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bagusayp 's review for:
Einstein: His Life and Universe
by Walter Isaacson
Throughout his life, Einstein’s philosophy in pursuing unification had been ingrained both in his science and politics. As he sought to build a unified field theory in physics, he also sought a supranational entity which could govern all nations in the planet under world federalism to ensure continuous peace. For all the complexities of his personality, his most wonderful gift was his non-conformist attitude which led him to question all norms and established theories.
This book began with a simple question: How did Einstein’s mind works? And through questioning the mind of Einstein instead of analyzing how his brain works like what Dr. Thomas Harvey did shortly after Einstein’s death, Walter Isaacson has proven to be successful in delivering the answer in this lengthy book. The premise that he offered was also the basis of Einstein’s creativity, to always have that childlike curiosity of how the universe works, which led him to ask more questions and in time discover new things.
Einstein’s endeavor towards becoming a theoretical physicist began even from his childhood when he was 6 years old and just received a gift from his parent. The 6-year-old kid just could not contain his curiosity on why the compass needle points north. As we grow older, we begin to lose our curiosity of how the universe works and leave our mindset into the arbitrary rules of adult lives where the rules govern our society. Throughout this book, Einstein has shown his approach both in his science and politics that what Is listed as law or popular opinion is not always right, and what is commonly accepted as established theory for centuries might not be right as he did when he published his general theory of relativity which undermined classical mechanics from Newton days.
As I try to analyze some parts of the book, there are multiple layers of stories in this book. There are parts which deal on Einstein’s personal life such as his on-and-off relations with his two sons and his first wife, Mileva Maric. There are also parts which focus on Einstein’s endeavor in physics which sometimes contains terms of physics and mathematical equations. For this part, I could only say that Walter Isaacson has done a great job as he said, he tries to make it as much understandable as possible for people who got education in physics at least in high school level. And there are also parts which deal with Einstein’s activism in politics, which began with his adamant resistance to World War I and his stance in pacifism until the end of his life.
This biography is really insightful, if we are able to endure the parts which deal with theories in physics. There are hidden gems on how Einstein’s creative process works, which might be applicable not only in the field of science, but also practicable in our daily lives. As has said in the book, Einstein’s success came from questioning conventional wisdom and marveling at mysteries that struck others as mundane. This led him to embrace a morality and politics based on respect for free minds, free spirits and free individuals.
This book began with a simple question: How did Einstein’s mind works? And through questioning the mind of Einstein instead of analyzing how his brain works like what Dr. Thomas Harvey did shortly after Einstein’s death, Walter Isaacson has proven to be successful in delivering the answer in this lengthy book. The premise that he offered was also the basis of Einstein’s creativity, to always have that childlike curiosity of how the universe works, which led him to ask more questions and in time discover new things.
Einstein’s endeavor towards becoming a theoretical physicist began even from his childhood when he was 6 years old and just received a gift from his parent. The 6-year-old kid just could not contain his curiosity on why the compass needle points north. As we grow older, we begin to lose our curiosity of how the universe works and leave our mindset into the arbitrary rules of adult lives where the rules govern our society. Throughout this book, Einstein has shown his approach both in his science and politics that what Is listed as law or popular opinion is not always right, and what is commonly accepted as established theory for centuries might not be right as he did when he published his general theory of relativity which undermined classical mechanics from Newton days.
As I try to analyze some parts of the book, there are multiple layers of stories in this book. There are parts which deal on Einstein’s personal life such as his on-and-off relations with his two sons and his first wife, Mileva Maric. There are also parts which focus on Einstein’s endeavor in physics which sometimes contains terms of physics and mathematical equations. For this part, I could only say that Walter Isaacson has done a great job as he said, he tries to make it as much understandable as possible for people who got education in physics at least in high school level. And there are also parts which deal with Einstein’s activism in politics, which began with his adamant resistance to World War I and his stance in pacifism until the end of his life.
This biography is really insightful, if we are able to endure the parts which deal with theories in physics. There are hidden gems on how Einstein’s creative process works, which might be applicable not only in the field of science, but also practicable in our daily lives. As has said in the book, Einstein’s success came from questioning conventional wisdom and marveling at mysteries that struck others as mundane. This led him to embrace a morality and politics based on respect for free minds, free spirits and free individuals.