for a theoretical
dissertation on the dimensions of molecules and he also published three
theoretical papers of central importance to the development of 20th-century
physics. In the first of these papers, on Brownian motion, he made predictions
about the motion of particles that are randomly distributed in a fluid.
In the second paper, on the photoelectronic effect, he made hypotheses
concerning the nature of light.
