ALBERT EINSTEIN
By: Ali Ismail
aliismail_uk@yahoo.co.uk
0778-842 5262 (United Kingdom)
Caption: The original document of the Theory of Relativity
Albert Einstein – scientific genius or bragging fraud?
There have been suspicions about the Nobel prize winner’s credentials for decades
There was a time, during the late 19th Century, when physics was considered to very nearly a completed subject with little further fundamental research to be done. Newtonian ideas had been accepted by the scientific establishment and had brought about the Industrial Revolution.
However, there were moments of unease with this comfortable view of the subject. The disquiet arose from the field of astronomy because scientists kept reporting discrepancies between the theoretical timings of events such as eclipses and observed timings. These ‘inaccuracies’ were indeed tiny and concerned, in the main, phenomena in the solar system but they were annoying and gave the impression that the users of finely machined equipment were not using them as competently as they should have been.
That was the age of the great optical telescopes before the advent of radio astronomy. Astronomers prided themselves on their professional standards and deviations from predicted events were taken seriously.
At the National Museum of Science and Technology (‘The Science Museum’) where I sometimes go when I have time to burn, there is a tremendous emphasis on the advances of modern physics in space flight and in sightings of the universe. Naturally, the general theory of relativity and the interactions of distances, speeds, masses and time all play full parts in the education of the mostly young audience members at the lecture theatre there.
As a long-time ‘Science Museum’ visitor, therefore, I was surprised and shocked recently when I discovered that Albert Einstein, the Father of Modern Physics, may have been little more than a common plagiarist and cheat. Very nearly all schoolchildren all over the world are presented with his name as some kind of an icon. It has even passed into the language with such phrases as: “If I had the brains of Einstein” and ‘You don’t have to be Albert Einstein to understand this.”
Albert Einstein’s wrinkled face and wild hair have become symbols of scientific genius and ‘his’ famous E = mc^2 equation is often used as the symbol for all that which is scientific and intellectual. However, there has for years been mounting evidence that this ‘Father of Modern Science’ was, in the final analysis, a con man, lying about his ideas and achievements, and literally stealing the work and the researches of others.
The most glaring evidence against Einstein concerns the famous equation. One web site states: ‘The equation E=mc^2, which has been forever linked to Einstein & his theory of relativity was not originally published by Einstein. According to Umberto Bartocci, a professor at the University of Perugia and a historian of mathematics, this famous equation was first published by Olinto De Pretto …two years prior to Einstein’s publishing of the equation. In 1903 De Pretto published his equation in the scientific magazine Atte and in 1904 it was republished by the Royal Science Institute of Veneto. Einstein’s research was not published until 1905… Einstein was well versed in Italian and even lived in Northern Italy for a brief time.
‘It is unprecedented to pass over the original inventor of an equation and to give the credit to another person who claims to have derived it after the equation and its derivation have been published. The equation “E=mc^2 should be called the ‘De Pretto Equation’ not the ‘Einstein Equation’’.
This allegation brings into play the question of Albert Einstein’s character. Is there evidence that he may have been prone to unethical behaviour? Another web site states: ‘Einstein… was still far from the ideal husband. A year before they married, Maric gave birth to a daughter, Lieserl, while Einstein was away. The child’s fate is unknown - she is presumed to have been given up for adoption, perhaps under pressure from Einstein, who is thought to have never seen his first born. After the marriage, Mileva bore two sons but the family was not to stay together. Einstein began an affair with his cousin Elsa Lowenthal while on a trip to Berlin in 1912, leaving Mileva and his family two years later. Einstein and Mileva finally divorced in 1919, but not until after Einstein sent his wife a list of ‘conditions’ under which he was willing to remain married. The list included such autocratic demands as ‘You are neither to expect intimacy nor to reproach me in any way’. After the divorce, he saw little of his sons. The elder, Hans Albert, later said: “Probably the only project he ever gave up on was me.” The younger, Eduard, was diagnosed with schizophrenia and died in an asylum’.
Einstein married Elsa soon after the divorce, but a few years later began an affair with Betty Neumann, the niece of a friend.
Accusations of plagiarism are not limited to Mileva. It has been claimed that Einstein stole the work of other physicists. One question that may remain active is how much he drew from the work of Hendrik Lorentz and Henri Poincare in formulating the theory of special relativity. Elements of Einstein’s 1905 paper paralleled parts of a 1904 paper by Lorentz and a contemporary paper by Poincare. Although Einstein read earlier papers by the two, he claimed not to have seen these later works before writing the 1905 paper. One apparently damning fact is that the 1905 paper on special relativity had no references, suggesting that Einstein was consciously hiding his tracks.
One anonymous commentator wrote: ‘David Hilbert submitted an article containing the correct field equations for general relativity five days before Einstein’. Another wrote: ‘Einstein presented his paper on 25 November, 1915 in Berlin and Hilbert had presented his paper on 20 November in Göttingen. On 18 November, Hilbert received a letter from Einstein thanking him for sending him a draft of the treatise Hilbert was to deliver on the 20th. So, in fact, Hilbert had sent a copy of his work at least two weeks in advance to Einstein before either of the two men delivered their lectures, but Einstein did not send Hilbert an advance copy of his’. Apparently, Hilbert’s work was soon to become ‘Einstein’s work’.
It has been claimed by some that Michelson and Morley decades before Einstein proved the hypothesis that light had finite speed. Hendrik Lorentz determined the equations showing relativistic time and length contractions which become significant as the speed of light is approached. These men, along with David Hilbert and Olinto De Pretto, have allegedly been ejected from the picture so that Einstein could be given the credit for what they had done.
Einstein was reportedly highly dependent on his first wife who was apparently a more talented physics student, as well as three years his senior, because of his own limited abilities. Yet another web site states: ‘…in 1927, H. Thirring wrote, ‘H. Poincare had already completely solved the problem of time several years before the appearance of Einstein’s first work in 1905. . . .’ .
Sir Edmund Whittaker in his detailed survey, A History of the Theories of Aether and Electricity, Volume II, (1953), included a chapter entitled ‘The Relativity Theory of Poincare and Lorentz’. Whittaker fairly thoroughly documented the development of the theory, detailing the alleged authentic history, and demonstrated through references to primary sources that Einstein had no priority for the vast majority of the theory. Einstein offered no counter-argument to Whittaker’s famous book.
If this is the case then it would seem that Dr Einstein was a minor contributor at best and an intellectual thief and a pretentious braggart at worst. Einstein was still alive when Sir Edmund’s book was published and he said nothing about it. He did not offer no legal objections such as libel action, or a refutation nor did he make a public comment.
If this turns out to be of substance, then Einstein was the first great fraudster and plagiarist of modern science. His ‘theft’ of Olinto De Pretto’s equation E = mc^2 gave him enormous scientific credibility which he built a career upon. De Pretto was not a professional physicist and was an industrialist before passing away in 1921. De Pretto had published his equation twice before Einstein and was no doubt amazed that someone could claim credit for his work.
Einstein is suspected of having used and then discarded his first wife, Mileva, who was by repute a more brilliant student than he was and is suspected of writing a good deal of ‘his’ early work.
David Hilbert’s work on the equations for special relativity was submitted for publication before Einstein’s was and it was sent to Einstein as correspondence. Einstein claimed credit for the equations which Hilbert derived. David Hilbert passed away in 1943.
If these accusations prove to be partly or wholly watertight, then that does raise the question of how Dr Einstein got away with it, especially as he claimed to have done his major work on relativity while employed full time as a patents clerk in Zurich and, at an earlier period of time, had difficulty passing the degree requirements of a non-high flying Swiss institution.
The only conclusion I would venture to offer is that one should be wary of judging people and events by appearances and should query the motivations of influential persons who make it their business to present icons to us for our admiration.
THE END
Albert Einstein – scientific genius or bragging fraud?
There have been suspicions about the Nobel prize winner’s credentials for decades
There was a time, during the late 19th Century, when physics was considered to very nearly a completed subject with little further fundamental research to be done. Newtonian ideas had been accepted by the scientific establishment and had brought about the Industrial Revolution.
However, there were moments of unease with this comfortable view of the subject. The disquiet arose from the field of astronomy because scientists kept reporting discrepancies between the theoretical timings of events such as eclipses and observed timings. These ‘inaccuracies’ were indeed tiny and concerned, in the main, phenomena in the solar system but they were annoying and gave the impression that the users of finely machined equipment were not using them as competently as they should have been.
That was the age of the great optical telescopes before the advent of radio astronomy. Astronomers prided themselves on their professional standards and deviations from predicted events were taken seriously.
At the National Museum of Science and Technology (‘The Science Museum’) where I sometimes go when I have time to burn, there is a tremendous emphasis on the advances of modern physics in space flight and in sightings of the universe. Naturally, the general theory of relativity and the interactions of distances, speeds, masses and time all play full parts in the education of the mostly young audience members at the lecture theatre there.
As a long-time ‘Science Museum’ visitor, therefore, I was surprised and shocked recently when I discovered that Albert Einstein, the Father of Modern Physics, may have been little more than a common plagiarist and cheat. Very nearly all schoolchildren all over the world are presented with his name as some kind of an icon. It has even passed into the language with such phrases as: “If I had the brains of Einstein” and ‘You don’t have to be Albert Einstein to understand this.”
Albert Einstein’s wrinkled face and wild hair have become symbols of scientific genius and ‘his’ famous E = mc^2 equation is often used as the symbol for all that which is scientific and intellectual. However, there has for years been mounting evidence that this ‘Father of Modern Science’ was, in the final analysis, a con man, lying about his ideas and achievements, and literally stealing the work and the researches of others.
The most glaring evidence against Einstein concerns the famous equation. One web site states: ‘The equation E=mc^2, which has been forever linked to Einstein & his theory of relativity was not originally published by Einstein. According to Umberto Bartocci, a professor at the University of Perugia and a historian of mathematics, this famous equation was first published by Olinto De Pretto …two years prior to Einstein’s publishing of the equation. In 1903 De Pretto published his equation in the scientific magazine Atte and in 1904 it was republished by the Royal Science Institute of Veneto. Einstein’s research was not published until 1905… Einstein was well versed in Italian and even lived in Northern Italy for a brief time.
‘It is unprecedented to pass over the original inventor of an equation and to give the credit to another person who claims to have derived it after the equation and its derivation have been published. The equation “E=mc^2 should be called the ‘De Pretto Equation’ not the ‘Einstein Equation’’.
This allegation brings into play the question of Albert Einstein’s character. Is there evidence that he may have been prone to unethical behaviour? Another web site states: ‘Einstein… was still far from the ideal husband. A year before they married, Maric gave birth to a daughter, Lieserl, while Einstein was away. The child’s fate is unknown - she is presumed to have been given up for adoption, perhaps under pressure from Einstein, who is thought to have never seen his first born. After the marriage, Mileva bore two sons but the family was not to stay together. Einstein began an affair with his cousin Elsa Lowenthal while on a trip to Berlin in 1912, leaving Mileva and his family two years later. Einstein and Mileva finally divorced in 1919, but not until after Einstein sent his wife a list of ‘conditions’ under which he was willing to remain married. The list included such autocratic demands as ‘You are neither to expect intimacy nor to reproach me in any way’. After the divorce, he saw little of his sons. The elder, Hans Albert, later said: “Probably the only project he ever gave up on was me.” The younger, Eduard, was diagnosed with schizophrenia and died in an asylum’.
Einstein married Elsa soon after the divorce, but a few years later began an affair with Betty Neumann, the niece of a friend.
Accusations of plagiarism are not limited to Mileva. It has been claimed that Einstein stole the work of other physicists. One question that may remain active is how much he drew from the work of Hendrik Lorentz and Henri Poincare in formulating the theory of special relativity. Elements of Einstein’s 1905 paper paralleled parts of a 1904 paper by Lorentz and a contemporary paper by Poincare. Although Einstein read earlier papers by the two, he claimed not to have seen these later works before writing the 1905 paper. One apparently damning fact is that the 1905 paper on special relativity had no references, suggesting that Einstein was consciously hiding his tracks.
One anonymous commentator wrote: ‘David Hilbert submitted an article containing the correct field equations for general relativity five days before Einstein’. Another wrote: ‘Einstein presented his paper on 25 November, 1915 in Berlin and Hilbert had presented his paper on 20 November in Göttingen. On 18 November, Hilbert received a letter from Einstein thanking him for sending him a draft of the treatise Hilbert was to deliver on the 20th. So, in fact, Hilbert had sent a copy of his work at least two weeks in advance to Einstein before either of the two men delivered their lectures, but Einstein did not send Hilbert an advance copy of his’. Apparently, Hilbert’s work was soon to become ‘Einstein’s work’.
It has been claimed by some that Michelson and Morley decades before Einstein proved the hypothesis that light had finite speed. Hendrik Lorentz determined the equations showing relativistic time and length contractions which become significant as the speed of light is approached. These men, along with David Hilbert and Olinto De Pretto, have allegedly been ejected from the picture so that Einstein could be given the credit for what they had done.
Einstein was reportedly highly dependent on his first wife who was apparently a more talented physics student, as well as three years his senior, because of his own limited abilities. Yet another web site states: ‘…in 1927, H. Thirring wrote, ‘H. Poincare had already completely solved the problem of time several years before the appearance of Einstein’s first work in 1905. . . .’ .
Sir Edmund Whittaker in his detailed survey, A History of the Theories of Aether and Electricity, Volume II, (1953), included a chapter entitled ‘The Relativity Theory of Poincare and Lorentz’. Whittaker fairly thoroughly documented the development of the theory, detailing the alleged authentic history, and demonstrated through references to primary sources that Einstein had no priority for the vast majority of the theory. Einstein offered no counter-argument to Whittaker’s famous book.
If this is the case then it would seem that Dr Einstein was a minor contributor at best and an intellectual thief and a pretentious braggart at worst. Einstein was still alive when Sir Edmund’s book was published and he said nothing about it. He did not offer no legal objections such as libel action, or a refutation nor did he make a public comment.
If this turns out to be of substance, then Einstein was the first great fraudster and plagiarist of modern science. His ‘theft’ of Olinto De Pretto’s equation E = mc^2 gave him enormous scientific credibility which he built a career upon. De Pretto was not a professional physicist and was an industrialist before passing away in 1921. De Pretto had published his equation twice before Einstein and was no doubt amazed that someone could claim credit for his work.
Einstein is suspected of having used and then discarded his first wife, Mileva, who was by repute a more brilliant student than he was and is suspected of writing a good deal of ‘his’ early work.
David Hilbert’s work on the equations for special relativity was submitted for publication before Einstein’s was and it was sent to Einstein as correspondence. Einstein claimed credit for the equations which Hilbert derived. David Hilbert passed away in 1943.
If these accusations prove to be partly or wholly watertight, then that does raise the question of how Dr Einstein got away with it, especially as he claimed to have done his major work on relativity while employed full time as a patents clerk in Zurich and, at an earlier period of time, had difficulty passing the degree requirements of a non-high flying Swiss institution.
The only conclusion I would venture to offer is that one should be wary of judging people and events by appearances and should query the motivations of influential persons who make it their business to present icons to us for our admiration.
THE END
posted by Ali at 11:41 AM
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