Why is Einstein famous?

Albert Einstein is famous for his Theories of Relativity which say that nothing in the universe is absolutely still and that all motion is connected all or comparable. Einstein worked out a method of measuring the speed of moving objects, using the three dimension of space-length, height and thickness-and adding the fourth dimension of time. The three space dimensions tell us where the object is, while the fourth tells us when.

In the relativity theories the movement of any object is represented by lines, called “world-lines”, with the dimensions of time and space-as a four-dimensional graph. If an object moves with uniform speed and in a straight line, its world-line will be straight. If it moves under the force of gravity, such as a falling stone, it will drip not at a uniform pace, but at an increasing speed. So its world-line will be a curve.

Einstein was born in 1879 at Ulm in Germany of German-Jewish parents. He published his first paper on the Special Theory of Relativity in 1905, his second paper on the General Theory of Relativity ten years later. In 1921 he was awarded the Noble Prize for Physics. In 1950 he published another paper, and extension to the General Theory designed to include magnetism and electricity and called the Unifield Field Theory.

His remarkable ability as a scientist did not stop him from taking a keen interest in other affairs, and he held passionate views on peace and world unity. He was also an accomplished violinist.

In 1952, three years before his death, he rejected a suggestion that he should be nominated to be President of Israel.