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1938150250Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 1938. First edition of this classic work which traces the development of ideas in physics. Octavo original blue cloth. Presentation copy inscribed by Albert Einstein on the half-title page "To Dr. Montrell Albert Einstein Princeton 1943." Near fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket. On publication The Saturday Review of Literature praised Evolution of Physics as "masterly Einstein and Infelds book should do much to spread an understanding and appreciation one of the great dramas in the evolution of human thought." Cambridge University Press hardcover
19156406Berlin: Königlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften 1915. First edition. <p>First editions very rare offprint issue of the first two papers published in November 1915 that document Einstein's final formulation of the general theory of relativity - the culmination of nearly a decade of theoretical work. These papers represent a turning point not only in Einstein's career but in the history of modern physics. Delivered to the Prussian Academy on 4 and 11 November 1915 they contain the essential framework and mathematical formalism of the completed theory preceding the famous final paper of 25 November by just days. Collectively the November papers form the core of Einstein's definitive breakthrough. "In the half century and more of Einstein's work in science one discovery stands above all as his greatest achievement. It is his general theory of relativity" Norton.</p>. <p>EINSTEIN'S COMPLETION OF THE GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY</p> . <p>First editions extremely rare author's presentation offprint not to be confused with the much more common trade separate - see below from the library of the great German physicist Arnold Sommerfeld of the first two of the papers published in November 1915 that document Einstein's final version of the general theory of relativity. "In the half century and more of Einstein's work in science one discovery stands above all as his greatest achievement. It is his general theory of relativity" Norton. "There was difficulty reconciling the Newtonian theory of gravitation with its instantaneous propagation of forces with the requirements of special relativity; and Einstein working on this difficulty was led to a generalization of relativity - which was probably the greatest scientific discovery that was ever made" Dirac quoted in Chandrasekhar p. 3. Einstein's special theory of relativity 1905 showed that the laws of physics are the same in all inertial i.e. non-accelerating frames of reference. It was then natural to ask whether it was possible to extend this principle of relativity to the more general case of frames of reference in arbitrary states of motion. This problem became linked to a theory of gravitation with Einstein's 'equivalence principle' of 1907 according to which the effects of gravity are locally equivalent to those of accelerated motion. Einstein's first steps towards a geometrical theory of gravitation were taken in August 1912 when his friend Marcel Grossmann provided the necessary mathematical tools. "Some time between August 10 and August 16 it became clear to Einstein that Riemannian geometry is the correct mathematical tool for what we now call general relativity theory. The impact of this abrupt realization was to change his outlook on physics and physical theory for the rest of his life" Pais p. 210. The resulting 'Entwurf' theory 1913 had much in common with the final theory of 1915 but based on a fallacious argument Einstein abandoned the requirement that the theory should be 'generally-covariant' i.e. that arbitrary frames of reference should be allowed. "After three years of fruitless peregrinations the revelation came to Einstein that he had been constantly on the wrong track although in 1913 he had been so near to the right solution" Lanczos p. 211. On November 4 1915 he presented to a plenary session of the Prussian Academy a new version of general relativity 'Zur allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie' "based on the postulate of covariance with respect to transformations with determinant 1" and stated that he had "completely lost confidence" in the 'Entwurf' equations. On November 18 he published his calculation of the precession of the perihelion of Mercury based on the new theory: its agreement with observation confirmed that the theory was correct the Entwurf theory predicted half the observed value of the precession.</p> <br /> <p>Provenance: Arnold Sommerfeld 1868-1951 his characteristic numbering in red pencil '30' on front cover. "The son of a physician Sommerfeld was educated at the University of Königsberg. After teaching briefly at the universities of Göttingen Clausthal and Aachen he was appointed professor of physics at the University of Münich in 1906. Sommerfeld should have retired in 1936 in favour of his pupil Werner Heisenberg. Opposition from the Nazi party to Heisenberg's appointment prolonged Sommerfeld's tenure and it was not in fact until late 1939 that he finally retired to be succeeded not by Heisenberg but by Wilhelm Müller a Nazi aerodynamicist without a single publication in physics to his credit. Although Sommerfeld and Heisenberg were not Jewish they were regarded by the Nazis as Jewish sympathizers. Sommerfeld however survived the war and returned to his Münich chair in 1945 continuing to work at physics until he died in a car accident in 1951" Oxford Reference. "Arnold Sommerfeld was one of the most distinguished representatives of the transition period between classical and modern theoretical physics. The work of his youth was still firmly anchored in the conceptions of the nineteenth century; but when in the first decennium of the century the flood of new discoveries experimental and theoretical broke the dams of tradition he became a leader of the new movement and in combining the two ways of thinking he exerted a powerful influence on the younger generation. This combination of a classical mind to whom clarity of conception and mathematical rigour are essential with the adventurous spirit of a pioneer are the roots of his scientific success while his exceptional gift of communicating his ideas by spoken and written word made him a great teacher" Max Born p. 275. </p> <br /> <p>"In June 1905 while still a patent examiner in Bern Einstein submitted his famous work on the electrodynamics of moving bodies to the Annalen der Physik. This work contained his special theory of relativity in which he asserted the equivalence of all inertial frames of reference as a fundamental postulate of physics. The question which then naturally arose was whether it was possible to extend this principle of relativity to the more general case of frames of reference in arbitrary states of motion. But he could find no workable basis for such an extension until he tried to incorporate gravitation into his new special theory of relativity for a review article in 1907 'Uber das Relativitätsprinzip und die ausdemselben gezogenen Folgerungen' Jahrbuch der Radioaktivitat und Elektronik 4 1907 411-62. The difficulties of this task led him to a new principle later to be called the 'principle of equivalence.'</p> <br /> <p>"On the basis of the fact that all bodies fall alike in a gravitational field Einstein postulated the complete physical equivalence of a homogeneous gravitational field and a uniform acceleration of the frame of reference. This extended the principle of relativity to the case of uniform acceleration. It also foreshadowed the problem whose complete solution would lead him to his general theory of relativity: the construction of a relativistically acceptable theory of gravitation based on the principle of equivalence" Norton p. 258.</p> <br /> <p>One application of the equivalence principle proved crucial to the subsequent development of his ideas on general relativity. Einstein considered an observer standing on a rotating disc - a non-inertial accelerating reference frame. According to special relativity measuring rods aligned with the circumference of the disc will contract due to their motion whereas measuring rods positioned along the radius of the disc will not. Hence the ratio of the circumference of the disc to its diameter will be less than π. "The spatial geometry for the rotating observer is therefore non-euclidean. Invoking the equivalence principle Einstein concluded that this will be true for an observer in a gravitational field as well. This then is what first suggested to Einstein that gravity should be represented by curved space-time. </p> <br /> <p>"To describe curved space-time Einstein turned to Gauss's theory of curved surfaces a subject he vaguely remembered from his student days at the ETH in Zürich. He had learned it from the notes of his classmate Marcel Grossmann. Upon his return to his alma mater as a full professor of physics in 1912 Einstein learned from Grossmann now a colleague in the mathematics department of the ETH about the extension of Gauss's theory to spaces of higher dimension by Riemann and others. Riemann's theory provided Einstein with the mathematical object with which he could unify the effects of gravity and acceleration: the metric field" Janssen p. 65.</p> <br /> <p>The first product of this collaboration was the Entwurf einer verallgemeinerten Relativitätstheorie und einer Theorie der Gravitation published before the end of June 1913 which contained many of the essential features of the final general theory of relativity; most importantly it introduced the 'metric' of space-time. In Minkowski's formulation of special relativity 1908 the most important quantity is the 'world function' of two events which determines the metric and causal structure of space-time. If these events have coordinates x y z t and x' y' z' t' in some inertial reference frame the world function is:</p> <br /> <p>c2t' - t2 - x' - x2 - y' - y2 - z' - z2</p> <br /> <p>where c is the speed of light. Its crucial property is that it depends only on the two events and not on the choice of inertial reference frame - in other words it is unchanged 'invariant' when x y z t and x' y' z' t' are both subjected to any Lorentz transformation. Einstein and Grossmann began with the world function in differential form:</p> <br /> <p>ds2 = c2dt2 - dx2 - dy2 - dz2</p> <br /> <p>If we now subject x y z t to an arbitrary coordinate transformation not necessarily a Lorentz transformation this takes the general form</p> <br /> <p>ds2 = g11dx12 g12dx1dx2 . ;</p> <br /> <p>the collection of quantities gμν which in general depend on the coordinates x1 x2 x3 x4 is called the metric. Based on analogy with Newton's theory Einstein expected that the gravitational equations should be of the form</p> <br /> <p>Gμν = Tμν</p> <br /> <p>where Gμν is a purely geometric quantity constructed solely from the metric gμν and its derivatives up to the second order and the 'stress-energy tensor' Tμν contains the information about the matter that is producing the gravitational field including energy density momentum fluxes and stresses. The question was: what exactly should Gμνbe</p> <br /> <p>Einstein and Grossmann found that generally covariant equations did not seem to be compatible with energy-momentum conservation or reduce to the equations of Newtonian gravitational theory for weak static fields both essential requirements of the correct theory. Einstein therefore decided to settle in the 'Entwurf' for equations with very limited covariance - instead of arbitrary changes in coordinates only linear ones were allowed. The restricted covariance of the 'Entwurf' field equations continued to bother him until in late August 1913 he convinced himself that such restrictions are unavoidable by means of the infamous "hole argument" first published as an addendum to the reprint of the 'Entwurf' article in Zeitschrift für Physik in January 1914. This ingenious argument showed correctly that if the gravitational equations were generally covariant the metric gμν would not be uniquely determined by the matter distribution i.e. by Tμν. He concluded incorrectly that this implied that general covariance must be ruled out the hole argument does not work if only linear coordinate transformations are allowed. The appropriate analogy is with electromagnetism: the metric is analogous to the scalar and vector potentials of electromagnetism and it was well known certainly to Einstein that these potentials are not uniquely determined by the charges and currents producing the electromagnetic field. </p> <br /> <p>That the 'Entwurf' theory was incorrect was made clear by Einstein's attempt in collaboration with Michele Besso another former classmate to explain the motion of the perihelion of Mercury. In 1859 Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier had observed the 'precession' of Mercury's orbit: this orbit is an ellipse but the ellipse is not fixed in space but slowly rotates. From early on in his search for a new relativistic theory of gravitation Einstein had been interested in the problem of Mercury's perihelion. In a letter to his friend Conrad Habicht in 1907 Einstein had already expressed his hope that such a theory would explain the anomalous advance of Mercury's perihelion. Besso visited Einstein in Zürich in June 1913 and the two men calculated the precession expected on the basis of the 'Entwurf' theory. Disappointingly it was only about half the observed anomaly. </p> <br /> <p>Einstein left Zürich in March 1914 to take up a professorship in Berlin which was to be his home until December 1932. He made no further progress on the gravitational equations until the summer of 1915 although a detailed exposition of the 'Entwurf' theory was published in October 1914 in which Einstein maintained the need for restricted covariance and even claimed that this determined the gravitational Lagrangian uniquely. "Einstein still believed in the 'old' theory as late as July 1915 between July and October he found objections to that theory and his final version was conceived and worked out between late October and November 25 . What made Einstein change his mind between July and October Letters to Sommerfeld and Lorentz show that he had found at least three objections against the old theory: 1 its restricted covariance did not include uniform rotations 2 the precession of the perihelion of Mercury came out too small by a factor of about 2 and 3 his proof of October 1914 of the uniqueness of the gravitational Lagrangian was incorrect. Einstein got rid of all these shortcomings in a series of four brief articles offered here .</p> <br /> <p>"On November 4 Einstein presented to the plenary session of the Prussian Academy a new version of general relativity 'based on the postulate of covariance with respect to transformations with determinant 1'. He began this paper by stating that he had 'completely lost confidence' in the equations proposed in October 1914. At that time he had given a proof of the uniqueness of the gravitational Lagrangian. He had realized meanwhile that this proof 'rested on misconception' and so he continued 'I was led back to a more general covariance of the field equations a requirement which I had abandoned only with a heavy heart in the course of my collaboration with my friend Grossmann three years earlier' .</p> <br /> <p>"Einstein and Grossmann had concluded that the gravitational equations could be invariant under linear transformations only and Einstein's justification for this restriction was based on the belief that the gravitational equations ought to determine the gμν uniquely a point he continued to stress in October 1914. In his new paper he finally liberated himself from this three-year-old prejudice. That is the main advance on November 4. His answers were still not entirely right. There was still one flaw a much smaller one which he eliminated three weeks later. But the road lay open. He was lyrical. 'No one who has really grasped it can escape the magic of this new theory.'</p> <br /> <p>"The remaining flaw was of course Einstein's unnecessary restriction to unimodular transformations. The reasons which led him to introduce this constraint were not deep I believe. He simply noted that this restricted class of transformations permits simplifications of the tensor calculus . The new equations are a vast improvement over the Einstein-Grossmann equations and cure one of the ailments he had diagnosed only recently: unimodular transformations do include rotations with arbitrarily varying angular velocities. In addition he proved that the new equations can be derived from a variational principle and that the conservation laws are satisfied" Pais pp. 250-252.</p> <br /> <p>On November 11 he submitted a 'Nachtrag' to his paper of a week earlier. "Einstein proposes a scheme that is even tighter than the one of a week earlier. Not only shall the theory be invariant with respect to unimodular transformations . but more strongly it shall satisfy the condition that the determinant of the matrix gμν is equal to minus one . During the next two weeks Einstein believed that this new condition had brought him closer to general covariance . One week later he remarked that 'no objections of principle' can be raised against it" ibid. pp. 252-253. Norton p. 309 points out that Einstein had in fact made a significant advance in this paper: namely he had finally found generally covariant field equations that reduced to the Newtonian equations in the weak field limit" ibid. p. 253.</p> <br /> <p>On November 18 still retaining the restrictions of his paper of a week earlier Einstein presented in 'Erklarung der Perihelbewegung des Merkur aus der allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie'"two of his greatest discoveries. Each of these changed his life. The first result was that his theory explains . quantitatively . the secular rotation of the orbit of Mercury discovered by Le Verrier . without the need of any special hypothesis. This discovery was I believe by far the strongest emotional experience in Einstein's scientific life perhaps in all his life. Nature had spoken to him. He had to be right. 'For a few days I was beside myself with joyous excitement'. Later he told Fokker that his discovery had given him palpitations of the heart. What he told de Haas is even more profoundly significant: when he saw that his calculations agreed with the unexplained astronomical observations he had the feeling that something actually snapped in him .</p> <br /> <p>"Einstein's discovery resolved a difficulty that was known for more than sixty years. Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier had been the first to find evidence for an anomaly in the orbit of Mercury and also the first to attempt to explain this effect . In 1859 he found that the perihelion of Mercury advances by thirty-eight seconds per century due to 'some as yet unknown action on which no light has been thrown . a grave difficulty worthy of attention by astronomers'" ibid. pp. 253-254. A more accurate measurement of 43 seconds was made by Simon Newcomb in 1882 and this was precisely the value predicted by the new theory. </p> <br /> <p>The prediction of the bending of light in a gravitational field was treated only briefly in 'Erklarung der Perihelbewegung des Merkur aus der allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie' probably because no accurate measurement of it had been made so this prediction could not be confirmed at the time. Einstein had realised in 1907 based on the equivalence principle that some bending of light should occur but he believed that the effect was too small to be observed. In 1911 he realized that the effect could be detected for starlight grazing the sun during a total eclipse and found that the amount of bending in that case is 0''.87 - this value could in fact have been computed by Newton from his law of gravitation and his corpuscular theory of light. In 3 Einstein discovered that general relativity implies a bending of light by the sun equal to 1".74 twice the Newtonian value. This factor of 2 set the stage for a confrontation between Newton and Einstein.</p> <br /> <p>"It was not until May 1919 that two British expeditions obtained the first useful photographs and not until November 1919 that their results were formally announced . In March 1917 the Astronomer Royal Sir Frank Watson Dyson drew attention to the excellence of the star configuration on May 29 1919 an eclipse date for measuring the alleged deflection . Two expeditions were mounted one to Sobral in Brazil led by Andrew Crommelin from the Greenwich Observatory and one to Principe Island off the coast of Spanish Guinea led by Eddington. Before departing Eddington wrote 'The present eclipse expeditions may for the first time demonstrate the weight of light i.e. the Newton value; or they may confirm Einstein's weird theory of non-Euclidean space; or they may lead to a result of yet more far-reaching consequences - no deflection' . The expeditions returned. Data analysis began. According to a preliminary report by Eddington to the meeting of the British Association held in Bournemouth on September 9-13 the bending of light lay between 0''.87 and double that value. Word reached Lorentz. Lorentz cabled Einstein . Then came November 6 1919 the day on which Einstein was canonized" Pais 304-305. At a joint meeting of the Royal Society and the Royal Astronomical Society on that date Dyson concluded his remarks with the statement "'After a careful study of the plates I am prepared to say that they confirm Einstein's prediction. A very definite result has been obtained that light is deflected in accordance with Einstein's law of gravitation'" ibid. p. 305. </p> <br /> <p>Three remarks may be made on the speed with which after eight years of struggle Einstein completed these final papers on his theory. The first is that Einstein had come very close to the correct gravitational equations in the second half of 1912 - they are recorded in his 'Zurich notebook' - but he discarded them because of his arguments against general covariance as we have seen. Once he no longer believed in these arguments he could return to the work carried out in the Zurich notebook and complete it. The second is that the detailed calculations in 3 relating to Mercury's perihelion were in fact very similar to those he had carried out with Besso in 1913 and so required relatively little extra effort. The final point is that Einstein was in competition with the great Göttingen mathematician David Hilbert.</p> <br /> <p>This author's presentation offprint is of extreme rarity and must be distinguished from other so-called 'offprints' of papers from the Berlin Sitzungsberichte many of which are commonly available on the market. The celebrated bookseller Ernst Weil 1919-1981 in the introduction to his Einstein bibliography wrote: "I have often been asked about the number of those offprints. It seems to be certain that there were few before 1914. They were given only to the author and mostly 'Überreicht vom Verfasser' Presented by the Author is printed on the wrapper. Later on I have no doubt many more offprints were made and also sold as such especially by the Berlin Academy." If the term 'offprint' means as we believe it should a separate printing of a journal article given only to the author for distribution to colleagues then 'offprints' were not commercially available. Although there is certainly some truth in Weil's remark in our view it requires clarification and explanation.</p> <br /> <p>Until about 1916 most of Einstein's papers were published in Annalen der Physik; from 1916 until he left Germany for the United States in 1933 most were published in the Berlin Sitzungsberichte. The Sitzungsberichte differed from other journals in which Einstein published in that it made separate printings of its papers commercially available. These separate printings have 'Sonderabdruck' printed on the front wrapper the usual German term for offprint but they are not offprints according to our definition. They were available to anyone; indeed a price list of these 'trade offprints' is printed on the rear wrapper. True author's presentation offprints can be distinguished from these trade offprints by the presence of 'Überreicht vom Verfasser' on the front wrapper as in the present offprint.</p> <br /> <p>In the period 1916 to 1919 or 1920 the Sitzungsberichte trade offprints are themselves rare: for example RBH list only three 'offprints' of Einstein's famous 1917 Sitzungsberichte paper 'Kosmologische Betrachtungen zur allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie' the auction records do not distinguish between trade and author's presentation offprints. After 1919 or 1920 however the trade offprints become much more common although the author's presentation offprints are still very rare. The reason for this change is that it was only in 1919 that Einstein became famous among the general public.</p> <br /> <p>It might seem obvious that Einstein's fame dates from 1905 his 'annus mirabilis' in which he published his epoch-making papers on special relativity and the light quantum. However these works did not make him immediately well known even in the physics community - many physicists did not understand or accept his work and it was two or three years before his genius was fully accepted even by his colleagues. Among the general public Einstein became well known only in late 1919 following the success of Eddington's expedition to observe the bending of light by the Sun which confirmed Einstein's general theory of relativity. This was front-page news and made Einstein universally famous. See Chapter 16 'The suddenly famous Doctor Einstein' in Pais Subtle is the Lord for an account of these events. Before 1919 the trade offprints of Einstein's papers would probably only have been purchased by professional physicists; after 1919 everyone wanted a memento of the famous Dr. Einstein whether or not they understood anything of theoretical physics and the trade offprints of his papers were printed and sold in far greater numbers than before to meet the demand. It is telling that when these post-1919 trade offprints appear on the market they are often in mint condition - they were never read simply because their owners were unable to understand them.</p> <br /> <p>In our view Einstein's author's presentation offprints are rare from any journal and any period though of course some are rarer than others. Before 1919 or 1920 the Sitzungsberichte trade offprints are also rare although not are rare as the author's presentation offprints; after 1919 or 1920 the trade offprints are much more common.</p> <br /> <p>BRL 74; Weil 75; Born 'Arnold Johannes Wilhelm Sommerfeld 1868-1951' Obituary Notices of Fellows of the Royal Society 8 1952 pp. 275-296. Chandrasekhra 'The general theory of relativity: Why "It is probably the most beautiful of all existing theories" Journal of Astrophysics 5 1984 pp. 3-11; Eisenstaedt The Curious History of Relativity 2006; Janssen 'Of pots and holes: Einstein's bumpy road to general relativity' Annalen der Physik 14 Supplement 2005 pp. 58-85; Lanczos Einstein Decade: 1905-1915 1974; Norton 'How Einstein found his field equations: 1912-1915' Historical Studies in the Physical Sciences 14 1984 pp. 253-316; Pais Subtle is the Lord 1982.</p> <br/> <br/> Large 8vo 252 x 180mm pp. 778-786; 799-801. Original printed wrappers light vertical crease from posting. Königlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften unknown
19351383623/05/1935. <blockquote><p style=""text-align: left;"">He prophesizes however that the road ahead for the Jews will be “arduous and very painfulâ€</p></blockquote><p>The Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton New Jersey was founded in 1930 by educator Abraham Flexner with funding from department store magnate Louis Bamberger. Flexner first recruited noted mathematicians from Princeton University to join the Institute then broadened its scope by including established scholars in economics politics and humanistic studies. In 1932 Flexner offered Einstein a faculty position at the Institute. Einstein’s decision was effected by historical events as in January 1933 Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. Soon after Einstein made the decision to resign from his Berlin position give up his German citizenship and accept the position in Princeton. The ocean liner Westmoreland which carried Einstein at age 54 to what would become his new home country arrived in New York Harbor on October 17 1933.</p><p><img class=""alignnone size-full wp-image-24695"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204145639/einsteinsig.gif"" alt="""" width=""1920"" height=""1080"" /></p><p>Einstein found the Institute and life in the United States congenial so in April 1934 just six months after his arrival Einstein announced that he was staying in Princeton indefinitely and assuming a permanent full-time status at the Institute. He would remain in the United States the rest of his life. Meanwhile he was very much a celebrity and was invited to the White House to meet with the Roosevelts. He politely declined saying he did not want to call attention to himself a position that German Jews had become accustomed to adopting during the rise of Naziism. However the First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt intervened writing Einstein directly requesting his presence. So Einstein and his wife Elsa arrived at the White House on January 24 1934 had dinner and spent the night. President Roosevelt was able to converse with them in passable German. Among other things they discussed Roosevelt’s marine prints and Einstein’s love for sailing. On learning that the Einsteins had decided to stay in the United States Roosevelt suggested that the Einsteins should accept the offer of some Congressmen to have a special bill passed on their behalf that he would sign granting them citizenship so that they would not have to endure the five year waiting period. The Einsteins declined the President’s generous suggestion saying they wanted to be treated like any other applicant for American citizenship. Because the Einsteins had not been sure of their ultimate destination and declared themselves as visitors instead of immigrants when they arrived in October 1933 this meant that they would need to leave the U.S. and return again to declare intention to seek citizenship.</p><p>The United Jewish Appeal UJA planned a fund-raising dinner in Einstein’s honor for May 28 1935. This was exactly the time the Einsteins had set aside to leave the country to perfect their citizenship so he was forced to decline the invitation. He did however provide them with a statement that was received by the UJA on <span class=""aBn"" tabindex=""0"" data-term=""goog_1737904750""><span class=""aQJ"">May 25</span></span> the very day the Einsteins stepped onboard the Queen Mary to travel to British-owned Bermuda for a few days to satisfy the formalities. The royal governor was there to greet them when they arrived in Hamilton and he recommended the island’s two best hotels. Einstein found them stuffy and pretentious. As they walked through town he saw a modest guest cottage and that is where they ended up.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-32085 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20240908143641/Einstein-May-23-1935-1-1600x968.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""968"" /></p><p><strong>Typed statement signed</strong> in German Princeton May 23 1935 time stamped as received on <span class=""aBn"" tabindex=""0"" data-term=""goog_1737904751""><span class=""aQJ"">May 25</span></span> to be read at the UJA dinner and issued to the press accordingly. It takes the moral high ground but warns of great dangers ahead. <em>â€Unfortunately because of non-deferrable obligations I can only express in writing my recognition and gratitude for the assistance provided to the many unfortunate people by the dinner on the <span class=""aBn"" tabindex=""0"" data-term=""goog_1737904752""><span class=""aQJ"">28th of May.</span></span> We can gain consolation in this critical time if we compare the moral standard of our friends and our enemies with each other. The result of such a comparison shows us that our way for world history can be considered the better one even if at times it is arduous and very painful.â€</em> Our research indicates that this important statement is unpublished as the dinner was postponed and it was never released to the press.</p><p>But even this moving and forceful statement was not enough for the event organizers. Learning that Einstein could not attend they postponed the dinner. Instead the $50-a-plate dinner for the benefit of the UJA arranged by that organization and the Council of Jewish Organizations was held in New York City on <span class=""aBn"" tabindex=""0"" data-term=""goog_1737904753""><span class=""aQJ"">June 26</span></span> with Einstein in attendance. About 1000 people attended the banquet at which Einstein spoke. In his speech Einstein returned to the same theme of morality as in the above statement saying that the ""moral disintegration and intensified national egoism"" of the times requires all Jews to strengthen their ranks to preserve Jewry. Of foremost importance he said was the upbuilding of the settlement in Palestine. On <span class=""aBn"" tabindex=""0"" data-term=""goog_1737904754""><span class=""aQJ"">June 28</span></span> the UJA announced it was using the proceeds from the dinner to aid German refugees in New York City by allocating funds to local agencies equipped to care for the refugees.</p><p>Einstein reentered the U.S. from Bermuda on June 3 1935. On January 15 1936 the Einsteins submitted their declaration of intention to become citizens of the United States.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-25018 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
190519259Leipzig: Johann Ambrosius Barth 1905. FIRST EDITION. Line-block and halftone text illustrations one folding table 3 halftone plates 1 collotype plate. Contemporary cloth-backed marbled boards title and date in gilt on spine; an excellent copy with the small stamp of the University of Basel on the fly-leaf preserved in a clamshell box. First edition journal issues of three important early papers by Einstein. In the first paper “Einstein suggested that light be considered a collection of independent particles of energy which he called ‘light quanta.’ Such a hypothesis he argued would provide an answer to the problem of black-body radiation where classical theories had failed and would also explain several puzzling properties of fluorescence photoionization and the photoelectric effect†Norman. It was for this paper together with one of the photoelectric effect “Zur theorie der Lichterzeugung und Lichtabsorption†published in 1906 that Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921.<br /> <br /> The second paper proved according to Einstein himself that “according to the molecular theory of heat bodies of dimensions of the order of 1/1000 mm. suspended in liquid experience apparent random movement due to the thermal Brownian molecular movement quoted by R.W. Clark Einstein New York 1984 p. 87. Experimental verification of the predictions made in this paper contributed to proving the physical reality of molecules.<br /> <br /> The third paper on the electodynamics of moving bodies was Einstein’s first statement of the special theory of relativity. In it he argued that all motion is relative to the inertial system in which it is measured and that matter and energy are equivalent. As he himself remarked “it modifies the theory of space and time.â€<br /> <br /> I: Weil 6; Norman 689; II: Weil 8 Norman 690; III: Weil 9 Dibner Heralds of Science 167; Grolier/Horblit 26b Norman 691A. Johann Ambrosius Barth unknown
19166164Braunschweig: Druck und Verlag von Friedr. Vieweg and Son 1916. First edition. <p>First edition complete journal issue in original printed wrappers inscribed by Einstein to fellow Nobel Laureate Walther Bothe. "This work represents a major step forward in quantum theory" Calaprice p. 297. It introduced the concept of stimulated emission of radiation the theoretical basis for the laser; it also contained a new derivation of Planck's radiation law which provided as a by-product a justification of the frequency rule forming the basis of Bohr's theory of atomic spectra.</p>. DISCOVERY OF STIMULATED EMISSION OF RADIATION<br /> THE PRINCIPLE OF THE LASER<br /> INSCRIBED BY EINSTEIN TO A FELLOW NOBEL LAUREATE. <p>First edition complete journal issue in original printed wrappers inscribed by Einstein to fellow Nobel Laureate Walther Bothe. "This work represents a major step forward in quantum theory" Calaprice p. 297. It introduced the concept of stimulated emission of radiation the theoretical basis for the laser; it also contained a new derivation of Planck's radiation law which provided as a by-product a justification of the frequency rule forming the basis of Bohr's theory of atomic spectra. "According to Albert Einstein when more atoms occupy a higher energy state than a lower one under normal temperature equilibrium it is possible to force atoms to return to an unexcited state by stimulating them with the same energy as would be emitted naturally" Britannica. This is 'stimulated emission.' "To claim that Einstein almost invented the laser would be an exaggeration but the laser's underlying mechanism stimulated emission of radiation was a creation of his radiation theory" Kleppner pp. 32-33. "During the summer of 1916 less than a year after he had completed the general theory of relativity Einstein made a new major contribution to the quantum theory. The two papers he wrote then deal with the quantum theory of radiation by arguments that do not depend on the classical electromagnetic theory as had all earlier treatments of Planck's radiation law . When Einstein returned to the radiation problem in 1916 the quantum theory had undergone a major change. Niels Bohr's papers had opened a new and fertile domain for the application of quantum concepts - the explanation of atomic structure and atomic spectra. In addition Bohr's work and its generalizations by Arnold Sommerfeld and others constituted a fresh approach to the foundations of the quantum theory of matter" DSB. In this paper "Einstein considers a system of atoms in equilibrium with an external radiation field. An atom can change its internal energy state by absorbing or emitting radiation. Einstein introduces three basic assumptions about these exchanges of energy between matter and field. First the probability of absorption of radiation is proportional to the radiation density. Second there are two kinds of emission processes: one - spontaneous - following a law like that of radioactive decay; the other - stimulated - induced by the radiation field and with probability proportional to the radiation density. Third at equilibrium the atoms are distributed among their internal states according to the Boltzmann distribution law. From these assumptions Planck's law follows in a simple way. Einstein was very pleased with his derivation which he characterized in a letter to Besso: 'An amazingly simple derivation of Planck's formula I should like to say the derivation.' As a bonus from his derivation Einstein found that the energy difference between two internal energy states of the atom had to be equal to hv with v the frequency of the radiation absorbed or emitted in transitions between these two states thus confirming one of the postulates of Niels Bohr's theory of spectra" Papers 6 xxiii-xxiv. "Einstein meant the second part of this study a proof of the oriented character of the emission process to be his most essential contribution to quantum radiation theory this second paper was published later in 1916 as 'Zür Quantentheorie der Strahlung'. Instead Bohr gave more importance to the new deduction of the blackbody law; for this deduction reinforced the basic assumptions of his atomic theory and completed them with a statistical description of radiation processes" Darrigol p. 120. </p> <br /> <p>Provenance: Inscribed by Einstein on front wrapper "für. Dr Bothe" i.e. Walther Bothe 1891-1957. "In 1929 in collaboration with W. Kolhörster Bothe introduced a new method for the study of cosmic and ultraviolet rays by passing them through suitably arranged Geiger counters and by this method demonstrated the presence of penetrating charged particles in the rays and defined the paths of individual rays. For his discovery of the 'method of coincidence' and the discoveries subsequently made by it which laid the foundations of nuclear spectroscopy Bothe was awarded jointly with Max Born the Nobel Prize in Physics 1954" .</p> <br /> <p>While Einstein commended Planck's epoch-making derivation of his radiation law in 1900 which ushered in the quantum era he had also noted its limitations. Einstein also saw inconsistencies in Planck's derivation of his law. For Einstein this inconsistency was no reason to reject Planck's quantum theory but it was a reason to study the foundations of traditional radiation theory and if needed revise them. </p> <br /> <p>"As Einstein had noted in 1906 Planck's derivation of the Rayleigh-Jeans law</p> <br /> <p>uν = 8πν2/c3 kT</p> <br /> <p>between average resonator energy uν and radiation spectrum ν only applied to classical resonators T is the temperature k is Boltzmann's constant. A new quantum-theoretical picture of the interaction between matter and radiation was needed. Einstein found it in the summer of 1916 after the completion of his general theory of gravitation left him more time for quantum meditation.</p> <br /> <p>"The new picture presumably emerged from a combination of three elements: Einstein's derivation of the law of photochemical equivalence his analogy between quantum states and chemical species and Niels Bohr's theory of atomic spectra. According to Bohr atoms and molecules can only exist in a series of quantum states S0 S1 . . . Sn . . . with well-defined energies E0 E1 . . . En . . . Their interaction with radiation occurs through quantum jumps with characteristic values of the frequency of the emitted or absorbed radiation. Regarding the quantum states as chemical species and remembering his photochemical reasoning Einstein knew that he could derive Wien's law by balancing the absorption process Sn hν → Sn1 with the emission process Sn1 → Sn hν and by making the probability of the first reaction proportional to the density of radiation at frequency ν. Something in this reasoning needed to be altered in order to get Planck's law instead of Wien's. </p> <br /> <p>"At this point Einstein appealed to an analogy between classical and quantum theory. According to classical theory an oscillating dipole spontaneously emits radiation whether or not radiation is initially present in its surroundings. When external radiation encounters this dipole it may either be absorbed if the phase of the incoming wave agrees with that of the oscillator or it may be amplified in the contrary case. In the quantum theory of radiation Einstein similarly admitted the existence of three kinds of processes: spontaneous emission Ausstrahlung absorption negative Einstrahlung and stimulated emission positive Einstrahlung. The modern terminology is Bohr's. For the probability per time unit of the respective sorts of quantum jump Einstein assumed the forms</p> <br /> <p>Anm ÏνBnm ÏνBmn</p> <br /> <p>where n is the upper quantum state m the lower one and Ïν is the density of radiation at the frequency ν.</p> <br /> <p>"Einstein did not say much on the nature of the probabilities he thus introduced. He only commented that his theory had the weakness to leave to chance the instant and direction of the spontaneous emission of light. He also noted the similarity between spontaneous emission and radioactive decay. Undoubtedly he would have preferred a theory in which the emission and absorption probabilities were deduced from an underlying deterministic theory. He nonetheless expressed his 'full trust in the present way of reasoning'. The probabilistic description of the interaction was a natural counterpart of the discrete character of quantum states: if a quantum system evolves mostly through quantum jumps then the probability of a quantum jump obviously is the main quantity of physical interest. Instead of speculating on the precise timing and fine structure of the jumps Einstein proceeded to show what could be done by means of the new probability coefficients.</p> <br /> <p>"At thermal equilibrium Einstein reasoned statistical mechanics requires the number of atoms in a quantum state n to be proportional to exp−En /kT. The kinetic equilibrium between the atoms and surrounding radiation further requires that the number of quantum jumps from m to n should be equal to the number of reverse jumps:</p> <br /> <p>ÏνBnm exp−Em /kT = ÏνBnm Anm exp−En /kT.</p> <br /> <p>In the high temperature limit for which Ïν → ∞ this condition gives</p> <br /> <p>Bnm = Bmn.</p> <br /> <p>Therefore the equilibrium value uν of the density Ïν is given by</p> <br /> <p>uνexpEn − Em/kT - 1 = Anm / Bnm.</p> <br /> <p>According to a thermodynamic theorem by Wien uν/ν3 must be a function of ν/T only. Hence En − Em must be proportional to ν. Einstein thus derived Bohr's strange frequency rule ΔE = hν with complete generality and without recourse to any of the empirical laws of spectra. He then required the expression of uν to agree with the Rayleigh-Jeans law in the low-frequency limit. The outcome was Planck's law as well as the relation</p> <br /> <p>Anm / Bnm = 8Ï€hν3/c3</p> <br /> <p>between Einstein's two probability coefficients .</p> <br /> <p>"Einstein's new theory of radiation is now remembered for the introduction of stimulated emission which famously permitted the conception of masers and lasers. For Einstein and for his contemporaries the importance of these memoirs lay elsewhere. First Einstein filled an important gap in the derivation of Planck's law by means of a simple statistical description of radiation processes. Second he corroborated two basic assumptions of Bohr's atomic theory: the existence of stationary states and the frequency rule. In this regard it should be emphasized that before Einstein's and Sommerfeld's contributions of 1916 Bohr believed that his frequency rule only applied to strictly periodic systems. For instance he regarded the Zeeman effect as a violation of this rule. Einstein's new considerations established its complete generality" Darrigol in Cambridge Companion to Einstein pp. 134-136.</p> <br /> <p>"The implication of Einstein's theory of stimulated emission was that if one arranges for a large number of atoms to be in identical excited states a stray photon of the right energy can stimulate one atom to emit another photon which stimulates another. and all the atoms release their excess energy in a sudden cascade. What's more the photon released by stimulated emission will be in phase - coherent - with the one that stimulated it and so all the light produced in the cascade will be coherent.</p> <br /> <p>"In 1955 American physicist Charles Townes of Columbia University in New York an expert in molecular spectroscopy and his co-workers showed how stimulated emission could be used to make a device for generating or amplifying microwaves which they called a maser microwave amplified stimulated emission of radiation. Three years later Townes and Arthur Schawlow explained how to extend the idea to visible and infrared frequencies to make an 'optical maser' - in effect the laser.</p> <br /> <p>"They proposed using ordinary incoherent light to pump atoms into an excited state setting up the 'population inversion' in which the atoms are primed to return to their ground state by emitting photons. And their design used an optical cavity - basically two mirrors between which photons would bounce - to trap the emitted photons while they stimulated more emission. The device they explained would generate 'extremely monochromatic single-wavelength and coherent light'. Theodore Maiman of the Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu California described such a device using a ruby crystal already used for masers as the lasing medium in 1960" 'A century ago Einstein sparked the notion of the laser' Physics World History Blog 31 August 2017.</p> <br /> <p>Weil 85. Calaprice An Einstein Encyclopedia 2015. Darrigol From c-numbers to q-numbers 1992. Kleppner 'Rereading Einstein on radiation' Physics Today 58 2005 pp. 30-33. Pais Subtle is the Lord 1982.</p> <br/> <br/> 8vo 228 x 154 mm pp. 315-332. Original printed wrappers. A fine copy. Druck und Verlag von Friedr. Vieweg and Son unknown
1931146050New York: The MacMillan Company 1931. First edition of this volume of Einstein's speeches and letters concerning his views on Zionism. Octavo original cloth. Boldly signed and dated in the year of publication on the front free endpaper "Albert Einstein 1931." Near fine with light toning to the endpapers in the scarce original dust jacket which is in good condition with some wear. Translated and edited with an introduction by Leon Simon. Exceptionally rare signed. Einstein was a prominent supporter of both Labor Zionism and efforts to encourage Jewish-Arab cooperation. He supported the creation of a Jewish national homeland in the British mandate of Palestine but was opposed to the idea of a Jewish state "with borders an army and a measure of temporal power." In a letter to Jawaharlal Nehru dated June 13 1947 he asserted "Long before the emergence of Hitler I made the cause of Zionism mine because through it I saw a means of correcting a flagrant wrong.The Jewish people alone has for centuries been in the anomalous position of being victimized and hounded as a people though bereft of all the rights and protections which even the smallest people normally has.Zionism offered the means of ending this discrimination." Einstein's speeches lectures and letters concerning Zionism were first published in 1930 by The Soncino Press and eleven of these essays were later collected in The World as I See It published in 1933 which Einstein dedicated "to the Jews of Germany". The MacMillan Company hardcover
19542625423/02/1954. <blockquote><p>An increasingly uncommon letter of Einstein on the role of religions philosophy peace and the dangers of the atomic age that he helped usher in</p></blockquote><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-26334 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204132831/Einstein-Feb-28-1954-1-e1674939062835-1600x216.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""216"" /></p><p>Albert Einstein believed that wars stood in the way of human progress and he was a lifelong pacifist though he did not believe in pacifism at any price or in all situations. He was also an active promoter of world peace from the days of World War I right up to his death in 1955. In fact one of his last acts before his death was to add his signature to a statement of nine scientists warning that the world risked universal annihilation unless the institution of war was abolished. Knowing his stance people from all over the world appealed to him to assist various causes consistent with these beliefs and to give statements supporting individuals and groups that did so.</p><p>Einstein was also not a member or follower of any organized religion. He considered himself a Jew but was not a practicing Jew. And as for the Christian churches he felt that it “since Constantine has always favored the authoritarian State as long as the State allows the Church to baptize and instruct the masses"". Their conduct in the years up to World War II was worse than disappointing he thought as they made the devil’s bargain - the evil compromise - with the Hitler regime. Einstein addressed this saying “Since when can one make a pact with Christ and Satan at the same time"" He added ""The Church has always sold itself to those in power and agreed to any bargain in return for immunity…If I were allowed to give advice to the Churches I would tell them to begin with a conversion among themselves and to stop playing power politics.†This idea of an evil compromise or devil's pact is central to his feelings about organized religion.</p><p>There was one exception to his criticism of religions - the Quakers. Their community aims at purifying the Christian world and generating social reform by creating direct experience with God without intervention of clergy or other expressions of church. The Quakers greatly influenced science and industry and their community is noted for the pursuit of peace and non-violence. Thus Einstein’s views fit into their belief system. “If I were not a Jew I would be a Quaker†he once wrote. Speaking to a Quaker gathering in 1938 he said ""With admiration and respect I have seen in the course of many years how successfully and selflessly the Society of Friends has worked in the entire world to lessen human suffering and to make the teachings of Christ apply to real life. Everyone who is concerned about a better lot and a more dignified stature for humanity owes deep gratitude to the Society of Friends. This Society is an admirable testimony against the assertion that every organization by its very nature kills the spirit which has called it into life.â€</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-26335 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204132818/Einstein-Feb-28-1954-2-e1674939294283-1600x653.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""653"" /></p><p>In 1949 the Australian pathologist Alton R. Chapple who was a Quaker wrote to Einstein in the then-current climate of concern regarding the perils of the atomic age for ""a few words of leadership and hope"". Einstein responded stressing the necessity for moral courage by the individual. He said that power is often in the hands of power-loving persons who know very little restrictions when it comes to the realization of their ambitious goals; and answering negatively the question whether self-restraint on what “productive thinkers and explorers†research might not prevent further development of means of mass destruction. He gave three main reasons: 1 The already existing means of destruction are effective enough to bring about total destruction; 2 People really devoted to the progress of knowledge concerning the physical world like Faraday or Rutherford have never worked for practical goals let alone military goals. And nobody could know in advance what kind of application might be developed on the basis of their discoveries; and 3 People of technical skill are so numerous and so dependent economically that they cannot be expected to refuse employment offered them by the state or private industry even if they were able to clearly recognize that their work will lead to disaster on a world-wide scale. He concluded that hope can only be based on the intellectual and moral independence of a sufficient number of people since “honesty and courage of the individual to stand up for his convictions on every occasion is the only essential thingâ€.</p><p>Chapple wrote Einstein again in 1954 about the Quakers and a perceived contradiction that Chapple discerned in the 1949 letter thinking that Einstein stated that he does not expect people to refuse to work in research that generates knowledge for the means of mass destruction. Einstein responded to Chapple giving a virtual primer on his world view and opinions on how a religion and religious individuals could live a moral life and contribute something valuable to society and the cause of peace. This he felt the Quakers did.</p><p><strong>Typed letter signed</strong> on his blind-embossed letterhead Princeton February 23 1954 to Alton Chapple in Australia illuminating Einstein’s judgment and standards of conduct. <em>“Thank you for your letter of February 16th. I consider the Society of Friends the religious community which has the highest moral standards. As far as I know they have never made evil compromises and are always guided by their conscience. In international life especially their influence seems to me to be very beneficial and effective.</em></p><p><em>“There seems to me to be no contradiction in my remarks in my former letter to you. The rules applying to a moral elite can not be expected to be followed by the rank and file.â€Â </em></p><p>So here Einstein praises those religions with “the highest moral standardsâ€. He especially lays out the need for them and for individuals to avoid “evil†compromises and to always be guided by conscience. If an individual does these things or a dedicated group like the Quakers they will gain influence that is both beneficial and effective. Einstein does stand by his statement in the 1949 letter maintaining that from his experience moral elites lead and that those in rank and file don’t necessarily follow that lead. In a sense he is saying that an ethical elite exercising leadership has the best chance of saving the world.</p><p>An increasingly uncommon letter of Einstein on philosophy peace the role of religions and religious individuals and the dangers of the atomic age that he helped usher in.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-25018 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
19314675JHollywood 1931. An unusually large image 11†x 14†taken on January 8 1931 when Einstein and his wife visited Hollywood. The image shows Albert Einstein and Film Mogul Carl Laemmle Senior Founder of Universal Pictures. The photograph is a striking informal image of these two noted Jewish leaders and fellow German emigres chatting on a studio sound stage at Universal City with Mrs. Einstein visible in the background. The photograph is inscribed and signed by Albert Einstein to the head of Universal’s publicity department John LeRoy Johnston who had sent this photograph of Einstein with his boss Laemmle to Einstein to sign. Einstein has written in white ink: “Fur Kohn Johnston - Albert Einsteinâ€. Tipped to the verso is a typed note written in German from Johnston on his printed Universal Pictures stationery to Professor Einstein asking him to inscribe the photograph. Many photograph portraits of Einstein are rather stuffy affairs and a number look like police lineups when he appeared in public and met famous people and dignitaries. This is a striking image of the two men conversing. A historic and excellent photograph and the finest piece from his visit to Hollywood to ever appear on the market. unknown books
1938366717Princeton New Jersey 1938. 7 lines typed in German on letterhead of the Institute for Advanced Study School of Mathematics watermarked Chieftain Bond signed in ink. 4to 9-7/8 x 7-1/8 inches. Old folds. Fine. 7 lines typed in German on letterhead of the Institute for Advanced Study School of Mathematics watermarked Chieftain Bond signed in ink. 4to 9-7/8 x 7-1/8 inches. Im Jahre 1837 habe ich ein Affidavit für meine Verwandte Fräulein Ursula Einstein ausgestellt. Ich erkläre hiermit dass ich dieses Affidavit aufrechterhalte und bereit bin di notwendigen Unterlagen neu zi liefern wenn es gewünscht wird.<br /> den 31. Oktober 1938<br /> signed <br /> Professor Albert Einstein.<br /> <br /> "In the year 1937 I signed an affidavit on behalf of my relative Miss Urusula Einstein. I hereby state that I continue to certify this affidavit is correct and am ready to submit the necessary documents anew if this is requested."<br /> <br /> Albert Einstein 1879-1955 German-born physicist renowned for developing the theory of relativity in papers published in 1905 and 1916 was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921 and left Germany in 1933. He was associated with the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton.<br /> <br /> This statement was almost certainly prepared in connection with efforts to assist his relative in emigrating. In a letter to his sister Maja Winteler-Einstein then resident in Switzerland dated December 1938 Einstein wrote "I am now working as some sort of itinerant relief committee and buckets of letters are coming in . I am helping the Ulm relatives with emigrating". Ursula Einstein born 1916 was able to get out; in 1940 she was a refugee in Port-au-Prince and later reached Brazil. Her younger sister Barbara was not so fortunate. Barbara Einstein born 1918 took her own life in March 1943 after her fiancé Harry Jacob was taken off to the concentration camps.<br /> <br /> A choice Einstein autograph. unknown
19155863Berlin: Königlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften 1915. First edition. <p>First editions very rare offprint of the first two of the papers published in November 1915 that document his final version of the general theory of relativity. "In the half century and more of Einstein's work in science one discovery stands above all as his greatest achievement. It is his general theory of relativity" Norton.</p>. EINSTEIN'S COMPLETION OF THE GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY. <p>First editions very rare offprint of the first two of the papers published in November 1915 that document Einstein's final version of the general theory of relativity. "In the half century and more of Einstein's work in science one discovery stands above all as his greatest achievement. It is his general theory of relativity" Norton. "There was difficulty reconciling the Newtonian theory of gravitation with its instantaneous propagation of forces with the requirements of special relativity; and Einstein working on this difficulty was led to a generalization of relativity - which was probably the greatest scientific discovery that was ever made" Dirac quoted in Chandrasekhar p. 3. Einstein's special theory of relativity 1905 showed that the laws of physics are the same in all inertial i.e. non-accelerating frames of reference. It was then natural to ask whether it was possible to extend this principle of relativity to the more general case of frames of reference in arbitrary states of motion. This problem became linked to a theory of gravitation with Einstein's 'equivalence principle' of 1907 according to which the effects of gravity are locally equivalent to those of accelerated motion. Einstein's first steps towards a geometrical theory of gravitation were taken in August 1912 when his friend Marcel Grossmann provided the necessary mathematical tools. "Some time between August 10 and August 16 it became clear to Einstein that Riemannian geometry is the correct mathematical tool for what we now call general relativity theory. The impact of this abrupt realization was to change his outlook on physics and physical theory for the rest of his life" Pais p. 210. The resulting 'Entwurf' theory 1913 had much in common with the final theory of 1915 but based on a fallacious argument Einstein abandoned the requirement that the theory should be 'generally-covariant' i.e. that arbitrary frames of reference should be allowed. "After three years of fruitless peregrinations the revelation came to Einstein that he had been constantly on the wrong track although in 1913 he had been so near to the right solution" Lanczos p. 211. On November 4 1915 he presented to a plenary session of the Prussian Academy a new version of general relativity 'Zur allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie' "based on the postulate of covariance with respect to transformations with determinant 1" and stated that he had "completely lost confidence" in the 'Entwurf' equations. On November 18 he published his calculation of the precession of the perihelion of Mercury based on the new theory: its agreement with observation confirmed that the theory was correct the Entwurf theory predicted half the observed value of the precession.</p> <br /> <p>"In June 1905 while still a patent examiner in Bern Einstein submitted his famous work on the electrodynamics of moving bodies to the Annalen der Physik. This work contained his special theory of relativity in which he asserted the equivalence of all inertial frames of reference as a fundamental postulate of physics. The question which then naturally arose was whether it was possible to extend this principle of relativity to the more general case of frames of reference in arbitrary states of motion. But he could find no workable basis for such an extension until he tried to incorporate gravitation into his new special theory of relativity for a review article in 1907 'Uber das Relativitätsprinzip und die ausdemselben gezogenen Folgerungen' Jahrbuch der Radioaktivitat und Elektronik 4 1907 411-62. The difficulties of this task led him to a new principle later to be called the 'principle of equivalence.'</p> <br /> <p>"On the basis of the fact that all bodies fall alike in a gravitational field Einstein postulated the complete physical equivalence of a homogeneous gravitational field and a uniform acceleration of the frame of reference. This extended the principle of relativity to the case of uniform acceleration. It also foreshadowed the problem whose complete solution would lead him to his general theory of relativity: the construction of a relativistically acceptable theory of gravitation based on the principle of equivalence" Norton p. 258.</p> <br /> <p>One application of the equivalence principle proved crucial to the subsequent development of his ideas on general relativity. Einstein considered an observer standing on a rotating disc - a non-inertial accelerating reference frame. According to special relativity measuring rods aligned with the circumference of the disc will contract due to their motion whereas measuring rods positioned along the radius of the disc will not. Hence the ratio of the circumference of the disc to its diameter will be less than π. "The spatial geometry for the rotating observer is therefore non-euclidean. Invoking the equivalence principle Einstein concluded that this will be true for an observer in a gravitational field as well. This then is what first suggested to Einstein that gravity should be represented by curved space-time. </p> <br /> <p>"To describe curved space-time Einstein turned to Gauss's theory of curved surfaces a subject he vaguely remembered from his student days at the ETH in Zürich. He had learned it from the notes of his classmate Marcel Grossmann. Upon his return to his alma mater as a full professor of physics in 1912 Einstein learned from Grossmann now a colleague in the mathematics department of the ETH about the extension of Gauss's theory to spaces of higher dimension by Riemann and others. Riemann's theory provided Einstein with the mathematical object with which he could unify the effects of gravity and acceleration: the metric field" Janssen p. 65.</p> <br /> <p>The first product of this collaboration was the Entwurf einer verallgemeinerten Relativitätstheorie und einer Theorie der Gravitation published before the end of June 1913 which contained many of the essential features of the final general theory of relativity; most importantly it introduced the 'metric' of space-time. In Minkowski's formulation of special relativity 1908 the most important quantity is the 'world function' of two events which determines the metric and causal structure of space-time. If these events have coordinates x y z t and x' y' z' t' in some inertial reference frame the world function is:</p> <br /> <p>c2t' - t2 - x' - x2 - y' - y2 - z' - z2</p> <br /> <p>where c is the speed of light. Its crucial property is that it depends only on the two events and not on the choice of inertial reference frame - in other words it is unchanged 'invariant' when x y z t and x' y' z' t' are both subjected to any Lorentz transformation. Einstein and Grossmann began with the world function in differential form:</p> <br /> <p>ds2 = c2dt2 - dx2 - dy2 - dz2</p> <br /> <p>If we now subject x y z t to an arbitrary coordinate transformation not necessarily a Lorentz transformation this takes the general form</p> <br /> <p>ds2 = g11dx12 g12dx1dx2 . ;</p> <br /> <p>the collection of quantities gμν which in general depend on the coordinates x1 x2 x3 x4 is called the metric. Based on analogy with Newton's theory Einstein expected that the gravitational equations should be of the form</p> <br /> <p>Gμν = Tμν</p> <br /> <p>where Gμν is a purely geometric quantity constructed solely from the metric gμν and its derivatives up to the second order and the 'stress-energy tensor' Tμν contains the information about the matter that is producing the gravitational field including energy density momentum fluxes and stresses. The question was: what exactly should Gμνbe</p> <br /> <p>Einstein and Grossmann found that generally covariant equations did not seem to be compatible with energy-momentum conservation or reduce to the equations of Newtonian gravitational theory for weak static fields both essential requirements of the correct theory. Einstein therefore decided to settle in the 'Entwurf' for equations with very limited covariance - instead of arbitrary changes in coordinates only linear ones were allowed. The restricted covariance of the 'Entwurf' field equations continued to bother him until in late August 1913 he convinced himself that such restrictions are unavoidable by means of the infamous "hole argument" first published as an addendum to the reprint of the 'Entwurf' article in Zeitschrift für Physik in January 1914. This ingenious argument showed correctly that if the gravitational equations were generally covariant the metric gμν would not be uniquely determined by the matter distribution i.e. by Tμν. He concluded incorrectly that this implied that general covariance must be ruled out the hole argument does not work if only linear coordinate transformations are allowed. The appropriate analogy is with electromagnetism: the metric is analogous to the scalar and vector potentials of electromagnetism and it was well known certainly to Einstein that these potentials are not uniquely determined by the charges and currents producing the electromagnetic field. </p> <br /> <p>That the 'Entwurf' theory was incorrect was made clear by Einstein's attempt in collaboration with Michele Besso another former classmate to explain the motion of the perihelion of Mercury. In 1859 Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier had observed the 'precession' of Mercury's orbit: this orbit is an ellipse but the ellipse is not fixed in space but slowly rotates. From early on in his search for a new relativistic theory of gravitation Einstein had been interested in the problem of Mercury's perihelion. In a letter to his friend Conrad Habicht in 1907 Einstein had already expressed his hope that such a theory would explain the anomalous advance of Mercury's perihelion. Besso visited Einstein in Zürich in June 1913 and the two men calculated the precession expected on the basis of the 'Entwurf' theory. Disappointingly it was only about half the observed anomaly. </p> <br /> <p>Einstein left Zürich in March 1914 to take up a professorship in Berlin which was to be his home until December 1932. He made no further progress on the gravitational equations until the summer of 1915 although a detailed exposition of the 'Entwurf' theory was published in October 1914 in which Einstein maintained the need for restricted covariance and even claimed that this determined the gravitational Lagrangian uniquely. "Einstein still believed in the 'old' theory as late as July 1915 between July and October he found objections to that theory and his final version was conceived and worked out between late October and November 25 . What made Einstein change his mind between July and October Letters to Sommerfeld and Lorentz show that he had found at least three objections against the old theory: 1 its restricted covariance did not include uniform rotations 2 the precession of the perihelion of Mercury came out too small by a factor of about 2 and 3 his proof of October 1914 of the uniqueness of the gravitational Lagrangian was incorrect. Einstein got rid of all these shortcomings in a series of four brief articles offered here .</p> <br /> <p>"On November 4 Einstein presented to the plenary session of the Prussian Academy a new version of general relativity 'based on the postulate of covariance with respect to transformations with determinant 1'. He began this paper by stating that he had 'completely lost confidence' in the equations proposed in October 1914. At that time he had given a proof of the uniqueness of the gravitational Lagrangian. He had realized meanwhile that this proof 'rested on misconception' and so he continued 'I was led back to a more general covariance of the field equations a requirement which I had abandoned only with a heavy heart in the course of my collaboration with my friend Grossmann three years earlier' .</p> <br /> <p>"Einstein and Grossmann had concluded that the gravitational equations could be invariant under linear transformations only and Einstein's justification for this restriction was based on the belief that the gravitational equations ought to determine the gμν uniquely a point he continued to stress in October 1914. In his new paper he finally liberated himself from this three-year-old prejudice. That is the main advance on November 4. His answers were still not entirely right. There was still one flaw a much smaller one which he eliminated three weeks later. But the road lay open. He was lyrical. 'No one who has really grasped it can escape the magic of this new theory.'</p> <br /> <p>"The remaining flaw was of course Einstein's unnecessary restriction to unimodular transformations. The reasons which led him to introduce this constraint were not deep I believe. He simply noted that this restricted class of transformations permits simplifications of the tensor calculus . The new equations are a vast improvement over the Einstein-Grossmann equations and cure one of the ailments he had diagnosed only recently: unimodular transformations do include rotations with arbitrarily varying angular velocities. In addition he proved that the new equations can be derived from a variational principle and that the conservation laws are satisfied" Pais pp. 250-252.</p> <br /> <p>On November 11 he submitted a 'Nachtrag' to his paper of a week earlier. "Einstein proposes a scheme that is even tighter than the one of a week earlier. Not only shall the theory be invariant with respect to unimodular transformations . but more strongly it shall satisfy the condition that the determinant of the matrix gμν is equal to minus one . During the next two weeks Einstein believed that this new condition had brought him closer to general covariance . One week later he remarked that 'no objections of principle' can be raised against it" ibid. pp. 252-253. Norton p. 309 points out that Einstein had in fact made a significant advance in this paper: namely he had finally found generally covariant field equations that reduced to the Newtonian equations in the weak field limit" ibid. p. 253.</p> <br /> <p>On November 18 still retaining the restrictions of his paper of a week earlier Einstein presented in 'Erklarung der Perihelbewegung des Merkur aus der allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie'"two of his greatest discoveries. Each of these changed his life. The first result was that his theory explains . quantitatively . the secular rotation of the orbit of Mercury discovered by Le Verrier . without the need of any special hypothesis. This discovery was I believe by far the strongest emotional experience in Einstein's scientific life perhaps in all his life. Nature had spoken to him. He had to be right. 'For a few days I was beside myself with joyous excitement'. Later he told Fokker that his discovery had given him palpitations of the heart. What he told de Haas is even more profoundly significant: when he saw that his calculations agreed with the unexplained astronomical observations he had the feeling that something actually snapped in him .</p> <br /> <p>"Einstein's discovery resolved a difficulty that was known for more than sixty years. Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier had been the first to find evidence for an anomaly in the orbit of Mercury and also the first to attempt to explain this effect . In 1859 he found that the perihelion of Mercury advances by thirty-eight seconds per century due to 'some as yet unknown action on which no light has been thrown . a grave difficulty worthy of attention by astronomers'" ibid. pp. 253-254. A more accurate measurement of 43 seconds was made by Simon Newcomb in 1882 and this was precisely the value predicted by the new theory. </p> <br /> <p>The prediction of the bending of light in a gravitational field was treated only briefly in 'Erklarung der Perihelbewegung des Merkur aus der allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie' probably because no accurate measurement of it had been made so this prediction could not be confirmed at the time. Einstein had realised in 1907 based on the equivalence principle that some bending of light should occur but he believed that the effect was too small to be observed. In 1911 he realized that the effect could be detected for starlight grazing the sun during a total eclipse and found that the amount of bending in that case is 0''.87 - this value could in fact have been computed by Newton from his law of gravitation and his corpuscular theory of light. In 3 Einstein discovered that general relativity implies a bending of light by the sun equal to 1".74 twice the Newtonian value. This factor of 2 set the stage for a confrontation between Newton and Einstein.</p> <br /> <p>"It was not until May 1919 that two British expeditions obtained the first useful photographs and not until November 1919 that their results were formally announced . In March 1917 the Astronomer Royal Sir Frank Watson Dyson drew attention to the excellence of the star configuration on May 29 1919 an eclipse date for measuring the alleged deflection . Two expeditions were mounted one to Sobral in Brazil led by Andrew Crommelin from the Greenwich Observatory and one to Principe Island off the coast of Spanish Guinea led by Eddington. Before departing Eddington wrote 'The present eclipse expeditions may for the first time demonstrate the weight of light i.e. the Newton value; or they may confirm Einstein's weird theory of non-Euclidean space; or they may lead to a result of yet more far-reaching consequences - no deflection' . The expeditions returned. Data analysis began. According to a preliminary report by Eddington to the meeting of the British Association held in Bournemouth on September 9-13 the bending of light lay between 0''.87 and double that value. Word reached Lorentz. Lorentz cabled Einstein . Then came November 6 1919 the day on which Einstein was canonized" Pais 304-305. At a joint meeting of the Royal Society and the Royal Astronomical Society on that date Dyson concluded his remarks with the statement "'After a careful study of the plates I am prepared to say that they confirm Einstein's prediction. A very definite result has been obtained that light is deflected in accordance with Einstein's law of gravitation'" ibid. p. 305. </p> <br /> <p>Three remarks may be made on the speed with which after eight years of struggle Einstein completed these final papers on his theory. The first is that Einstein had come very close to the correct gravitational equations in the second half of 1912 - they are recorded in his 'Zurich notebook' - but he discarded them because of his arguments against general covariance as we have seen. Once he no longer believed in these arguments he could return to the work carried out in the Zurich notebook and complete it. The second is that the detailed calculations in 3 relating to Mercury's perihelion were in fact very similar to those he had carried out with Besso in 1913 and so required relatively little extra effort. The final point is that Einstein was in competition with the great Göttingen mathematician David Hilbert.</p> <br /> <p>Weil 75 76 77; Chandrasekhra 'The general theory of relativity: Why "It is probably the most beautiful of all existing theories" Journal of Astrophysics 5 1984 pp. 3-11; Eisenstaedt The Curious History of Relativity 2006; Janssen 'Of pots and holes: Einstein's bumpy road to general relativity' Annalen der Physik 14 Supplement 2005 pp. 58-85; Lanczos Einstein Decade: 1905-1915 1974; Norton 'How Einstein found his field equations: 1912-1915' Historical Studies in the Physical Sciences 14 1984 pp. 253-316; Pais Subtle is the Lord 1982.</p> <br/> <br/> Large 8vo 253 x 180 mm pp. 778-786 & 799-801. Original printed wrappers. Königlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften unknown
19542832Princeton NJ: np 1954. First edition. nb. Fine. EXTREMELY RARE AND BEAUTIFUL SIGNED PHOTOGRAPH OF EINSTEIN BY FREDERICK PLAUT. SIGNED ON THE IMAGE BY EINSTEIN: "A. Einstein 54". A fine photograph of Einstein in 1954 a year before his death sitting in his Princeton home surrounded by books and holding his pipe gazing slightly away from the camera. <br /> <br /> In his 1964 collection of photographs The Unguarded Moment the photographer Frederick Plaut explains the circumstances of his evocative photo of the elderly Einstein: <br /> <br /> "There must be a moment in every professional photographer's life when he is so in awe of his subject that he can scarcely focus his camera. That moment for me was when I met Albert Einstein at his home in Princeton. Certainly the great man was not formidable; he greeted my wife and me graciously and proceeded to chat with her while I went to work. I remember that she asked him about his music and when he told her that he no longer played his violin she murmured 'That's too bad.' He smiled 'Ah no. It would have been too bad if I went on.' In the final moments of our visit Einstein looked at me very seriously. 'I hope' he said 'you can sell these pictures for a good price.' Astounded I blurted out: 'Oh no Sir. I have nothing to sell. I just wanted to photograph you.' His face clouded. 'Not sell them If I had known that I never would have let you take them.' After we left I realized the significant of a delightful remark attributed to Mrs. Einstein. Someone once asked Mrs. Einstein whether she understood Professor Einstein's theory of relativity. She answered without hesitation 'No but I understand Professor Einstein'" Frederick Plaut The Unguarded Moment A Photographic Interpretation. <br /> <br /> The photographer Frederick Plaut moved to the United States from Europe in 1940. After being "discovered" by the legendary photographer Edward Steichen Plaut soon was invited to exhibit in numerous exhibitions. "At the Museum of Modern Art his photographs have been shown in many exhibitions including: 'The Family of Man' 'Music and Musicians' 'The Exact Instant' and others. Plaut's work has appeared in Time Life Esquire Look Saturday Review Vogue U.S. Camera Modern and Popular Photography andRealities et al" The Unguarded Moment. <br /> <br /> Provenance: Acquired directly from the family of the original recipient Arthur Klein with the original mailing envelope stamped "Jan 27 '54" from The Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton where Einstein was working at the time. Arthur Klein is primarily known for founding with his wife Luce Spoken Arts a highly influential company formed in the 1950s that created and distributed recordings of the works of famous writers and artists usually reading from their own works. <br /> <br /> Princeton NJ: 1954. Silver gelatin print approximately 4.75 x 6.75 inches. With Plaut's studio stamp on verso. Fine condition with Einstein signature - nicely centered at the base of the photograph - particularly strong. As Plaut mentioned in his account of the photographic session he never intended to sell this photograph and it is likely very few of these photos were printed and distributed. <br /> <br /> EXTREMELY RARE: WE CAN FIND NO OTHER EXAMPLE OF THIS PHOTOGRAPH SIGNED BY EINSTEIN. np unknown
191083637Zurich Zurich 1910. Fine. Einstein writes to a friend who introduced him to Carl Jung Zurich Zurich 21 juin 1910 9 x 14 cm une carte postale Autograph postcard signed by Albert Einstein to Ludwig Hopf. 18 lines written verso and recto address also in Einstein's handwriting. Postmarked June 21 1910. Published in The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein Volume 5: The Swiss Years: Correspondence 1902-1914 Princeton University Press 1993 n°218 p. 242. An exceptional and highly aesthetic card from Albert Einstein to ""the friend of the greatest geniuses of his time"" - according to Schrödinger - mathematician and physicist Ludwig Hopf who introduced Einstein to another 20th-century genius: Carl Jung. The master invites his pupil Hopf to a dinner party whose guests include scientist Max Abraham future great rival during Einstein's Zurich years and a fervent opponent of his theory of relativity. The recipient Ludwig Hopf joined Einstein in 1910 as an assistant and student at his physics and kinetic theory seminars at the University of Zürich. They signed two fundamental papers on the statistical aspects of radiation and gave their names to the ""Einstein-Hopf"" velocity-dependent drag force. Their letter exchanges retrace the complex path of Einstein's work on relativity and gravitation bearing witness to their great complicity and Hopf's invaluable contribution to the Master's research. A few months after writing the postcard Hopf even found an error in Einstein's calculations of the derivatives of certain velocity components which Einstein corrected in a paper the following year. They also formed a musical duo Hopf accompanied on the piano the Master's violin performing pieces by great musical geniuses like Bach and Mozart. With this card Einstein invited his pupil and friend Hopf to dinner with Max Abraham at the dawn of a major scientific controversy that would pit them against each other from 1911 onwards. Abraham's theory of special relativity failed to convince Einstein who criticized its lack of observational verification and its failure to predict the gravitational curvature of light. In 1912 their dispute became public through scientific articles. Abraham never acknowledged the validity of Einstein's theory. During their brilliant artistic and intellectual exchanges Hopf undoubtedly succeeded where Freud had failed as he declared to him in a letter: ""I shall break with you if you boast of having converted Einstein to psychoanalysis. A long conversation I had with him a few years ago showed me that analysis was as hermetic to him as the theory of relativity can be to me"" Vienna September 27 1931. As a fervent supporter of psychoanalysis Hopf is known to have introduced the famous psychoanalyst Carl Jung to Einstein. Hopf and his teacher both left for Prague's Karl-Ferdinand University in 1911 where they met writer Franz Kafka and his friend Max Brod in Madame Fanta's salon. With the rise of the Nazi regime the fates of the two theoreticians were plagued by persecution and exile. Einstein first took refuge in Belgium Hopf in Great Britain after his dismissal in 1934 from the University of Aachen because of his Jewish origins. They continued their prolific correspondence in the midst of the turmoil Einstein suggesting to Hopf the opening of a university abroad for exiled German students. Hopf died shortly after his appointment as chair of Mathematics studies at Trinity College Dublin in July 1939. A precious invitation from the great physicist to one of the final dinner gatherings of the ""old school"" of science embodied by Max Abraham on the eve of the publication of the theory of general relativity which would overturn classical conceptions of space and time and propel Science into the 20th century. unknown
19412142520/12/1941. <p>Brigitte Kaufmann was born in Germany but when the Nazis came to power in 1933 she fled to Paris. In France Kaufmann worked as an actress under the name of Brigitte Châtel and translated documents. She met her future husband Alfred Alexander-Katz in Paris and they married in 1939; the following day her husband was taken to an internment camp. He was given the choice of being interned in a labor camp or joining the Foreign Legion and chose the latter. Alexander was then sent to Clermont in Vichy France and the family relocated there.</p><p>Dr. Walter Rudlin was a social science professor at Sarah Lawrence College in New York and actively involved in anti-fascist activities. He was the author of “The Growth of Fascism in Great Britainâ€. In September 1942 he left his position and joined the U.S. Board of Economic Welfare whose chair was Vice President Henry Wallace. His wife Eryl was interested in bringing Jews in Europe out of harm’s way and she knew the Alexander-Katz family.</p><p>So Eryl sought to get Brigitte and her family safely out of Europe to Mexico and sought Einstein’s help. On March 12 1941 Einstein responded noting that Brigitte is his relative. “Thank you very much for your letter of March 11th. I am very gratified indeed to learn that our mutual friends Fred and Brigitte Alexander-Katz have some prospect to receive a visa into Mexico. I am certainly willing to vouch for their reliability and integrity both personal and political. I have known Mrs. Brigitte Alexander-Katz - whose family is related to mine - since she was a little girl. Her husband a very able engineer will certainly be useful to any country which receives him. If you will send me the address of the proper Mexican authority I shall gladly send any letter of recommendation desired.†This was a warm letter indeed expressing true concern and friendship for the Alexander-Katz family.</p><p>On April 3 1941 Einstein again wrote Rudlin noting “Enclosed I am sending you the requested letters in the hope that they may be successful.†But there were delays and no visa so Rudlin wrote Einstein seven months later asking him to take the matter up with the Mexican government.</p><p><strong>Typed letter signed</strong> on his blind-embossed letterhead Princeton December 20 1941 to Mrs. Eryl Rudlin saying that he expects the visa to be granted but does not feel he ought to approach the Mexican government directly. <em>“The Mexican authorities know that I am interested in the case of the Alexander-Katz family; they have kept me informed about the whole development of the matter. I have no doubt that admission to Mexico will be granted as it has been granted to hundreds of people in the same situation. I can give Mr. Alexander-Katz a recommendation but it is out of the question that I ask the Minister of Education to send him an official invitation. I have already done what could be done without intrusion.â€</em></p><p>Despite what he writes here to calm Mrs. Rudlin Einstein might have exerted some gentle pressure on Mexico by contacting the Mexican ambassador to the U.S. Gilberto Bosques; or the Alexander-Katz visas may have already being granted at that moment. The Einstein Archives is silent on this subject. But soon after Einstein soon wrote this letter in 1942 a telegram to the young Alexander-Katz family arrived stating that Einstein and Rudolph Uhlman a lawyer in New York had secured visas through Ambassador Bosques for them to escape to Veracruz Mexico aboard the ship San Thomé.</p><p>In Mexico Brigitte she became a noted author actress director and translator. She became the first woman in Mexico to produce and direct television programs. Speaking five languages she also worked as a translator for UNESCO and Amnesty International. Her daughter Susana and granddaughter Sophie also became actors.</p> unknown
1949125016Evanston: Library of Living Philosophers 1949. Signed limited edition of Einstein's singular autobiography. Octavo original brown cloth top edge gilt original glassine and slipcase. One of 760 numbered copies signed and dated "Albert Einstein '49" this is number 458. Fine in the rare original glassine which is in near fine condition and in the original slipcase which is in fine condition. Housed in the original publisher's cardboard. An absolute pristine example which has been stored in the original cardboard box since publication. Edited by Paul Arthur Schilpp. Frontispiece portrait of Einstein by Yousuf Karsh. Rare and desirable in this condition particularly scarce in the original glassine and original box. Written by the man considered the "Person of the Century" by Time magazine this is not a glimpse into Einstein's personal life but an extension and elaboration into his thinking on science. Two of the great theories of the physical world were created in the early 20th century: the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics. Einstein created the theory of relativity and was also one of the founders of quantum theory. Here Einstein describes the failure of classical mechanics and the rise of the electromagnetic field the theory of relativity and of the quanta. "The greatest physicist of the 20th century" PMM 408. Library of Living Philosophers hardcover books
19502131Princeton: np 1950. First edition. Very Good. EINSTEIN RESPONDS TO A STUDENT EXPLAINING A CENTRAL TENET OF RELATIVITY. The schoolboy David Cumberland had answered a test question saying that vertical lines are parallel; his answer however was marked as incorrect by his teacher on the grounds that the lines would converge at the earth's center. After Cumberland insisted he was correct the teacher made a deal with him: if he could find an authority that would support his claim his grade would be changed. Cumberland apparently quite an enterprising young student wrote to Einstein asking if vertical lines are indeed parallel and Einstein in the present letter responded using relativity theory to provide support for the student's test answer: October 28 1950 Mr. David Cumberland 924 S.E. 2nd Str. Fort Lauderdale FL Dear Sir: The concept "vertical" has meaning only with respect to the earth and cannot be used beyond that context. But there is the other concept lines vertical to an euclidian plane. Those lines are parallel. Sincerely yours signed A. Einstein Albert Einstein. One of the central components of relativity is that our understanding of space and time is subject to the relevant frame of reference. In this letter Einstein uses relativity - namely a shift in the frame of reference - to prove that boy's answer can be interpreted to be correct. Upon showing his teacher Einstein's letter the boy's grade was indeed raised. One 8.5x11 inch sheet of Institute for Advanced Study letterhead. Usual folds; some water spots to page not affecting text. A WONDERFUL LETTER SHOWING A VERY HUMAN SIDE OF EINSTEIN AND EXPLAINING A BASIC CONCEPT OF RELATIVITY. np unknown books
1951140033New York: Simon and Schuster 1951. Later printing of this classic work which traces the development of ideas in physics. Octavo original blue cloth. Boldly signed by both authors on the front free endpaper "A. Einstein. 53" and "L. Infeld 1958." Near fine in a very good dust jacket. We have never seen another example signed by both authors. Rare and desirable. Upon publication The Saturday Review of Literature praised Evolution of Physics as "masterly Einstein and Infelds book should do much to spread an understanding and appreciation one of the great dramas in the evolution of human thought." Simon and Schuster hardcover
1931021909New York: Covici Friede 1931. First Edition. hardcover. Some pencil markings in text title page and endpapers darkened not really affecting Einstein's inscription; covers a little soiled. Good to Very Good and quite scarce. With a long biographical note and an appreciation by George Bernard Shaw. Subjects include Disarmament Pacifism the Jewish Homeland and more. This copy INSCRIBED and SIGNED by the author with his scarcer full signature on the front endpaper: "To little Pauline/Albert Einstein/1933." An uncommon title to find signed by the man of the century. With a letter of authenticity from James Spence if you need that kind of security blanket. <br/><br/> Covici Friede hardcover
19341478Princeton: np 1934. 1st Edition. No Binding. Very Good. AN IMPORTANT SIGNED LETTER in English by Einstein revealing his reservations of associating with communism even in the fight against fascism. Written from Princeton NJ to Professor Albert Sprague Coolidge of Harvard University and dated February 16 1934 the letter reads: My dear Professor Coolidge: I had an opportunity of meeting personally Lord Marley and has sic very favorably impressed by his personality. It became known to me that he sympathizes with the Russian Government i.g. with the Russian communist party and that the committee for which he is active is influenced by communists. The problem as to the attitude which is advisable to be taken towards this committee is rather complicated. On the one hand the world-wide danger of fascism makes it necessary that all enemies of fascism cooperate; on the other hand an action which has communist leanings might endanger that fight since the important task undertaken in defense of culture and civilization may be linked up with interests of a political party. I myself have severed my connections with the committee which with my permission had used my name up to the end of last year. It seems to me advisable to take an attitude as follows: to help their action against fascism but not to identify oneself with the committee. Very truly yours signed A. Einstein P.S. I wish you would be good enough to use this strictly confidentially. In 1934 Lord Baron Marley Dudley Leigh Aman toured the United States to raise funds for his association the World Committee for the Victims of German Fascism. Marley through his committee was "passionately advocating a scheme for which he was to become an international figurehead - resettlement of oppressed German and Polish Jews in the Jewish Autonomous Region" in Siberia. He published a book "The Brown Book of the Hitler Terror and the Burning of the Reichstag sponsored by the World Committee and with an Introduction written by Lord Marley himself which was the first popular exposé of what was happening in Hitler's Germany. It documented the destruction of political parties trade unions and universities book-burning and the building of concentration camps. "At a fundraising dinner held in his honour in New York in February 1934 where Einstein presumably met him just before writing this letter Marley opened the Brown Book and 'speaking quietly declaring that he did not intend to harrow' read aloud to his audience of 600 American Jews some of the collected evidence of Nazi repressions. Here were documentary records of what was happening in Germany - a substantiation of the brutality that hitherto had had no distinct form in the mind of the American Jewish public. What before had been the subject of a growing fear mingled with disbelief was now being presented as hard fact and supported with detailed evidence. The New York Times 8 February 2005 reports the audience being 'startled' by the disclosures and the night ending with $3500 raised for the World Committee" The Jewish Quarterly No. 198. Einstein was correct to be suspicious of Marley's activities for it was later determined that the "World Committee" was indeed a Communist front; Einstein writing here to Coolidge in 1934 was prescient about the motives of the committee. This letter in addition to underscoring Einstein's passionate stance against fascism is particularly important as documentary evidence of Einstein's caution about having any dealings with communism especially considering that the U.S. FBI worried about Einstein's political leanings kept a file on Einstein that grew to 1427 pages. Princeton NJ: February 16 1934. One 8.5 x 11 in. page. Envelope folds minor spotting. An outstanding letter with important and revealing content. np unknown books
194932820623<p>Original brown cloth top edge gilt publisher's slipcase. Very fine with the fragile slipcase in excellent condition. A superb copy.</p><p>FIRST EDITION. <b>One of 760 numbered copies signed and dated by Einstein.</b></p><p>This important volume contains Einstein's autobiography specially written for the book a bibliography of his works twenty-five scientists' discussions of Einstein's work and achievements with Einstein's replies. Contributors of essays include Niels Bohr Max Born Wolfgang Pauli and Kurt Godel.</p><p>I. I. Rabi's review in <i>Science</i> hailed this as a "most important and significant volume. It is most difficult to get scientists to write simply and clearly about the fundamentals of their science and the leading philosophical ideas that guide them. … In this book there is played out a great scientific drama of the last two decades. … The book starts with an intellectual autobiography by Einstein himself. He satirically calls it his obituary. I know of no other to compare with it. Neither Newton nor Maxwell nor any of the other great giants of physics had his Schilpp the editor to catalyze such an effort. After reading Einstein's article one realizes the great loss this is to scientific culture" <i>Science</i> 21 April 1950.</p><b>This is an especially fine signed copy of an important book in the Einstein canon</b> Library of Living Philosophers, hardcover
19341478Princeton: np 1934. 1st Edition. No Binding. Very Good. AN IMPORTANT SIGNED LETTER in English by Einstein revealing his reservations of associating with communism even in the fight against fascism. Written from Princeton NJ to Professor Albert Sprague Coolidge of Harvard University and dated February 16 1934 the letter reads:<br /> <br /> My dear Professor Coolidge:<br /> <br /> I had an opportunity of meeting personally Lord Marley and has sic very favorably impressed by his personality. It became known to me that he sympathizes with the Russian Government i.g. with the Russian communist party and that the committee for which he is active is influenced by communists.<br /> <br /> The problem as to the attitude which is advisable to be taken towards this committee is rather complicated. On the one hand the world-wide danger of fascism makes it necessary that all enemies of fascism cooperate; on the other hand an action which has communist leanings might endanger that fight since the important task undertaken in defense of culture and civilization may be linked up with interests of a political party. I myself have severed my connections with the committee which with my permission had used my name up to the end of last year. <br /> <br /> It seems to me advisable to take an attitude as follows: to help their action against fascism but not to identify oneself with the committee.<br /> <br /> Very truly yours<br /> signed A. Einstein<br /> <br /> P.S. I wish you would be good enough to use this strictly confidentially. <br /> <br /> In 1934 Lord Baron Marley Dudley Leigh Aman toured the United States to raise funds for his association the World Committee for the Victims of German Fascism. Marley through his committee was "passionately advocating a scheme for which he was to become an international figurehead - resettlement of oppressed German and Polish Jews in the Jewish Autonomous Region" in Siberia. He published a book "The Brown Book of the Hitler Terror and the Burning of the Reichstag sponsored by the World Committee and with an Introduction written by Lord Marley himself which was the first popular exposé of what was happening in Hitler's Germany. It documented the destruction of political parties trade unions and universities book-burning and the building of concentration camps. <br /> <br /> "At a fundraising dinner held in his honour in New York in February 1934 where Einstein presumably met him just before writing this letter Marley opened the Brown Book and 'speaking quietly declaring that he did not intend to harrow' read aloud to his audience of 600 American Jews some of the collected evidence of Nazi repressions. Here were documentary records of what was happening in Germany - a substantiation of the brutality that hitherto had had no distinct form in the mind of the American Jewish public. What before had been the subject of a growing fear mingled with disbelief was now being presented as hard fact and supported with detailed evidence. The New York Times 8 February 2005 reports the audience being 'startled' by the disclosures and the night ending with $3500 raised for the World Committee" The Jewish Quarterly No. 198. <br /> <br /> Einstein was correct to be suspicious of Marley's activities for it was later determined that the "World Committee" was indeed a Communist front; Einstein writing here to Coolidge in 1934 was prescient about the motives of the committee. <br /> <br /> This letter in addition to underscoring Einstein's passionate stance against fascism is particularly important as documentary evidence of Einstein's caution about having any dealings with communism especially considering that the U.S. FBI worried about Einstein's political leanings kept a file on Einstein that grew to 1427 pages.<br /> <br /> Princeton NJ: February 16 1934. One 8.5 x 11 in. page. Envelope folds minor spotting. An outstanding letter with important and revealing content. np unknown
1922Bergson2<p><strong>EINSTEIN BERGSON Henri 1859-1941</strong></p><p>Autograph letter signed " Henri Bergson " to Jean Becquerel<br />Paris 24 September 1922 16 pages in-8° with envelope<br />Some typographic pencil notes</p><p><strong>A highly significant letter on the issues and interpretation of the theory of relativity</strong><br /><strong>This intervention of the philosopher continues up to this day to create multiple controversies</strong></p><p><u>We transcribe here only a few fragments of this letter which although known in its substance has remained unpublished to this day</u></p><p><em>" Monsieur et cher collègue</em><br /><em>J'ai bien tardé à répondre à la lettre si intéressante et si importante que vous avez bien voulu m'adresser. C'est qu'elle est allée me chercher de divers côtés et m'a atteint en Suisse à un moment où j'étais pris à Genève par le travail de " Coopération intellectuelle " qui nous avait été confié par la Société des nations. Me voici de retour à Paris ; je profite de mes premiers instants de liberté pour vous écrire. Le passage essentiel de votre lettre est naturellement celui qui concerne le voyage en boulet. Laissez-moi reprendre ce que j'ai dit dans mon livre</em> Durée et simultanéité paru à l'été 1922 <em>en y joignant quelques explications complémentaires.</em><br /><em>Il y a d'abord deux remarques importantes à faire.</em><br /><em>1° <strong>Si l'on se place en dehors de la Théorie de la Relativité on conçoit un mouvement absolu et par là même une immobilité absolue ; il y aura dans l'univers des systèmes réellement immobiles. Mais si l'on pose que tout mouvement est relatif que devient l'immobilité </strong> Ce sera l'état du système de référence je veux dire du système où le physicien se suppose placé à l'intérieur duquel il se voit prenant des mesures et auquel il rapporte tous les points de l'univers.</em> …<br /><em>2° Si l'on se place en dehors de la Théorie de la Relativité on conçoit très bien un personnage Pierre absolument immobile au point A à côté d'un canon absolument immobile ; on conçoit aussi un personnage Paul intérieur à un boulet qui est lancé loin de Pierre se mouvant en ligne droite d'un mouvement uniforme absolu vers le point B et revenant ensuite en ligne droite et d'un mouvement uniforme absolu encore au point A. <strong>Mais du point de vue de la Théorie de la Relativité il n'y a plus de mouvement absolu ni d'immobilité absolue</strong></em> … <em>Paul une fois lancé dans l'espace n'est plus qu'une représentation de l'esprit une image — ce que j'ai appelé un " fantôme " ou encore une " marionnette vide ". C'est ce Paul en route ni vivant ni conscient n'existant plus que comme image qui est dans un Temps plus lent que celui de Pierre.</em> … <em>Le Paul qui sort du boulet au retour du voyage le Paul qui fait de nouveau partie alors du système de Pierre est quelque chose comme un personnage qui sortirait en chair et en os de la toile où il était représenté en peinture : c'était à la peinture et non pas au personnage c'était à Paul référé et non pas à Paul référant que s'appliquaient les raisonnements et les calculs de Pierre pendant que Paul était en voyage.</em> … <strong><em>Je ne voudrais pas clore sans saisir l'occasion qui s'offre à moi de vous dire combien m'a intéressé et instruit votre beau livre sur " Le principe de relativité " et la " Théorie de la gravitation " – livre indispensable à tous ceux qui ont le souci d'approfondir la théorie d'Einstein.</em></strong><em> Veuillez Monsieur et cher collègue agréer l'expression de mes sentiments les plus distingués et dévoués</em><br /><em>H. Bergson "</em></p><p>In publishing <em>Durée et simultanéité</em> published by Alcan in the summer of 1922 Bergson was taking a risk that he probably did not measure himself. The purpose of this essay was to discuss the philosophical issues of the theory of relativity. The criticism of his scientific colleagues was not long in coming. Those of Einstein in the first place deploring the "blunders" or "dumplings" of the philosopher. In France it was Jean Becquerel who opened fire with a letter addressed directly to the author and of which this document constitutes the reply.<br />At the time Becquerel held a chair of applied physics at the Museum of Natural History. He wrote a textbook entitled <em>Le Principe de relativité et la théorie de la gravitation</em> Gauthier-Villars 1922 which made him one of the first introducers of Einsteinian theory in the French context. Two sources give an idea of the content of Becrerel's letter: his article published the following year "Critique de l'ouvrage durée et Simultaneity de M. Bergson"<em> Bulletin scientifique des étudiants de Paris</em> 10 2 March-April 1923 and the extract given by Bergson himself in the first of three appendices added to the 1923 edition of <em>Durée et simultanéité</em> – appendix which also contains with a few lines the entirety of his answer. Bergson then chose to preserve the anonymity of his correspondent in order to avoid giving the impression of a "polemic" according to the interview of December 30 1923 with Jacques Chevalier. He merely evokes "a letter very interesting which was addressed to us by a most distinguished physicist."<br />The discussion crystallizes on a specific point: the interpretation of the slowdown of moving clocks predicted by the theory. The famous "twin paradox" attributed to Paul Langevin provides a pictorial version of the problem as part of a Jules Verne-style narrative: an astronaut here "Paul" embarked on a "ball journey" would find himself on his return younger than his twin brother who remained on Earth here "Pierre" as if time had passed less quickly for him! In his letter Becquerel insists on the fact that the theory of relativity speaks of time actually measured on both sides by observers in relative motion. Bergson repeats by clarifying it the argument developed in his book namely that the differences relate less to real times than to fictitious times that is to say times attributed to other observers who acquire at the same time the status of simple images or "ghosts". Thus the "dilation" of durations associated with the slowing down of moving clocks is only a "perspective effect". Bergson is led to this conclusion by a strict interpretation of the principle of relativity: between two observers in relative motion there is a "perfect symmetry" each can consider itself motionless or mobile with respect to the other. Multiple empirical confirmations have since objectively proved the philosopher wrong but the question of the status of time in relativity as well as that of the relevance of the arguments exchanged continues to fuel contemporary philosophical debates. In that sense that letter constitutes a key part of the case.</p><p>We thank Mr. Elie During for the information he kindly communicated to us</p>
191083637Zurich 21 juin 1910 | 9 x 14 cm | une carte postale
193090431New York: Albert & Charles Boni 1930. First edition of this Einstein biography written by Rudolf Kayser a German literary historian and husband to Albert Einstein's stepdaughter Ilse under the pseudonym Anton Reiser. Octavo original cloth frontispiece of Einstein. Inscribed by Albert Einstein with an original poem on the front free endpaper in German which translates as "It is <span class="match">a</span> curious f<span class="match">a</span>te to be objectified <span class="match">a</span>live. Think with humor while re<span class="match">a</span>ding. <span class="match">A</span>. Einstein." From the library of <span class="match">A</span>lex<span class="match">a</span>ndre <span class="match">a</span>nd C<span class="match">a</span>therine B<span class="match">a</span>rj<span class="match">a</span>nsky with her ownership signature to the verso of the front panel and notation below Einstein's inscription "S.S. 'Belgenl<span class="match">a</span>nd' New-York 14/XII/30." Russian sculptress Catherine Barjansky her celebrated cellist husband and Einstein were all close friends of King Albert I and Queen Elisabeth of Belgium. Barjansky described her experiences creating the now famed and very intimate sculptural portraits of Elizabeth and Albert in her 1947 joint memoir with her husband Portraits with Backgrounds. Catherine had an international career living at times in Rome <span class="hps">Berlin</span> <span class="hps">New York</span> <span class="hps">Vienna Paris</span> and <span class="hps">Brussels. </span>Einstein w<span class="match">a</span>s in New York <span class="match">a</span>t the time he inscribed the present volume h<span class="match">a</span>ving <span class="match">a</span>rrived <span class="match">a</span>bo<span class="match">a</span>rd the Belgenl<span class="match">a</span>nd three d<span class="match">a</span>ys e<span class="match">a</span>rlier. Einstein travelled aboard the Belgenland several times. He was on the ship in March 1933 intending to return home to Germany when he learned the alarming news that the Nazis had ransacked his summer cottage in Caputh. He soon decided it was too dangerous to return to Germany and when the ship docked in <span class="match">A</span>ntwerp Belgium he immedi<span class="match">a</span>tely reported to the Germ<span class="match">a</span>n consul<span class="match">a</span>te in Brussels where he turned in his Germ<span class="match">a</span>n p<span class="match">a</span>ssport <span class="match">a</span>nd renounced his citizenship. Einstein returned to <span class="match">A</span>meric<span class="match">a</span> in October beginning <span class="match">a</span> new life <span class="match">a</span>s <span class="match">a</span> member of the f<span class="match">a</span>culty of Princeton University's Institute for <span class="match">A</span>dv<span class="match">a</span>nced Study. In near fine condition. A complex and desirable association. Albert Einstein developed the general theory of relativity one of the two pillars of modern physics alongside quantum mechanics. Einstein's work is also known for its influence on the philosophy of science. Einstein is best known in popular culture for his mass-energy equivalence formula E = mc2 which has been dubbed "the world's most famous equation". He received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics for his "services to theoretical physics" in particular his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect a pivotal step in the evolution of quantum theory David Bodanis. Albert & Charles Boni hardcover books
192433984London: Methuen & Co. Ltd 1924. Second Edition. Second Edition. Signed by Author. SIGNED Copy. The uncommon second UK edition. 8vo. 123pp. A near fine copy in a very good or better dustwrapper showing a few small chips at the extremities. Nicely signed by Einstein on the front free endpaper in blue fountain pen in full: "Albert Einstein. 1949". Neat prize inscription dated 1942 Liverpool University just above the signature. Very rarely seen signed. Weil 124a for the 1st edition - no mention of the 1924 2nd. Custom slipcase in fine condition. Methuen & Co. Ltd unknown
19182839London: Fleetway Press 1918. FIRST EDITION. Original wrappers. Fine. THE FIRST INTRODUCTION OF EINSTEIN'S GENERAL RELATIVITY TO THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING WORLD. The groundbreaking first edition 1918 with the second edition 1920 containing the account of Eddington's 1919 expedition proving Einstein's theory both in original wrappers. "Einstein's discovery of the General Theory of Relativity was communicated to the Berlin Academy of Sciences in 1915. Because of the First World War direct communication with physicists in Germany was not possible but the papers were forwarded to Eddington who was then Secretary of the Royal Astronomical Society by Willem de Sitter a personal friend of Eddington's in neutral Holland. The theory is of considerable mathematical complexity but as Einstein stated in the last paragraph of his paper 'scarcely anyone who has fully understood this theory can escape from its magic'. Eddington was the ideal expositor of these ideas in English and within 2 years had written his Report on the Relativity Theory of Gravitation for the Physical Society of London" Malcolm Longair "Bending Space-time". <br /> <br /> The second edition is notable for containing a new preface that discusses the results of the "eclipse expedition" led by Eddington that verified General Relativity and catapulted Einstein into world-wide fame. This preface precedes Eddington's full report in the Philosophical Transactions.<br /> <br /> Provenance: Almost certainly Nobel Prize winning physicist's Charles Glover Barkla's copy of the 1918 report with an original 1918 receipt in Barkla's name laid in. Barkla won the 1917 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his discovery of the characteristic Röntgen radiation of the elements".<br /> <br /> London: Fleetway Press for The Physical Society of London 1918 and 1920. Octavo original wrappers; custom box. General light wear to wrappers. Beautiful copies. RARE. Fleetway Press unknown