Einstein in His Own Words - Out of My Later Years
Written: Aug 21 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Short chapters, lucidly written, clear presentation of his ideas for the general reader
Cons: None
The Bottom Line: Albert Einstein writes about his political ideas, pays tribute to scientific personalities he admires and explains his Relativity Theory so the average reader can understand it.
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| Stloraine's Full Review: |
Out of My Later Years ©1956 by the Estate of Albert Einstein
Authorized translation by Robert W. Lawson, University of Sheffield
OUT OF MY LATER YEARS, a collection of Einstein’s essays which cover a period of 1934 to 1950. The first anthology was published under the title The World As I See It comprising material from 1922 to 1924. It has also been published in ALBERT EINSTEIN IN HIS OWN WORDS which included RELATIVITY.
In this book Einstein expounds his philosophies and ideas on society, politics and the effect of science on civilization. To mention a few of the essays in which he gives his opinions on diverse social and political issues: Towards a World Government in which he espouses his conviction that a one world government endowed with authority and the power to enforce its decisions is the way to achieve and maintain peace (maybe, but the United States combined with the United Nations is virtually a one world government and peace has to be viewed through the Hubble telescope).
An opposing argument to his one world government is set forth in Dr. Einstein's Mistaken Notions - An Open Letter From Sergei Vavilov, A.N. Frumkin, A.F. Joffe, and N.N. Semyonov, a group of Soviet scientists at the Institute of the Academy of Sciences in Moscow: "They are a reflection of the fact that the capitalist monopolies, which dominate the major industrial countries, find their own national boundaries too narrow."
In Science and Civilization he states his views that with the development of means to disseminate the latest discoveries of science the world's population will benefit and conditions naturally improve. In The Menace of Mass Destruction he states that the development of the atom bomb by the United States was necessary because if the United States hadn’t done so, Germany would have (maybe, but we still don’t have peace, but even more lethal weapons of war such as the neutron bomb and high intensity, long distance lasers are proliferating).
In Personalities he pays tribute to the scientists and humanitarian personalities who have inspired him: Sir Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, Marie Curie, Max Planck and Paul Langevin in memoriam, Mahatma Gandhi and others.
He explains his Theory of Relativity and related physics in two sections: Science and Physics and Reality. In chapters such as E=MC2 and Quantum Theory and the Fundamentals of Physics he explains Relativity, some Quantum Theory and the structure of space at the level of the understanding of the reader with a general college education.
I have respect for Einstein's ideas--he lays everything out so clearly and logically in short, easy to read chapters. I think that his type of thinking is too logical for dealing with the problems of the human species in general. Many religious persons, philosophers and humanists have grappled with the problem of human perfidy and numerous good and noble ideas have been advanced, but their application has not been highly successful. Einstein is at his best when using the tools that mathematics and physics supply to further understanding of our perceived universe.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
Stloraine
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Location: Star Town, Milky Way Galaxy
Reviews written: 158
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About Me:
Writer, pianist, mystic. Pisces. Love to see movies, swim, study paleontology, astronomy and ancient history.
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