Albert Einstein’s LegacySummary

Course Description 2005 is the 100th anniversary of Albert Einstein's miraculous year in which the world

first saw E=mc2 and the 50th anniversary of his death. His pioneering contributions in physics are being commemorated in a worldwide celebration of physics. We will take part in this celebration of Einstein's life, science, and philosophy by exploring the impact of his revolutionary thoughts about the fabric of space and time, leading to the now common notions of concepts like black holes, worm holes and the new views of the cosmos. Einstein's legacy is a new universe in which space and time are woven into the fabric of space-time. If this were all he had done, he would not have been declared Time Magazine's "Person of the Century". Einstein also contributed to humanity in his resistance to Hitler and in his controversial support of the Atomic Bomb. In this course we will explore the life, science and philosophy of Albert Einstein and the impact he and his colleagues have had on the world as we enter the 21st century.

Topics will include a history of physics through the early twentieth century; trips into the strange worlds of relativity and quantum physics; a look into the atomic age and its impact on our way of life; an exploration of Einstein's philosophical writings; and the impact of Einstein's science on our lives and in our media; The course will include specific readings, videos and participation in campus activities celebrating the centennial of the seminal work of one of the most recognized physicists of the 20th century.

Where have we been?• Einstein’s Youth• Brownian Motion• Special Relativity• Quantum Mechanics• General Relativity• Manhattan Project

“Yes, we have to divide up our time like that, between our politics and our equations. But to me our equations are far more important, for politics are only a matter of present concern. A mathematical equation stands forever.”

Revolutions• Space and Time

– Is space real?

• Measurements– Uncertainty Principle

• Determinism vs Indeterminism– Is there free will or is everything preordained?

• Time Travel– Can we change the past?

“There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable.

There is another theory which states that this has already happened.” Douglas Adams

The Elder Einstein

• Pacifism vs Zionism• Exile in 1933• Writings

– Science– War– Atomic Weapons– Religion– Politics and Government– Judaism

Group Reports

Nov 16th• McCallon, Pagels, Reece (18 min + 4 min)• Johnson, Overman, Seed (18 min + 4 min)• Sikes and Smith (12 min + 3 min)• Purcell and Styles (12 min + 3 min)_______________________________________Nov 21st• Hoxie, McDaniel, Whitner (18 min + 4 min)• Brenneman and Shipe (12 min + 3 min)• Rose, Schwarz (12 min + 3 min)• Yohn, Piscatelli ?? (12 min + 3 min)

War

“He who joyfully marches to music rank and file, has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice. This disgrace to civilization should be done away with at once. Heroism at command, how violently I hate all this, how despicable and ignoble war is; I would rather be torn to shreds than be a part of so base an action. It is my conviction that killing under the cloak of war is nothing but an act of murder.”

Nature

“A human being is a part of a whole, called by us 'universe', a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest... a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

Religion''It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious

convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as science can reveal it. I am a deeply religious nonbeliever. This is a somewhat new kind of religion. What I see in nature is a magnificent structure that we can comprehend only very imperfectly, and that must fill a thinking person with a feeling of humility. This is a genuinely religious feeling that has nothing to do with mysticism. I don't ty to imagine a personal God; it suffices to stand in awe at the structure of the world, insofar as it allows our inadequate senses to appreciate it.''

Relationships

"My passionate sense of social justice and social responsibility has always contrasted oddly with my pronounced lack of need for direct contact with other human beings and human communities. I am truly a 'lone traveler' and have never belonged to my country, my home, my friends, or even my immediate family, with my whole heart; in the face of all these ties, I have never lost a sense of distance and a need for solitude..."

Happiness

“I have never looked upon ease and happiness as ends in themselves -- this critical basis I call the ideal of a pigsty. The ideals that have lighted my way, and time after time have given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Kindness, Beauty, and Truth. Without the sense of kinship with men of like mind, without the occupation with the objective world, the eternally unattainable in the field of art and scientific endeavors, life would have seemed empty to me. The trite objects of human efforts -- possessions, outward success, luxury -- have always seemed to me contemptible.”

Don’t Panic!

"`You know,' said Arthur, `it's at times like this, when I'm trapped in a Vogon airlock with a man from Betelgeuse, and about to die from asphyxiation in deep space that I really wish I'd listened to what my mother told me when I was young.'

`Why, what did she tell you?'

`I don't know, I didn't listen.'"