The Complexity and Surprising Relatability of Einstein
Writing a biography about the most influential theoretical physicist ever is no simple task
Einstein by Walter Isaacson understandably contained a lot of technical information about the prevailing theories and principles of physics. As one without a background in this field, I frequently had to rewind, reread, and take notes to fully grasp certain concepts…sometimes without much success. Despite these struggles, I was surprised by how relatable Einstein was (outside of his science-shattering discoveries, of course).
The book provides a detailed account of one of humanity’s greatest scientists encapsulated in a moving, drama-packed story of an everyday man. By the end, one can understand — strangely well — the path that was taken to becoming the icon we know and reference today.
The Best Biographer of Our Time
First, I wanted to credit the author, Walter Isaacson for writing such a clear, comprehensive, and engaging biography about one of history’s most famous characters — a challenge that I only started to appreciate and understand after reading through his work.
Deep Research
While his storytelling is engaging — an impressive feat by itself — this goes beyond writing a novel. Isaacson had to search through volumes upon volumes of content from a wide range of perspectives and sources, sometimes in different languages and usually not in chronological order.
He had to interpret the reality of the past through the eyes and words of many who are no longer alive…mostly from a time in which the Internet did not exist.
Complex Ideas
To make a difficult challenge even harder, he had to explain some of physics’ most complicated theories in layman’s terms. While some might be turned off by his depth of coverage, I thought it appropriate and even necessary to allow readers to develop a complete view of who Einstein was. Such a literary accomplishment is one that many, including myself, too often take for granted.
Lessons Beyond Physics
Reading the story of Einstein came with many surprises, reminders, and insights about not only his life, but also history, humanity, and science in general. I was surprised, for instance, about the intimidating tactics of McCarthyism and the extent to which the ideology impacted Einstein’s life.
Father Time: 1, Everyone Else: 0
I was also unaware of Einstein’s debatable regression into a reactionary perspective and denial of quantum physics in the latter parts of his life. This initially shocked me coming from one whose tendency to push the boundaries of knowledge was at the heart of his greatest discoveries.
Isaacson, however, soon sheds light on how natural such a progression is: though accomplished beyond measure as a young adult, age seemed to have caught up with Einstein as it does with all humans. He spent the last 10+ years of his life stubbornly rejecting the quantum world and chasing a universal field theory that never came to be.
The Ubiquity of Family, Arts, and Brain Farts
Einstein’s personal life was more or less what anyone could experience: it wasn’t quite a popcorn bucket drama, yet it certainly wasn’t uneventful, either.
His family extended to three children of his who he somewhat abandoned — one of whom remains relatively invisible in historical documentation. His tendency to avoid any type of emotional distress probably didn’t help his relationships with them or his partners. He lived longer than his two wives and continued pursuing female companionship to his last days.
Maybe Einstein wasn’t a genius when it came to relationships, but in addition to being a scientific genius, Einstein was also a musical genius with his violin and a nautical genius with his sailboat. These three areas might’ve been where he spent the majority of his time (and brainpower), however…he was forgetful and was known to misplace his keys or simply be caught spacing out.
The Patterns of his Success
Despite some of these quirks and shortcomings, he was nevertheless The Albert Einstein and there seemed to be several patterns working in cohesion throughout his rather tame background that point toward his success.
Some patterns derive from qualities consistently evident in his personality while others lie in early experiences that combine to explain the origins of his achievements.
Always Questioning
A key trait exhibited throughout Einstein’s life was his refusal to accept authority. This, stacked on top of his relentless curiosity, led to critical questions about existing ideas that ultimately gave him the keys to unlock nature’s answers.
This mindset is partly responsible for his abstinence from the societal pipelines that often restrict the growth of brilliant minds.
A Unique Career Path
Rather than living the life suggested by his educational background, the conflicts he had with his professors — more or less resulting from his persistent questioning — barred him from receiving a position in academia. This landed him with an unusual amount of free time for one with such unique academic potential.
Consequently, Einstein spent many years of his youth working in a patent office. There, he observed a plethora of cutting-edge scientific creations and spent surplus time at work pondering life’s mysteries.
It is even rumored that he came upon his theory of general relativity while gazing out his office window and witnessing a man falling from a nearby building.
These patterns mentioned and an undisturbed dedication of time and effort resulted in his first big discoveries.
Next Level Tenacity and Great Friends
Einstein’s train of thought chugged along endlessly and never stopped at the station. His brainstorming persisted through meals, vacations, and daily walks. In addition to being ceaselessly engrossed in his work, he also surrounded himself with other brilliant minds to bounce ideas off of and build on his own insights.
As a theoretical thinker, there were always new thought experiments, which he asked his more technical companions to put to the test. He would often begin with the most fundamental laws of nature and build upon them in solitude or with friends, always seeking ways to unify or poke holes.
The existence of atoms, for instance, was undeniably proven through Einstein’s theory unifying the thermodynamics of liquid and statistical mechanics, a connection Einstein saw on a fundamental level that no one before him could.
Einstein’s Humanity
The physics might prove challenging, but Isaacson illustrates Einstein’s life story in a way that makes sense to any given reader. In this book, simple pieces of a complex puzzle fall in place quite smoothly and the process of building such a puzzle ultimately serves as a reminder of how similar humans are.
While his life in the grand scheme of history might appear worlds apart, his day-to-day life wasn’t always as far of a reach from reality for many. Einstein simply went those few extra steps in pursuit of his passion and persisted through failure to redefine how we view our relationship with the universe.
