CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html> <html class="client-nojs" lang="en" dir="ltr"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"/> <title>Albert Einstein - RationalWiki</title> <script>document.documentElement.className="client-js";RLCONF={"wgBreakFrames":!1,"wgSeparatorTransformTable":["",""],"wgDigitTransformTable":["",""],"wgDefaultDateFormat":"dmy","wgMonthNames":["","January","February","March","April","May","June","July","August","September","October","November","December"],"wgRequestId":"Z9t3pMeq565jtJP0sI2SaQAAAEs","wgCSPNonce":!1,"wgCanonicalNamespace":"","wgCanonicalSpecialPageName":!1,"wgNamespaceNumber":0,"wgPageName":"Albert_Einstein","wgTitle":"Albert Einstein","wgCurRevisionId":2718297,"wgRevisionId":2718297,"wgArticleId":107809,"wgIsArticle":!0,"wgIsRedirect":!1,"wgAction":"view","wgUserName":null,"wgUserGroups":["*"],"wgCategories":["Pages using DynamicPageList parser function","Articles with unsourced statements","Non-stub articles needing expansion","Physicists","Articles with funspace counterparts","Agnostics","Autism woo","Frequently misquoted people","History of science","Jews","Left-wing activists","Mathematicians","Philosophers", "Socialists","Stereotypes"],"wgPageContentLanguage":"en","wgPageContentModel":"wikitext","wgRelevantPageName":"Albert_Einstein","wgRelevantArticleId":107809,"wgIsProbablyEditable":!0,"wgRelevantPageIsProbablyEditable":!0,"wgRestrictionEdit":[],"wgRestrictionMove":[],"wgRedirectedFrom":"Einstein","wgMediaViewerOnClick":!0,"wgMediaViewerEnabledByDefault":!0,"wgInternalRedirectTargetUrl":"/wiki/Albert_Einstein"};RLSTATE={"site.styles":"ready","noscript":"ready","user.styles":"ready","user":"ready","user.options":"loading","ext.cite.styles":"ready","skins.vector.styles.legacy":"ready","mediawiki.toc.styles":"ready"};RLPAGEMODULES=["mediawiki.action.view.redirect","ext.cite.ux-enhancements","site","mediawiki.page.startup","mediawiki.page.ready","mediawiki.toc","skins.vector.legacy.js","ext.gadget.ReferenceTooltips","mmv.head","mmv.bootstrap.autostart"];</script> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.loader.implement("user.options@1hzgi",function($,jQuery,require,module){/*@nomin*/mw.user.tokens.set({"patrolToken":"+\\","watchToken":"+\\","csrfToken":"+\\"}); });});</script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=ext.cite.styles%7Cmediawiki.toc.styles%7Cskins.vector.styles.legacy&only=styles&skin=vector"/> <script async="" src="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=startup&only=scripts&raw=1&skin=vector"></script> <meta name="ResourceLoaderDynamicStyles" content=""/> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=site.styles&only=styles&skin=vector"/> <meta name="generator" content="MediaWiki 1.35.6"/> <meta name="description" content="Albert Einstein (1879–1955) was a German theoretical physicist of the highest caliber. Unfortunately, being one of the most influential scientists in history means his quotes are appropriated by theists and atheists alike.&#91;2&#93; As one of the founders of modern physics,&#91;notes 1&#93; he contributed to quantum mechanics, and developed the special and general theories of relativity. He advocated a one-world government hoping that it would put an end to "an infantile sickness" known as nationalism. He was also a socialist.&#91;3&#93; Einstein believed the Soviet Union could be persuaded to join and that this would solve the incipient Cold War: "Better to let Russia see that there is nothing to be achieved by aggression, but there are advantages in joining [a world government]: Then the Russian regime's attitude will probably change and they will take part without compulsion."&#91;4&#93; As someone who fits the stereotypical image of a scientist, he was a cartoonist's dream come true."/> <link rel="alternate" type="application/x-wiki" title="Edit" href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit"/> <link rel="edit" title="Edit" href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit"/> <link rel="shortcut icon" href="/favicon.ico"/> <link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" href="/w/opensearch_desc.php" title="RationalWiki (en)"/> <link rel="EditURI" type="application/rsd+xml" href="https://rationalwiki.org/w/api.php?action=rsd"/> <link rel="license" href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Copyrights"/> <link rel="alternate" type="application/atom+xml" title="RationalWiki Atom feed" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:RecentChanges&feed=atom"/> <link rel="canonical" href="https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein"/> <meta property="og:type" content="article"/> <meta property="og:site_name" content="RationalWiki"/> <meta property="og:title" content="Albert Einstein"/> <meta property="og:description" content="Albert Einstein (1879–1955) was a German theoretical physicist of the highest caliber. Unfortunately, being one of the most influential scientists in history means his quotes are appropriated by theists and atheists alike.&#91;2&#93; As one of the founders of modern physics,&#91;notes 1&#93; he contributed to quantum mechanics, and developed the special and general theories of relativity. He advocated a one-world government hoping that it would put an end to "an infantile sickness" known as nationalism. He was also a socialist.&#91;3&#93; Einstein believed the Soviet Union could be persuaded to join and that this would solve the incipient Cold War: "Better to let Russia see that there is nothing to be achieved by aggression, but there are advantages in joining [a world government]: Then the Russian regime's attitude will probably change and they will take part without compulsion."&#91;4&#93; As someone who fits the stereotypical image of a scientist, he was a cartoonist's dream come true."/> <meta property="og:url" content="https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein"/>  </head> <body class="mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject mw-editable page-Albert_Einstein rootpage-Albert_Einstein skin-vector action-view minerva--history-page-action-enabled skin-vector-legacy"> <div id="mw-page-base" class="noprint"></div> <div id="mw-head-base" class="noprint"></div> <div id="content" class="mw-body" role="main"> <a id="top"></a> <div id="siteNotice" class="mw-body-content"><div id="localNotice" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div id="2025_RationalWiki_.27Oregon_Plan.27_Fundraiser"> <table role="presentation" style="margin: 1em auto 1em auto; width: 100%;"> <tbody><tr> <td style="width: 60%; text-align: left;"><big><center><b><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Fundraiser" title="RationalWiki:Fundraiser">2025 RationalWiki 'Oregon Plan' Fundraiser</a></b></center></big> <p><b>There is no RationalWiki without you.</b> We are a small non-profit with no staff—we are hundreds of volunteers who document pseudoscience and crankery around the world every day. We will never allow ads because we must remain independent. We cannot rely on big donors with corresponding big agendas. We are not the largest website around, but <a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Fundraiser" title="RationalWiki:Fundraiser">we believe we play an important role in defending truth and objectivity</a>. </p> </td> <td style="width: 40%; text-align: center;"><big><b><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Fundraiser" title="RationalWiki:Fundraiser">Fighting pseudoscience isn't free</a>.<br />We are 100% user-supported! Help and donate $5, $10, $20 or whatever you can today with <img alt="PayPal Logo.png" src="/w/images/thumb/f/fb/PayPal_Logo.png/61px-PayPal_Logo.png" decoding="async" width="61" height="17" srcset="/w/images/thumb/f/fb/PayPal_Logo.png/92px-PayPal_Logo.png 1.5x, /w/images/thumb/f/fb/PayPal_Logo.png/122px-PayPal_Logo.png 2x" data-file-width="883" data-file-height="244" />!</b></big><a href="https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=67BJMQC85CUFW" title="Donate via PayPal" rel="nofollow"><img alt="" src="/w/images/thumb/1/10/DonateButton.png/100px-DonateButton.png" decoding="async" width="100" height="32" srcset="/w/images/thumb/1/10/DonateButton.png/150px-DonateButton.png 1.5x, /w/images/thumb/1/10/DonateButton.png/200px-DonateButton.png 2x" data-file-width="759" data-file-height="241" /></a> </td></tr></tbody></table> <div role="progressbar" style="width: 100%; border: 2px solid black; position: relative; padding: 2px; border-radius: 18px;"> <a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Fundraiser" title="RationalWiki:Fundraiser"><span style="text-shadow: -1px -1px 0 #FFFFFF, 1px -1px 0 #FFFFFF, -1px 1px 0 #FFFFFF, 1px 1px 0 #FFFFFF; color: black; font-size: 125%; position: absolute; left: 0%; margin: 0 0 0 10px"><b>Donations so far: $7608.77</b></span></a><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Fundraiser" title="RationalWiki:Fundraiser"><span style="text-shadow: -1px -1px 0 #FFFFFF, 1px -1px 0 #FFFFFF, -1px 1px 0 #FFFFFF, 1px 1px 0 #FFFFFF; color: black; font-size: 125%; position: absolute; right: 0%; margin: 0 10px 0 0"><b>Goal: $10000</b></span></a><div style="height: 28px; border-radius: 14px; background-color: hsl(60.87016,100%,45%); width: 76.0877%;"></div> </div></div></div></div> <div class="mw-indicators mw-body-content"> </div> <h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading" lang="en">Albert Einstein</h1> <div id="bodyContent" class="mw-body-content"> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From RationalWiki</div> <div id="contentSub"><span class="mw-redirectedfrom">(Redirected from <a href="/w/index.php?title=Einstein&redirect=no" class="mw-redirect" title="Einstein">Einstein</a>)</span></div> <div id="contentSub2"></div> <div id="jump-to-nav"></div> <a class="mw-jump-link" href="#mw-head">Jump to navigation</a> <a class="mw-jump-link" href="#searchInput">Jump to search</a> <div id="mw-content-text" lang="en" dir="ltr" class="mw-content-ltr"><div class="mw-parser-output"><div class="thumb tright"><div class="thumbinner" style="width:167px;"><a href="/wiki/File:Einstein_patentoffice.jpg" class="image"><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Einstein_patentoffice.jpg/165px-Einstein_patentoffice.jpg" decoding="async" width="165" height="216" class="thumbimage" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Einstein_patentoffice.jpg/248px-Einstein_patentoffice.jpg 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a0/Einstein_patentoffice.jpg/330px-Einstein_patentoffice.jpg 2x" data-file-width="4360" data-file-height="5699" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"><div class="magnify"><a href="/wiki/File:Einstein_patentoffice.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"></a></div>Einstein daydreaming at the Swiss patent office.</div></div></div> <table class="infobox" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" style="float: right; margin: 0 0 0.5em 0.5em; text-align:left; border: 1px solid #E3A857; width:175px;"> <tbody><tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center; color:white; background-color:#E3A857"><b>The facts of the matter</b><br /><a href="/wiki/Physics" title="Physics"><font size="5" color="white"><b>Physics</b></font></a> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="background-color:#f0d2a8;" align="center"><a href="/wiki/Category:Physicists" title="Category:Physicists"><img alt="Physicon.png" src="/w/images/thumb/6/67/Physicon.png/100px-Physicon.png" decoding="async" width="100" height="100" srcset="/w/images/thumb/6/67/Physicon.png/150px-Physicon.png 1.5x, /w/images/6/67/Physicon.png 2x" data-file-width="180" data-file-height="180" /></a> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:white; background-color:#E3A857; text-align:center;"><b>May the mass times acceleration be with you</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#f0d2a8;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Electromagnetism" title="Electromagnetism">Electromagnetism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Quantum_mechanics" title="Quantum mechanics">Quantum mechanics</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Relativity" title="Relativity">Relativity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thermodynamics" class="mw-redirect" title="Thermodynamics">Thermodynamics</a></li></ul> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:white; background-color:#E3A857; text-align:center;"><b>Let's get physical!</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#f0d2a8;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Michelson-Morley_experiment" title="Michelson-Morley experiment">Michelson-Morley experiment</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Electromagnetism" title="Electromagnetism">Electromagnetism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Schumann_Resonance" title="Schumann Resonance">Schumann Resonance</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Standard_Model" title="Standard Model">Standard Model</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cavendish_experiment" title="Cavendish experiment">Cavendish experiment</a></li></ul> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:white; background-color:#E3A857; text-align:center;"><b>Atoms trying to understand atoms</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#f0d2a8;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Richard_Feynman" title="Richard Feynman">Richard Feynman</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Robert_Hooke" title="Robert Hooke">Robert Hooke</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Alan_Sokal" title="Alan Sokal">Alan Sokal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Frederick_Seitz" title="Frederick Seitz">Frederick Seitz</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/R._A._Watters" title="R. A. Watters">R. A. Watters</a></li></ul> <div class="vte plainlinks" style="font-size:smaller; text-align:center;"><a href="/wiki/Template:Physics" title="Template:Physics">v</a> - <a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Physics" title="Template talk:Physics">t</a> - <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Physics&action=edit">e</a></div> </td></tr></tbody></table> <table class="messagebox mb-brainwatermark mb-warning-orange" style=""> <tbody><tr> <td class="mb-image"><a href="/wiki/File:Warning_icon_orange.svg" class="image"><img alt="Warning icon orange.svg" src="/w/images/thumb/4/4f/Warning_icon_orange.svg/50px-Warning_icon_orange.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" srcset="/w/images/thumb/4/4f/Warning_icon_orange.svg/75px-Warning_icon_orange.svg.png 1.5x, /w/images/thumb/4/4f/Warning_icon_orange.svg/100px-Warning_icon_orange.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="400" data-file-height="400" /></a> </td> <td class="mb-text"><b>This page contains too many unsourced statements and needs to be improved</b>. <hr /> <p><b>Albert Einstein</b> could use some help. Please research the article's assertions. Whatever is credible should be sourced, and what is not should be removed. </p> </td></tr></tbody></table> <table class="messagebox mb-brainwatermark plainlinks mb-info" style=""> <tbody><tr> <td class="mb-image"><a href="/wiki/File:Information_icon.svg" class="image"><img alt="Information icon.svg" src="/w/images/thumb/3/35/Information_icon.svg/50px-Information_icon.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" srcset="/w/images/thumb/3/35/Information_icon.svg/75px-Information_icon.svg.png 1.5x, /w/images/thumb/3/35/Information_icon.svg/100px-Information_icon.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="620" data-file-height="620" /></a> </td> <td class="mb-text"><b>This article requires expansion.</b> Please <b><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit">help</a>.</b> <p>Though not a <b><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Stub" title="RationalWiki:Stub">stub</a></b> by pure word count, this article lacks depth of content. </p> </td></tr></tbody></table> <table style="margin: auto; border-collapse:collapse; border-style:none; background-color:transparent;" class="cquote"> <tbody><tr> <td><div style="padding:4px 50px;position:relative;"><span style="position:absolute;left:10px;top:-6px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">“</span><span style="position:absolute;right:10px;bottom:-20px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">”</span>Though everybody knows me, there are very few people who really know me. I am a revolutionary.</div> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="padding:4px 10px 8px;font-size:smaller;line-height:1.6em;text-align:right;"><cite style="font-style:normal;position:relative;z-index:2">—Albert Einstein<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-1">[1]</a></sup></cite> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p><b>Albert Einstein</b> (1879–1955) was a <a href="/wiki/German" class="mw-redirect" title="German">German</a> theoretical <a href="/wiki/Physicist" class="mw-redirect" title="Physicist">physicist</a> of the highest caliber. Unfortunately, being one of the most influential <a href="/wiki/Scientist" class="mw-redirect" title="Scientist">scientists</a> in history means his quotes are appropriated by <a href="/wiki/Theist" class="mw-redirect" title="Theist">theists</a> and <a href="/wiki/Atheists" class="mw-redirect" title="Atheists">atheists</a> alike.<sup id="cite_ref-RPV_2-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-RPV-2">[2]</a></sup> As one of the founders of modern <a href="/wiki/Physics" title="Physics">physics</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3">[notes 1]</a></sup> he contributed to <a href="/wiki/Quantum_mechanics" title="Quantum mechanics">quantum mechanics</a>, and developed the special and general theories of relativity. He advocated a <a href="/wiki/One_world_government" title="One world government">one-world government</a> hoping that it would put an end to "an infantile sickness" known as <a href="/wiki/Nationalism" title="Nationalism">nationalism</a>. He was also a socialist.<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4">[3]</a></sup> Einstein believed the <a href="/wiki/Soviet_Union" title="Soviet Union">Soviet Union</a> could be persuaded to join and that this would solve the incipient <a href="/wiki/Cold_War" title="Cold War">Cold War</a>: "Better to let Russia see that there is nothing to be achieved by aggression, but there are advantages in joining [a world government]: Then the Russian regime's attitude will probably change and they will take part without compulsion."<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5">[4]</a></sup> As someone who fits the <a href="/wiki/Stereotype" title="Stereotype">stereotypical image</a> of a scientist, he was a cartoonist's dream come true. </p> <div id="toc" class="toc" role="navigation" aria-labelledby="mw-toc-heading"><input type="checkbox" role="button" id="toctogglecheckbox" class="toctogglecheckbox" style="display:none" /><div class="toctitle" lang="en" dir="ltr"><h2 id="mw-toc-heading">Contents</h2><span class="toctogglespan"><label class="toctogglelabel" for="toctogglecheckbox"></label></span></div> <ul> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1"><a href="#Major_contributions_to_science"><span class="tocnumber">1</span> <span class="toctext">Major contributions to science</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-2"><a href="#Myths"><span class="tocnumber">2</span> <span class="toctext">Myths</span></a> <ul> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-3"><a href="#Fake_quotes"><span class="tocnumber">2.1</span> <span class="toctext">Fake quotes</span></a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-4"><a href="#Social_and_political_views"><span class="tocnumber">3</span> <span class="toctext">Social and political views</span></a> <ul> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-5"><a href="#General_positions"><span class="tocnumber">3.1</span> <span class="toctext">General positions</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-6"><a href="#Racism"><span class="tocnumber">3.2</span> <span class="toctext">Racism</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-7"><a href="#Gay_rights"><span class="tocnumber">3.3</span> <span class="toctext">Gay rights</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-8"><a href="#Zionism"><span class="tocnumber">3.4</span> <span class="toctext">Zionism</span></a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-9"><a href="#Personal_life"><span class="tocnumber">4</span> <span class="toctext">Personal life</span></a> <ul> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-10"><a href="#Religion"><span class="tocnumber">4.1</span> <span class="toctext">Religion</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-11"><a href="#Family_life"><span class="tocnumber">4.2</span> <span class="toctext">Family life</span></a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-12"><a href="#See_also"><span class="tocnumber">5</span> <span class="toctext">See also</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-13"><a href="#Further_reading"><span class="tocnumber">6</span> <span class="toctext">Further reading</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-14"><a href="#External_links"><span class="tocnumber">7</span> <span class="toctext">External links</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-15"><a href="#Notes"><span class="tocnumber">8</span> <span class="toctext">Notes</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-16"><a href="#References"><span class="tocnumber">9</span> <span class="toctext">References</span></a></li> </ul> </div> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Major_contributions_to_science">Major contributions to science</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Major contributions to science">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <ul><li>Statistical mechanics — demonstrating the reality of <a href="/wiki/Atoms" class="mw-redirect" title="Atoms">atoms</a> with Brownian motion, and explaining why the sky is blue, Einstein's model of solids.</li> <li>Special relativity — a more general theory of motion than <a href="/wiki/Isaac_Newton" title="Isaac Newton">Newton's laws</a> that is fully consistent with Maxwell's equations of <a href="/wiki/Electromagnetism" title="Electromagnetism">electromagnetism</a>. Fundamental predictions are time dilation, length contraction, and loss of simultaneity. It has been fully incorporated into the Standard Model of particle physics and modern gravitation theory.</li> <li>General relativity — the modern theory of <a href="/wiki/Gravity" title="Gravity">gravity</a>, predicting, among other things, gravitational waves, gravitational time dilation, <a href="/wiki/Expanding_universe" title="Expanding universe">expanding</a> (or contracting) <a href="/wiki/Universe" title="Universe">Universe</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Black_holes" class="mw-redirect" title="Black holes">black holes</a>. This is considered to be his <i>magnum opus</i>. Einstein's principle of equivalence, Einstein's field equations, the Einstein summation convention, the Einstein-de Sitter space, the Einstein-Rosen bridge, and the Einstein-Kahler metric are thus named in his honor.</li> <li>Old <a href="/wiki/Quantum_theory" class="mw-redirect" title="Quantum theory">quantum theory</a> — explanation of the photoelectric effect using Planck's quantum hypothesis, recognition of wave-particle duality, description of atoms as quantum harmonic oscillators, quantum theory of <a href="/wiki/Radiation" title="Radiation">radiation</a>, quantum theory of monoatomic ideal gases, the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) paradox.</li> <li>Quantum statistical mechanics — Bose-Einstein statistics, prediction of light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation (laser), Bose-Einstein condensation.</li></ul> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Myths">Myths</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Myths">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="thumb tright"><div class="thumbinner" style="width:167px;"><a href="/wiki/File:Albert_Einstein_Head_(cropped).jpg" class="image"><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Albert_Einstein_Head_%28cropped%29.jpg/250px-Albert_Einstein_Head_%28cropped%29.jpg" decoding="async" width="165" height="206" class="thumbimage" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Albert_Einstein_Head_%28cropped%29.jpg/330px-Albert_Einstein_Head_%28cropped%29.jpg 2x" data-file-width="3250" data-file-height="4062" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"><div class="magnify"><a href="/wiki/File:Albert_Einstein_Head_(cropped).jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"></a></div>There ain't half been some clever bastards.</div></div></div> <p>Being a famous scientist, Albert Einstein is subject to many myths. Some common ones are that Einstein... </p> <dl><dt>...worked on the <a href="/wiki/Nuclear_war" title="Nuclear war">Manhattan Project</a>.</dt> <dd>Wrong. While his work in physics was crucial to the project's success, Einstein wasn't involved due to the US government seeing him as a security risk due to his <a href="/wiki/Pacifism" title="Pacifism">pacifist</a> leanings. However, it is true that he was appointed Adviser on Highly Explosive Materials by the U.S. Navy, and he did sign a letter written by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Szilard" class="extiw" title="wp:Leo Szilard" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Leo Szilard">Leo Szilard</span></a><sup><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup> that warned of the possibility that <a href="/wiki/Nazi_Germany" title="Nazi Germany">Nazi Germany</a> could develop atomic weapons and urged the U.S. government to take action.</dd> <dt>...failed math</dt> <dd>By his own words "I never failed in mathematics … Before I was fifteen I had mastered differential and integral calculus."<sup>[<a href="/wiki/Help:References" title="Help:References"><i>citation needed</i></a>]</sup></dd> <dt>...was a Soviet spy</dt> <dd>While Albert Einstein was an admitted <a href="/wiki/Socialist" class="mw-redirect" title="Socialist">socialist</a> and somewhat of a USSR apologist, he wasn't a spy.</dd> <dt>...failed in school</dt> <dd>No. He was pretty good in almost all things education. This view is most likely based on the fact that <a href="/wiki/German" class="mw-redirect" title="German">German</a> and <a href="/wiki/Swiss" class="mw-redirect" title="Swiss">Swiss</a> grades are exactly reversed from each other (6 being the best in Switzerland and the worst in Germany) and the first biographers were mostly German. The only thing he ever <i>did</i> fail at was getting into university at age sixteen — incidentally due to a failed French test. Also, he got into ETH Zurich, a famous school in Switzerland.</dd> <dt>...had <a href="/wiki/Autism" title="Autism">autism</a>.</dt> <dd>This is based on <i>heavy</i> speculation. The diagnosis of autism existed during Dr. Einstein's lifetime, but he was never diagnosed, so he cannot himself dispute this label (how convenient). A handful of half-serious researchers, such as <a href="/wiki/Psychology" title="Psychology">Psychologists</a> Oliver Sacks, Glen Elliott, and Simon Baron-Cohen (cousin to Sacha, of <i>Borat</i> fame) have entertained this possibility<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6">[5]</a></sup> but most scientists don't give this any attention due to the lack of reliable evidence and concerns with <a href="/wiki/Falsifiability" title="Falsifiability">falsifiability</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-7">[6]</a></sup></dd> <dt>...embarrassed an atheist professor who attempted to prove the existence of God</dt> <dd><a href="/wiki/Atheist_professor_myth#Einstein_variation" title="Atheist professor myth">That</a> is <a href="/wiki/Bullshit" title="Bullshit">bollocks</a> of the highest caliber.</dd></dl> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Fake_quotes">Fake quotes</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Fake quotes">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <div class="thumb tright"><div class="thumbinner" style="width:167px;"><a href="/wiki/File:PROF._ALBERT_EINSTEIN_(1879-1955),JEWISH_SCIENTIST_DEVELOPER_OF_THE_THEORY_OF_RELATIVITY_(1915)_WINNER_OF_NOBEL_PRIZE_FOR_PHYSICS_AT_INSTITUTE.D472-073.jpg" class="image"><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/PROF._ALBERT_EINSTEIN_%281879-1955%29%2CJEWISH_SCIENTIST_DEVELOPER_OF_THE_THEORY_OF_RELATIVITY_%281915%29_WINNER_OF_NOBEL_PRIZE_FOR_PHYSICS_AT_INSTITUTE.D472-073.jpg/165px-PROF._ALBERT_EINSTEIN_%281879-1955%29%2CJEWISH_SCIENTIST_DEVELOPER_OF_THE_THEORY_OF_RELATIVITY_%281915%29_WINNER_OF_NOBEL_PRIZE_FOR_PHYSICS_AT_INSTITUTE.D472-073.jpg" decoding="async" width="165" height="248" class="thumbimage" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/PROF._ALBERT_EINSTEIN_%281879-1955%29%2CJEWISH_SCIENTIST_DEVELOPER_OF_THE_THEORY_OF_RELATIVITY_%281915%29_WINNER_OF_NOBEL_PRIZE_FOR_PHYSICS_AT_INSTITUTE.D472-073.jpg/248px-PROF._ALBERT_EINSTEIN_%281879-1955%29%2CJEWISH_SCIENTIST_DEVELOPER_OF_THE_THEORY_OF_RELATIVITY_%281915%29_WINNER_OF_NOBEL_PRIZE_FOR_PHYSICS_AT_INSTITUTE.D472-073.jpg 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/PROF._ALBERT_EINSTEIN_%281879-1955%29%2CJEWISH_SCIENTIST_DEVELOPER_OF_THE_THEORY_OF_RELATIVITY_%281915%29_WINNER_OF_NOBEL_PRIZE_FOR_PHYSICS_AT_INSTITUTE.D472-073.jpg/330px-PROF._ALBERT_EINSTEIN_%281879-1955%29%2CJEWISH_SCIENTIST_DEVELOPER_OF_THE_THEORY_OF_RELATIVITY_%281915%29_WINNER_OF_NOBEL_PRIZE_FOR_PHYSICS_AT_INSTITUTE.D472-073.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2048" data-file-height="3072" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"><div class="magnify"><a href="/wiki/File:PROF._ALBERT_EINSTEIN_(1879-1955),JEWISH_SCIENTIST_DEVELOPER_OF_THE_THEORY_OF_RELATIVITY_(1915)_WINNER_OF_NOBEL_PRIZE_FOR_PHYSICS_AT_INSTITUTE.D472-073.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"></a></div>"<a href="/wiki/Tobacco_smoking" title="Tobacco smoking">Smoking</a> is bad for you," is probably something else Einstein never said. But it's still true.</div></div></div> <p>Since <a href="/wiki/Appeal_to_authority" class="mw-redirect" title="Appeal to authority">you can make anything you say sound smarter by attaching the name "Albert Einstein" to it</a>, a large number of fake Einstein quotes have been spread through the Internet. Some particularly prevalent examples include:<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8">[7]</a></sup> </p> <ul><li>"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."</li> <li>"Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."</li> <li>"I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots."</li> <li>"If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts."</li> <li>"Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart."</li> <li>"Education is that which remains when one has forgotten everything he learned in school."</li> <li>"You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother."</li> <li>"Two things are infinite: The universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe."<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9">[8]</a></sup></li></ul> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Social_and_political_views">Social and political views</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Social and political views">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="General_positions">General positions</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: General positions">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <p>Einstein was one of the founding members (though not a particularly active one) of the German Democratic Party (GDP), which fell under the wing of social liberalism, a mix of regulated market economy, support for increased civil / social rights, and <a href="/wiki/Pacifism" title="Pacifism">pacifism</a><sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-10">[9]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-11">[10]</a></sup> It became known as the "party of the Jews and professors", and had a comparatively high number of active women in it. The GDP eventually merged with the People's National Reich Association (which was more to the right than the GDP, though not quite as scary as the name suggests) in 1930 to form the German State Party, leading to an ever-decreasing representation in the Reichstag. In 1933, under increasing harassment by the Nazis, the party dissolved itself, and after only a few months all parties but the <a href="/wiki/NSDAP" class="mw-redirect" title="NSDAP">NSDAP</a> became illegal. </p><p>Later on, Einstein's political views steered increasingly leftwards until finally settling on <a href="/wiki/Socialism" title="Socialism">socialism</a> (he wrote an essay passionately endorsing it and criticizing capitalism — including for its impact on education<sup id="cite_ref-WhySocialism_12-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-WhySocialism-12">[11]</a></sup>), earning him dramatic accusations of being an <a href="/wiki/Anarchist" class="mw-redirect" title="Anarchist">anarchist</a> and/or <a href="/wiki/Communist" class="mw-redirect" title="Communist">communist</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-13">[12]</a></sup> That, along with his advocacy for pacifism and a global democratic movement, apparently earned Einstein a rather verbose file at an <a href="/wiki/Federal_Bureau_of_Investigation" title="Federal Bureau of Investigation">Alphabet Agency</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-14">[13]</a></sup> As an avowed pacifist, he came to call his co-signing of the letter regarding the possibility of making a <a href="/wiki/Nuclear_war" title="Nuclear war">fission bomb</a> to <a href="/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt" title="Franklin D. Roosevelt">Franklin D. Roosevelt</a> his great mistake, even though he believed at the time that Nazi Germany might be on the verge of producing fission bombs,<sup id="cite_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-15">[14]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="white-space:nowrap;">:752</sup> which would not have been an exciting development if true.<sup>[<i>citation NOT needed</i>]</sup> </p> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Racism">Racism</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: Racism">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <p>After his move to the US, he joined the <a href="/wiki/NAACP" title="NAACP">National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People</a>, considering racism to be the US's "worst disease".<sup id="cite_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-16">[15]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="white-space:nowrap;">:x</sup> When <a href="/wiki/W.E.B._Du_Bois" class="mw-redirect" title="W.E.B. Du Bois">W.E.B. Du Bois</a> was accused of acting as an agent for a foreign state, on account of his being the chair of the Peace Information Centre, an anti-(nuclear)-war organisation, and even though the NAACP refused to state its support for him, Einstein's offer to testify on Du Bois' behalf made the corresponding judge <a href="/wiki/Hypocrisy" title="Hypocrisy">shaite his knickers</a> and drop the case.<sup id="cite_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-17">[16]</a></sup> </p><p>In one interview, he called the scientific concept of race (in terms of <a href="/wiki/Racialism" title="Racialism">a proposed clear, physical taxonomy</a>) "a fraud". In the same interview, he added: "Americans undoubtedly owe much to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melting_Pot" class="extiw" title="wp:Melting Pot" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Melting Pot">Melting Pot</span></a>.<sup><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup> It is possible that this mixture of races makes their nationalism less objectionable than the nationalism of Europe. Nationalism in the United States does not assume such disagreeable forms as in Europe."<sup id="cite_ref-GreatGlimpses_18-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-GreatGlimpses-18">[17]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="white-space:nowrap;">:374–375</sup> He however felt it was better to retain cultural practices and distinctions among various ethnic groups: "Standardization robs life of its spice. To deprive every ethnic group of its special traditions is to convert the world into a huge <a href="/wiki/Henry_Ford" title="Henry Ford">Ford</a> plant. I believe in standardizing automobiles. I do not believe in standardizing human beings. Standardization is a great peril which threatens American culture."<sup id="cite_ref-GreatGlimpses_18-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-GreatGlimpses-18">[17]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="white-space:nowrap;">:376</sup> (Given this, his idea of <a href="/wiki/Multiculturalism" title="Multiculturalism">multiculturalism</a> may more closely resemble <a href="/wiki/Canada#Multiculturalism.2FMulticulturalisme" title="Canada">the Canadian conception of it</a>, that is, a "<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/cultural_mosaic" class="extiw" title="wp:cultural mosaic" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: cultural mosaic">cultural mosaic</span></a>"<sup><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup> more than a "melting pot".) </p><p>His travel diaries from 1922, when he visited Asia, were rediscovered in 2018, and aroused some degree of controversy regarding his <a href="/wiki/Stereotype" title="Stereotype">stereotypical</a> remarks on contemporary <a href="/wiki/Chinese" class="mw-redirect" title="Chinese">Chinese</a> and <a href="/wiki/Japanese" class="mw-redirect" title="Japanese">Japanese</a> culture, even if he did express at least a fair amount of affinity and respect for the latter.<sup id="cite_ref-19" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-19">[18]</a></sup> </p> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Gay_rights">Gay rights</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Gay rights">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <p>Einstein was one of the many co-signatories of Magnus Hirschfeld's petition to repeal a law in the German Penal Code which made male <a href="/wiki/Homosexual" class="mw-redirect" title="Homosexual">homosexual</a> acts illegal.<sup id="cite_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-20">[19]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="white-space:nowrap;">:24</sup> Unfortunately, these efforts were ultimately futile — in fact, the German Imperial government attempted to broaden its scope to women as well. The attempt failed when the men in government couldn't quite agree on what <s>gentle, delightful</s> woman-on-woman sex looked like. The law survived the fall of both the <a href="/wiki/German_Empire" title="German Empire">German Empire</a> and the Weimar Republic unscathed. The <a href="/wiki/Nazi_Germany" title="Nazi Germany">Nazi era</a> did widen its scope and penalties to horrifying levels, while still not minding lesbianism that much. It was only repealed in 1989 by the <a href="/wiki/GDR" class="mw-redirect" title="GDR">GDR</a>, and in 1994 for the whole of reunified Germany, nearly a century after Einstein had signed the petition.<sup id="cite_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-21">[20]</a></sup> </p> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Zionism">Zionism</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Zionism">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <p>Einstein was very well-known in his own lifetime, and as a high-profile Jewish man, his views on the creation of a Jewish state and/or homeland might have carried some weight. He was strongly supportive of Jews being able to make the land of Israel/Palestine their home, but rather resistant to the creation of a Jewish state; he strongly supported positive relations and coexistence between Arabs and Jews within the same land; he denounced right-wing chauvinist Zionism (including Herut, a predecessor to the Likud party of <a href="/wiki/Benjamin_Netanyahu" title="Benjamin Netanyahu">Benjamin Netanyahu</a><sup id="cite_ref-22" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-22">[21]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-23" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-23">[22]</a></sup>) but wrote that "Judaism owes a great debt of gratitude to Zionism", especially in a sense that it might have offered Jews an escape from persecution elsewhere in the world.<sup id="cite_ref-24" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-24">[23]</a></sup> His position might best be summed up with the following quote: </p> <table style="margin: auto; border-collapse:collapse; border-style:none; background-color:transparent;" class="cquote"> <tbody><tr> <td><div style="padding:4px 50px;position:relative;"><span style="position:absolute;left:10px;top:-6px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">“</span><span style="position:absolute;right:10px;bottom:-20px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">”</span>I should much rather see reasonable agreement with the Arabs on the basis of living together in peace than the creation of a Jewish state. My awareness of the essential nature of Judaism resists the idea of a Jewish state with borders, an army, and a measure of temporal power, no matter how modest. I am afraid of the inner damage Judaism will sustain—especially from the development of a narrow nationalism within our own ranks, against which we have already had to fight strongly, even without a Jewish state. … If external necessity should after all compel us to assume this burden, let us bear it with tact and patience.</div> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="padding:4px 10px 8px;font-size:smaller;line-height:1.6em;text-align:right;"><cite style="font-style:normal;position:relative;z-index:2">—Einstein in 1938<sup id="cite_ref-25" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-25">[24]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="white-space:nowrap;">:241</sup></cite> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p>Letters sent by Einstein indicate he held more or less with this position well into the 1940s.<sup id="cite_ref-26" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-26">[25]</a></sup> </p> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Personal_life">Personal life</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Personal life">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Religion">Religion</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: Religion">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <p>Einstein's parents were irreligious by faith and Jewish by ancestry. Einstein himself initially rebelled against this secularism; though he attended a Catholic elementary school, he instead passionately embraced the Judaism of his ancestors. This would come to be challenged when a family friend introduced Einstein to scientific texts, which helped to disenchant him with religion. Atheists would be woe to "claim" him, however, as he explicitly denounced their position on a number of occasions. He more identified with a belief in "<a href="/wiki/Spinoza" class="mw-redirect" title="Spinoza">Spinoza</a>'s God" — a kind of <a href="/wiki/Agnostic" class="mw-redirect" title="Agnostic">agnostic</a>, <a href="/wiki/Pantheism#Impersonal" title="Pantheism">impersonal pantheism</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-27" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-27">[26]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-RPV_2-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-RPV-2">[2]</a></sup> Though he enunciated the following prior to his firmer identification with "Spinoza's God", it is a significant illustration of his beliefs: </p> <table style="margin: auto; border-collapse:collapse; border-style:none; background-color:transparent;" class="cquote"> <tbody><tr> <td><div style="padding:4px 50px;position:relative;"><span style="position:absolute;left:10px;top:-6px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">“</span><span style="position:absolute;right:10px;bottom:-20px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">”</span>The human mind, no matter how highly trained, cannot grasp the universe. We are in the position of a little child, entering a huge library whose walls are covered to the ceiling with books in many different tongues. The child knows that someone must have written those books. It does not know who or how. It does not understand the languages in which they are written. The child notes a definite plan in the arrangement of the books, a mysterious order, which it does not comprehend, but only dimly suspects. That, it seems to me, is the attitude of the human mind, even the greatest and most cultured, toward God. We see a universe marvelously arranged, obeying certain laws, but we understand the laws only dimly. Our limited minds cannot grasp the mysterious force that sways the constellations.</div> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="padding:4px 10px 8px;font-size:smaller;line-height:1.6em;text-align:right;"><cite style="font-style:normal;position:relative;z-index:2">—Einstein<sup id="cite_ref-GreatGlimpses_18-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-GreatGlimpses-18">[17]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="white-space:nowrap;">:372–373</sup></cite> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p>In 1940, <i>TIME</i> magazine published a purported quote from Einstein: "Only the Church stood squarely across the path of Hitler's campaign for suppressing truth. I never had any special interest in the Church before, but now I feel a great affection and admiration because the Church alone has had the courage and persistence to stand for intellectual truth and moral freedom. I am forced thus to confess that what I once despised I now praise unreservedly."<sup id="cite_ref-28" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-28">[27]</a></sup> However, a 2005 article in the American <i>Skeptic</i> magazine found some reason to doubt this quotation in the fact that <i>TIME</i> provided no source or indication their reporter personally heard Einstein say this, as well as some circumstantial facts like the contradiction between him supposedly saying he "had no special interest" in the Church and also "despised" it. <i>Skeptic'</i>s writer also found an Einstein letter from March 28, 1947 that said he did express to a journalist "hardly any German intellectuals except a few churchmen were supporting individual rights and intellectual freedom" but that his statements were exaggerated by the press.<sup id="cite_ref-29" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-29">[28]</a></sup> </p> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Family_life">Family life</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: Family life">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <div class="thumb tright"><div class="thumbinner" style="width:202px;"><a href="/wiki/File:Albert_Einstein_and_his_wife_Mileva_Maric.jpg" class="image"><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Albert_Einstein_and_his_wife_Mileva_Maric.jpg/200px-Albert_Einstein_and_his_wife_Mileva_Maric.jpg" decoding="async" width="200" height="138" class="thumbimage" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Albert_Einstein_and_his_wife_Mileva_Maric.jpg/300px-Albert_Einstein_and_his_wife_Mileva_Maric.jpg 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Albert_Einstein_and_his_wife_Mileva_Maric.jpg/400px-Albert_Einstein_and_his_wife_Mileva_Maric.jpg 2x" data-file-width="3324" data-file-height="2300" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"><div class="magnify"><a href="/wiki/File:Albert_Einstein_and_his_wife_Mileva_Maric.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"></a></div>Mileva Marić and Einstein</div></div></div> <blockquote class="letter" style="width:auto; background:#f8f8ff; border:1px solid #C9C9CF;"> <p>A. You will make sure: </p> <ol><li>that my clothes and laundry are kept in good order;<br /></li> <li>that I will receive my three meals regularly in my room;<br /></li> <li>that my bedroom and study are kept neat, and especially that my desk is left for my use only.</li></ol> </blockquote> <p>Mileva Marić was a brilliant physicist and mathematician herself (who may have contributed to Einstein's work, though it's not clear whether and how much),<sup id="cite_ref-30" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-30">[29]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-31" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-31">[30]</a></sup> yet Einstein treated her like a servant. The above excerpt is part of a letter detailing the conditions upon which he would continue to live with his wife; he also told her to expect no intimacy for him, to avoid saying anything negative about him, and to be quiet and leave if he asked her.<sup id="cite_ref-32" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-32">[31]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-33" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-33">[32]</a></sup> </p><p>He also cheated on both his first and second wife. He even said he wished that his second son (who had schizophrenia) was never born.<sup id="cite_ref-34" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-34">[33]</a></sup> (Imagine struggling with schizophrenia and then realizing your own father wishes you didn't exist.) </p><p>He wasn't totally heartless, though. His loved ones reported that he was truly heartbroken after the death of his second wife.<sup id="cite_ref-35" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-35">[34]</a></sup> </p> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="See_also">See also</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=12" title="Edit section: See also">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div style="clear: right; float:right; border:solid #ff8500 1px; margin: 1px 0; width:250px; padding:2px; background:#ffff80;"> <table cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td style="width:45px;height:45px;text-align:center"><span class="plainlinks"><a href="/wiki/File:Icon_fun.svg" class="image"><img alt="Icon fun.svg" src="/w/images/thumb/5/5c/Icon_fun.svg/50px-Icon_fun.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="50" srcset="/w/images/thumb/5/5c/Icon_fun.svg/75px-Icon_fun.svg.png 1.5x, /w/images/thumb/5/5c/Icon_fun.svg/100px-Icon_fun.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="200" data-file-height="200" /></a></span> </td> <td style="font-size:9pt;padding:4pt;line-height:1.25em;color:red;">For those of you in the mood, <a href="/wiki/RationalWiki" title="RationalWiki">RationalWiki</a> has a <i>fun</i> article about <i><a href="/wiki/Fun:Albert_Einstein" title="Fun:Albert Einstein">Albert Onestone</a></i>. </td></tr></tbody></table></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Relativity" title="Relativity">Relativity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Anti-relativity" title="Anti-relativity">Anti-relativity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Isaac_Newton" title="Isaac Newton">Isaac Newton</a>, to whom Einstein is often compared.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Paul_Dirac" title="Paul Dirac">Paul Dirac</a>, who unified quantum mechanics with special relativity.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Richard_Feynman" title="Richard Feynman">Richard Feynman</a>, who did much to create relativistic quantum field theory.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/J._Robert_Oppenheimer" title="J. Robert Oppenheimer">J. Robert Oppenheimer</a>, Einstein's boss at the Institute of Advanced Study, Princeton, New Jersey, who was actually involved in the development of nuclear weapons.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Essay:The_religious_views_of_Albert_Einstein" title="Essay:The religious views of Albert Einstein">Essay:The religious views of Albert Einstein</a> Einstein was also a <a href="/wiki/Philosopher" class="mw-redirect" title="Philosopher">philosopher</a> and had much to say about <a href="/wiki/Hume%27s_law" class="mw-redirect" title="Hume's law">Hume's law</a>.</li></ul> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Further_reading">Further reading</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=13" title="Edit section: Further reading">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <ul><li>Pais, Abraham. <i>"Subtle Is the Lord-- " : The Science and the Life of Albert Einstein</i>. Oxford University Press, 1982. This is a technical scientific biography of Einstein.</li></ul> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="External_links">External links</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=14" title="Edit section: External links">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <ul><li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.csicop.org/si/show/myth_of_consistent_skepticism_the_cautionary_case_of_albert_einstein/">The Myth of Consistent Skepticism: The Cautionary Case of Albert Einstein</a></li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dgv2WWpm7_s">The Strange Universe of Gravitational Lensing</a>, PBS Space Time.</li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gw-i_VKd6Wo">LIGO's First Detection of Gravitational Waves</a>, PBS Space Time.</li></ul> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Notes">Notes</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=15" title="Edit section: Notes">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-3">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">The other founder of modern physics is Max Planck, who discovered that light comes in discrete packets now called photons.</span> </li> </ol></div> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="References">References</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit&section=16" title="Edit section: References">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; -webkit-column-count:2; column-count:2; font-size:90%;"> <div class="mw-references-wrap mw-references-columns"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-1">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r2708880">/* Errors processing stylesheet [[:Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css]] (rev 2708880): • Invalid or unsupported value for property ⧼code⧽background⧼/code⧽ at line 44 character 14. • Invalid or unsupported value for property ⧼code⧽background⧼/code⧽ at line 50 character 14. • Invalid or unsupported value for property ⧼code⧽background⧼/code⧽ at line 55 character 14. • Invalid or unsupported value for property ⧼code⧽background⧼/code⧽ at line 64 character 14. • Invalid or unsupported value for property ⧼code⧽color⧼/code⧽ at line 96 character 9. • Invalid or unsupported value for property ⧼code⧽color⧼/code⧽ at line 100 character 9. • Invalid media query at line 138 character 8. */ .mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite id="CITEREFJerome2009" class="citation book cs1">Jerome, Fred (2009-05-26). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Einstein_on_Israel_and_Zionism/yDcVbUvTsHMC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=I%20am%20a%20revolutionary."><i>Einstein on Israel and Zionism: His Provocative Ideas About the Middle East</i></a>. Macmillan. pp. Prologue. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-4668-2429-4" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-4668-2429-4"><bdi>978-1-4668-2429-4</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Einstein+on+Israel+and+Zionism%3A+His+Provocative+Ideas+About+the+Middle+East&rft.pages=Prologue&rft.pub=Macmillan&rft.date=2009-05-26&rft.isbn=978-1-4668-2429-4&rft.aulast=Jerome&rft.aufirst=Fred&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fbooks%2Fedition%2FEinstein_on_Israel_and_Zionism%2FyDcVbUvTsHMC%3Fhl%3Den%26gbpv%3D1%26bsq%3DI%2520am%2520a%2520revolutionary.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Frationalwiki.org%3AAlbert+Einstein" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-RPV-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">↑ <sup><a href="#cite_ref-RPV_2-0">2.0</a></sup> <sup><a href="#cite_ref-RPV_2-1">2.1</a></sup></span> <span class="reference-text">See the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia" title="Wikipedia">Wikipedia</a> article on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_and_philosophical_views_of_Albert_Einstein" class="extiw" title="wp:Religious and philosophical views of Albert Einstein" rel="nofollow">Religious and philosophical views of Albert Einstein</a>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-4">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://monthlyreview.org/2009/05/01/why-socialism/">Why Socialism?</a> by Albert Einstein (2009) <i>Monthly Review</i> 61(1). Reprinted from the May 1949 issue.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-5">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/3175819/Albert-Einsteins-letters-on-how-to-deal-with-the-USSR-up-for-auction.html">Albert Einstein's letters on how to deal with the USSR up for auction: Letters by Albert Einstein where he gives advice on the USSR are set to go under the hammer next week.</a> by Chris Irvine (11 October 2008 • 12:51am) <i>The Telegraph</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-6">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3676-einstein-and-newton-showed-signs-of-autism/">Einstein and Newton showed signs of autism</a> by Hazel Muir (30 April 2003) <i>New Scientist</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-7">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://dhayton.haverford.edu/blog/2015/12/31/isaac-newton-was-autistic-or-not/">Isaac Newton was Autistic, or Not</a>, Darrin Hayton 31 December 2015</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-8">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://interestingengineering.com/culture/13-inspiring-einstein-quotes-never-actually-said-by-einstein">13 Inspiring Einstein Quotes Never Actually Said by Einstein</a>, Shelby Rogers, <i>Interesting Engineering</i> 26 April 2017</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-9">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/einstein-universe-stupidity-infinite/">Did Einstein Say the Universe and Stupidity Are Infinite?</a>, Dan MacGuil, <i>Snopes</i> 7 April 2022</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-10">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">See the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia" title="Wikipedia">Wikipedia</a> article on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_liberalism" class="extiw" title="wp:Social liberalism" rel="nofollow">Social liberalism</a>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-11">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://history.aip.org/history/exhibits/einstein/public1.htm">Einstein Exhibit: Public Concerns I</a> <i>The Center for History of Physics, American Institute of Physics </i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-WhySocialism-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-WhySocialism_12-0">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Albert Einstein (May 1949). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://monthlyreview.org/2009/05/01/why-socialism/">Why Socialism?</a> <i>Monthly Review</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-13"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-13">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.hnn.us/article/what-were-einsteins-politics">What Were Einstein's Politics?</a> by David E. Rowe and Robert Schulmann (2007) <i>History News Network, Columbian College of Arts & Sciences</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-14"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-14">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2017/04/science-march-einstein-fbi-genius-science/">Why the FBI Kept a 1,400-Page File on Einstein: The world-famous physicist was outspoken against racism, nationalism, and nuclear bombs, prompting deep suspicion from J. Edgar Hoover.</a> by Mitch Waldrop (April 18, 2017) <i>National Geographic</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-15"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-15">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><i>Einstein: The Life and Times</i> by Ronald William Clark (1984) Avon Books. ISBN 0380441233.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-16"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-16">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><i>Einstein on Race and Racism</i> by Fred Jerome (2005) Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0813536170.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-17"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-17">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2007/04/albert-einstein-civil-rights-activist/">Albert Einstein, Civil Rights activist: Little-known aspect of physicist’s life revealed</a> by Ken Gewertz (April 12, 2007) <i>The Harvard Gazette</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-GreatGlimpses-18"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">↑ <sup><a href="#cite_ref-GreatGlimpses_18-0">17.0</a></sup> <sup><a href="#cite_ref-GreatGlimpses_18-1">17.1</a></sup> <sup><a href="#cite_ref-GreatGlimpses_18-2">17.2</a></sup></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r2708880"/><cite id="CITEREFViereck_George_Sylvester1930" class="citation book cs1">Viereck George Sylvester (1930). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/dli.ernet.13528"><i>Glimpses Of The Great</i></a>. Henrietta Street London.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Glimpses+Of+The+Great&rft.pub=Henrietta+Street+London&rft.date=1930&rft.au=Viereck+George+Sylvester&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fdli.ernet.13528&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Frationalwiki.org%3AAlbert+Einstein" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-19"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-19">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/einsteins-travel-diaries-reveal-his-deeply-troubling-views-race-180969387/">Einstein’s Travel Diaries Reveal His Deeply Troubling Views on Race</a> by Brigit Katz (June 18, 2018) <i>Smithsonian Magazine</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-20"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-20">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r2708880"/><cite id="CITEREFMarhoefer2015" class="citation book cs1">Marhoefer, Laurie (October 6, 2015). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=YquzCgAAQBAJ"><i>Sex and the Weimar Republic: German Homosexual Emancipation and the Rise of the Nazis</i></a>. University of Toronto Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-4426-1957-9" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-4426-1957-9"><bdi>978-1-4426-1957-9</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Sex+and+the+Weimar+Republic%3A+German+Homosexual+Emancipation+and+the+Rise+of+the+Nazis&rft.pub=University+of+Toronto+Press&rft.date=2015-10-06&rft.isbn=978-1-4426-1957-9&rft.aulast=Marhoefer&rft.aufirst=Laurie&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DYquzCgAAQBAJ&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Frationalwiki.org%3AAlbert+Einstein" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-21"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-21">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">See the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia" title="Wikipedia">Wikipedia</a> article on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paragraph_175" class="extiw" title="wp:Paragraph 175" rel="nofollow">Paragraph 175</a>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-22"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-22">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_New_York_Times/1948/12/4/New_Palestine_Party;_Visit_of_Menachen_Begin_and_Aims_of_Political_Movement_Discussed">"The New York Times/1948/12/4/New Palestine Party; Visit of Menachen Begin and Aims of Political Movement Discussed"</a>. <i>Wikisource</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-23"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-23">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Ruth Schuster (December 4, 2014). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.ph/iZkDl">"1948: N.Y. Times Publishes Letter by Einstein, Other Jews Accusing Menachem Begin of Fascism"</a>. <i>Haaretz</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-24"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-24">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">See the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia" title="Wikipedia">Wikipedia</a> article on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_views_of_Albert_Einstein" class="extiw" title="wp:Political views of Albert Einstein" rel="nofollow">Political views of Albert Einstein</a>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-25"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-25">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r2708880"/><cite class="citation book cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Einstein_Reader/i8XCsl495WgC"><i>The Einstein Reader</i></a>. Citadel Press. 2006. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-8065-2791-8" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-8065-2791-8"><bdi>978-0-8065-2791-8</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Einstein+Reader&rft.pub=Citadel+Press&rft.date=2006&rft.isbn=978-0-8065-2791-8&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fbooks%2Fedition%2FThe_Einstein_Reader%2Fi8XCsl495WgC&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Frationalwiki.org%3AAlbert+Einstein" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-26"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-26">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r2708880"/><cite id="CITEREFJerome2009" class="citation book cs1">Jerome, Fred (2009-05-26). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=yDcVbUvTsHMC&pg=RA2-PT93"><i>Einstein on Israel and Zionism: His Provocative Ideas About the Middle East</i></a>. Macmillan. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-4668-2429-4" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-4668-2429-4"><bdi>978-1-4668-2429-4</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Einstein+on+Israel+and+Zionism%3A+His+Provocative+Ideas+About+the+Middle+East&rft.pub=Macmillan&rft.date=2009-05-26&rft.isbn=978-1-4668-2429-4&rft.aulast=Jerome&rft.aufirst=Fred&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DyDcVbUvTsHMC%26pg%3DRA2-PT93&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Frationalwiki.org%3AAlbert+Einstein" class="Z3988"></span> (January 19, 1946 letter to Maurice Dunay and January 29, 1946 letter to Martin Buber).</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-27"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-27">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Walter Isaacson (April 5, 2007). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://time.com/archive/6680629/einstein-faith/">"Einstein & Faith"</a>. <i>TIME</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-28"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-28">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">(1940). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://time.com/archive/6764463/religion-german-martyrs/">"Religion: German Martyrs"</a>. <i>TIME</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-29"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-29">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"> William C. Waterhouse (Fall 2005). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.skeptic.com/eskeptic/06-01-05/">"Did Einstein Praise the Church?"</a>. <i>Skeptic</i> (Vol. 12, Issue 3). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA148278043&sid=googleScholar&v=2.1&it=r&linkaccess=abs&issn=10639330&p=AONE&sw=w">(Alternative link)</a>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-30"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-30">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2016/08/01/did-albert-einstein-steal-the-theory-of-relativity-from-his-wife">Did Albert Einstein Steal The Theory Of Relativity From His Wife?</a> by Paul Mainwood (Aug 1, 2016 @ 02:28 PM) <i>Forbes</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-31"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-31">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/the-forgotten-life-of-einsteins-first-wife/">The Forgotten Life of Einstein's First Wife: She was a physicist, too—and there is evidence that she contributed significantly to his groundbreaking science</a> by Pauline Gagnon (December 19, 2016) <i>Scientific American</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-32"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-32">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.openculture.com/2013/12/albert-einstein-imposes-on-his-first-wife-a-cruel-list-of-marital-demands.html">Albert Einstein Imposes on His First Wife a Cruel List of Marital Demands</a> by Josh Jones (December 30<sup>th</sup>, 2013) <i>Open Culture</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-33"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-33">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/jun/12/einsteins-travel-diaries-reveal-shocking-xenophobia">Einstein's travel diaries reveal 'shocking' xenophobia: Private journals kept by the scientist and humanitarian icon show prejudiced attitudes towards the people he met while travelling in Asia</a> by Alison Flood (12 Jun 2018 12.32 EDT) <i>The Guardian</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-34"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-34">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.biography.com/news/einstein-love-life-wives-affairs-letters">An Inside Look at Albert Einstein's Personal Life</a> (Updated: Jun 2, 2020; Original: Mar 13, 2017) <i>Biography</i>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-35"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-35">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://allthatsinteresting.com/elsa-einstein">The Story Of Elsa Einstein’s Cruel, Incestuous Marriage To Albert</a> by By Kara Goldfarb (Published September 28, 2021; Updated October 9, 2021) <i>All That's Interesting</i>.</span> </li> </ol></div></div>    </div></div><div class="printfooter">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&oldid=2718297">https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&oldid=2718297</a>"</div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Special:Categories" title="Special:Categories">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Physicists" title="Category:Physicists">Physicists</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_with_funspace_counterparts" title="Category:Articles with funspace counterparts">Articles with funspace counterparts</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Agnostics" title="Category:Agnostics">Agnostics</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Autism_woo" title="Category:Autism woo">Autism woo</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Frequently_misquoted_people" title="Category:Frequently misquoted people">Frequently misquoted people</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:History_of_science" title="Category:History of science">History of science</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Jews" title="Category:Jews">Jews</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Left-wing_activists" title="Category:Left-wing activists">Left-wing activists</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Mathematicians" title="Category:Mathematicians">Mathematicians</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Philosophers" title="Category:Philosophers">Philosophers</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Socialists" title="Category:Socialists">Socialists</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Stereotypes" title="Category:Stereotypes">Stereotypes</a></li></ul></div><div id="mw-hidden-catlinks" class="mw-hidden-catlinks mw-hidden-cats-hidden">Hidden categories: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Pages_using_DynamicPageList_parser_function" title="Category:Pages using DynamicPageList parser function">Pages using DynamicPageList parser function</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_with_unsourced_statements" title="Category:Articles with unsourced statements">Articles with unsourced statements</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Non-stub_articles_needing_expansion" title="Category:Non-stub articles needing expansion">Non-stub articles needing expansion</a></li></ul></div></div> </div> </div> <div id="mw-navigation"> <h2>Navigation menu</h2> <div id="mw-head">  <nav id="p-personal" class="vector-menu" aria-labelledby="p-personal-label" role="navigation" > <h3 id="p-personal-label"> <span>Personal tools</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"><li id="pt-anonuserpage">Not logged in</li><li id="pt-anontalk"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyTalk" title="Discussion about edits from this IP address [n]" accesskey="n">Talk</a></li><li id="pt-anoncontribs"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyContributions" title="A list of edits made from this IP address [y]" accesskey="y">Contributions</a></li><li id="pt-createaccount"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Albert+Einstein" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory">Create account</a></li><li id="pt-login"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Albert+Einstein" title="You are encouraged to log in; however, it is not mandatory [o]" accesskey="o">Log in</a></li></ul> </div> </nav> <div id="left-navigation">  <nav id="p-namespaces" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs vectorTabs" aria-labelledby="p-namespaces-label" role="navigation" > <h3 id="p-namespaces-label"> <span>Namespaces</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"><li id="ca-nstab-main" class="selected"><a href="/wiki/Albert_Einstein" title="View the content page [c]" accesskey="c">Page</a></li><li id="ca-talk"><a href="/wiki/Talk:Albert_Einstein" rel="discussion" title="Discussion about the content page [t]" accesskey="t">Talk</a></li></ul> </div> </nav>  <nav id="p-variants" class="vector-menu-empty emptyPortlet vector-menu vector-menu-dropdown vectorMenu" aria-labelledby="p-variants-label" role="navigation" > <input type="checkbox" class="vector-menu-checkbox vectorMenuCheckbox" aria-labelledby="p-variants-label" /> <h3 id="p-variants-label"> <span>Variants</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="menu vector-menu-content-list"></ul> </div> </nav> </div> <div id="right-navigation">  <nav id="p-views" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs vectorTabs" aria-labelledby="p-views-label" role="navigation" > <h3 id="p-views-label"> <span>Views</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"><li id="ca-view" class="collapsible selected"><a href="/wiki/Albert_Einstein">Read</a></li><li id="ca-edit" class="collapsible"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e">Edit</a></li><li id="ca-history" class="collapsible"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=history" title="Past revisions of this page [h]" accesskey="h">Fossil record</a></li></ul> </div> </nav>  <nav id="p-cactions" class="vector-menu-empty emptyPortlet vector-menu vector-menu-dropdown vectorMenu" aria-labelledby="p-cactions-label" role="navigation" > <input type="checkbox" class="vector-menu-checkbox vectorMenuCheckbox" aria-labelledby="p-cactions-label" /> <h3 id="p-cactions-label"> <span>More</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="menu vector-menu-content-list"></ul> </div> </nav> <div id="p-search" role="search"> <h3 > <label for="searchInput">Search</label> </h3> <form action="/w/index.php" id="searchform"> <div id="simpleSearch"> <input type="search" name="search" placeholder="Search RationalWiki" title="Search RationalWiki [f]" accesskey="f" id="searchInput"/> <input type="hidden" name="title" value="Special:Search"> <input type="submit" name="fulltext" value="Search" title="Search the pages for this text" id="mw-searchButton" class="searchButton mw-fallbackSearchButton"/> <input type="submit" name="go" value="Go" title="Go to a page with this exact name if it exists" id="searchButton" class="searchButton"/> </div> </form> </div> </div> </div> <div id="mw-panel"> <div id="p-logo" role="banner"> <a title="Visit the main page" class="mw-wiki-logo" href="/wiki/Main_Page"></a> </div>  <nav id="p-navigation" class="vector-menu vector-menu-portal portal portal-first" aria-labelledby="p-navigation-label" role="navigation" > <h3 id="p-navigation-label"> <span>Navigation</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"><li id="n-mainpage-description"><a href="/wiki/Main_Page" title="Visit the main page [z]" accesskey="z">Main page</a></li><li id="n-recentchanges"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChanges" title="A list of recent changes in the wiki [r]" accesskey="r">Recent changes</a></li><li id="n-randompage"><a href="/wiki/Special:Random" title="Load a random mainspace article [x]" accesskey="x">Random page</a></li><li id="n-New-pages"><a href="/wiki/Special:NewPages">New pages</a></li><li id="n-All-logs"><a href="/wiki/Special:Log">All logs</a></li><li id="n-help"><a href="/wiki/Help:Contents" title="RTFM">Help</a></li></ul> </div> </nav>  <nav id="p-support" class="vector-menu vector-menu-portal portal" aria-labelledby="p-support-label" role="navigation" > <h3 id="p-support-label"> <span>Support</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"><li id="n-Donate"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Site_support">Donate</a></li></ul> </div> </nav>  <nav id="p-community" class="vector-menu vector-menu-portal portal" aria-labelledby="p-community-label" role="navigation" > <h3 id="p-community-label"> <span>Community</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"><li id="n-Saloon-bar"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Saloon_bar">Saloon bar</a></li><li id="n-To-do-list"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:To_do_list">To do list</a></li><li id="n-What-is-going-on.3F"><a href="/wiki/WIGO">What is going on?</a></li><li id="n-Best-of-RationalWiki"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Contents">Best of RationalWiki</a></li><li id="n-About-RationalWiki"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki">About RationalWiki</a></li><li id="n-Technical-support"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Technical_support">Technical support</a></li><li id="n-Mod-noticeboard"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki_talk:All_things_in_moderation">Mod noticeboard</a></li><li id="n-RMF-noticeboard"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki_talk:RationalMedia_Foundation">RMF noticeboard</a></li></ul> </div> </nav>  <nav id="p-Social media" class="vector-menu vector-menu-portal portal" aria-labelledby="p-Social media-label" role="navigation" > <h3 id="p-Social media-label"> <span>Social media</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"><li id="n-Twitter"><a href="https://twitter.com/RationalWiki" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a></li><li id="n-Mastodon"><a href="https://mstdn.social/@rationalwiki" rel="nofollow">Mastodon</a></li><li id="n-Facebook"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rationalwiki/226614404019306" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a></li><li id="n-Discord"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Discord">Discord</a></li><li id="n-Reddit"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Reddit">Reddit</a></li></ul> </div> </nav>  <nav id="p-tb" class="vector-menu vector-menu-portal portal" aria-labelledby="p-tb-label" role="navigation" > <h3 id="p-tb-label"> <span>Tools</span> </h3>  <div class="body vector-menu-content">  <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"><li id="t-whatlinkshere"><a href="/wiki/Special:WhatLinksHere/Albert_Einstein" title="A list of all wiki pages that link here [j]" accesskey="j">What links here</a></li><li id="t-recentchangeslinked"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChangesLinked/Albert_Einstein" rel="nofollow" title="Recent changes in pages linked from this page [k]" accesskey="k">Related changes</a></li><li id="t-specialpages"><a href="/wiki/Special:SpecialPages" title="A list of all special pages [q]" accesskey="q">Special pages</a></li><li id="t-print"><a href="javascript:print();" rel="alternate" title="Printable version of this page [p]" accesskey="p">Printable version</a></li><li id="t-permalink"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&oldid=2718297" title="Permanent link to this revision of the page">Permanent link</a></li><li id="t-info"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Albert_Einstein&action=info" title="More information about this page">Page information</a></li></ul> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <footer id="footer" class="mw-footer" role="contentinfo" > <ul id="footer-info" > <li id="footer-info-lastmod"> This page was last edited on 18 February 2025, at 10:56.</li> <li id="footer-info-copyright">Unless explicitly noted otherwise, all content licensed as indicated by <a name="Copyright" href="//rationalwiki.org/wiki/RationalWiki:Copyrights">RationalWiki:Copyrights</a>. <br> For concerns on copyright infringement please see: <a name="Copyright infringement" href="//rationalwiki.org/wiki/RationalWiki:Copyright_violations">RationalWiki:Copyright violations</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footer-places" > <li id="footer-places-privacy"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:Privacy_policy" title="RationalWiki:Privacy policy">Privacy policy</a></li> <li id="footer-places-about"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:About" class="mw-redirect" title="RationalWiki:About">About RationalWiki</a></li> <li id="footer-places-disclaimer"><a href="/wiki/RationalWiki:General_disclaimer" title="RationalWiki:General disclaimer">Disclaimers</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footer-icons" class="noprint"> <li id="footer-copyrightico"><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"><img src="/w/88x31.png" alt="CC-BY-SA 3.0, or any later version" width="88" height="31" loading="lazy"/></a></li> <li id="footer-poweredbyico"><a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/"><img src="/w/resources/assets/poweredby_mediawiki_88x31.png" alt="Powered by MediaWiki" srcset="/w/resources/assets/poweredby_mediawiki_132x47.png 1.5x, /w/resources/assets/poweredby_mediawiki_176x62.png 2x" width="88" height="31" loading="lazy"/></a></li> </ul> <div style="clear: both;"></div> </footer> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.config.set({"wgPageParseReport":{"limitreport":{"cputime":"0.508","walltime":"3.229","ppvisitednodes":{"value":1476,"limit":1000000},"postexpandincludesize":{"value":25244,"limit":2097152},"templateargumentsize":{"value":5289,"limit":2097152},"expansiondepth":{"value":10,"limit":40},"expensivefunctioncount":{"value":0,"limit":100},"unstrip-depth":{"value":1,"limit":20},"unstrip-size":{"value":31596,"limit":5000000},"timingprofile":["100.00% 859.805 1 -total"," 77.97% 670.398 1 Template:Reflist"," 74.11% 637.242 5 Template:Cite_book"," 7.58% 65.147 1 Template:Physics"," 7.31% 62.846 1 Template:Navsidebar"," 5.99% 51.464 2 Template:Navsidebar2"," 4.73% 40.657 2 Template:Randomarticles"," 1.89% 16.246 3 Template:Cquote"," 1.79% 15.430 3 Template:Wpl"," 1.57% 13.476 1 Template:Sources_needed"]},"scribunto":{"limitreport-timeusage":{"value":"0.120","limit":"7"},"limitreport-virtmemusage":{"value":8511488,"limit":52428800},"limitreport-estmemusage":0},"cachereport":{"origin":"apache5","timestamp":"20250320013251","ttl":86400,"transientcontent":false}}});mw.config.set({"wgBackendResponseTime":64,"wgHostname":"apache5"});});</script></body></html>