Matthew Stanley Einstein's War : How Relativity Conquered Nationalism & Shook

Deeply researched and profoundly absorbing . . . Matthew Stanley traces one of the greatest epics of scientific history . . . An amazing story Michael Frayn, author of Tony Awardwinning CopenhagenIn 1916, Arthur Eddington, a warweary British astronomer, opened a letter written by an obscure German professor named Einstein. The neatly printed equations on the scrap of paper outlined his worldchanging theory of general relativity. Until then Einsteins masterpiece of time and space had been trapped behind the physical and ideological lines of battle, unknown. Einsteins name is now synonymous with genius, but it was not an easy road. He spent a decade creating relativity and his ascent to global celebrity owed much to againsttheodds international collaboration, including Eddingtons globespanning expedition of 1919 two years before they finally met. We usually think of scientific discovery as a flash of individual inspiration, but here we see it is the result of hard work, gambles and wrong turns. Einsteins War is a celebration of what science can offer when bigotry and nationalism are defeated. Using previously unknown sources and written like a thriller, it shows relativity being built brickbybrick in front of us, as it happened 100 years ago. Riveting . . . Stanley lets us share the excitement a hundred years later in this entertaining and gripping book. Its a must read if you ever wondered how Einstein became Einstein Manjit Kumar, author of Quantum | Matthew Stanley Einstein's War : How Relativity Conquered Nationalism & Shook