Q: What did Einstein say about imagination?
A: Einstein said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.” This quote is featured on the opening page and the back cover of Einstein: The Man and His Mind. In it, Einstein says that the creative ability to imagine new possibilities, not just information or knowledge, led to his ideas that so radically transformed our understanding of the universe.
Q: What are three things Albert Einstein is best known for?
A: Einstein is recognized throughout the world and is best known for his:
-
- contributions to science, most notably the theory of relativity
- dedication to truth, pacifism, and human rights
- most famous equation, E=mc2
Q: What made Einstein a genius?
A: Einstein’s genius came not from his childlike curiosity. Einstein said, “I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” (Einstein: The Man and His Mind, page 132.) He would focus on a problem to the exclusion of virtually everything else for as long as it took to solve it. He thought in pictures, not words, and used this to imagine his “thought experiments” that often reduced a problem to its simplest elements.
Q: How was Einstein so smart?
A: Einstein was curious; tenacious in pursuing the solution to a question or problem, and he had an intense streak of independence. He attributed music (particularly Mozart and Bach) to be an essential part of his creative thinking. He said he often thought in music. Einstein’s son, Han Albert, reported that “whenever he felt that he had come to the end of the road or into a difficult situation in his work, he would take refuge in music, and that would usually resolve all his difficulties.” (Einstein: The Man and His Mind, page 80.)
Q: How did Albert Einstein die?
A: Albert Einstein died on April 18th, 1955, of a ruptured aortic aneurysm.
He had suffered from abdominal pain for decades. In December 1948, he underwent exploratory surgery that revealed a large aortic aneurysm. The surgeon, Dr. Rudolph Nissen, wrapped the bulging blood vessel with cellophane to stimulate fibrosis and reinforce the weakened vessel. (Resecting the defective part and replacing it with a synthetic graft was not yet possible.) The operation added over six years, mostly pain-free, to Einstein’s life.
On April 12, 1955, Einstein experienced severe abdominal pain that intensified the following day. At first, he refused hospitalization but soon agreed to be admitted to Princeton Hospital to avoid being a burden at home. Einstein’s aneurysm was leaking and in the early stage of rupturing. He refused surgery, knowing that he would soon die without it, saying: “I want to go when I want. It is tasteless to prolong life artificially. I have done my share; it is time to go. I will do it elegantly.”
Einstein continued his life’s work during the five days he was hospitalized. Early in the morning of April 18, 1955, the aneurysm ruptured. Einstein uttered his last words in German—which his English-speaking night nurse did not understand—and his extraordinary life ended. (Einstein: The Man and His Mind, page 194.)
———————–
With its ability to reach a wide audience, from those with a special interest in Einstein to others who may have relatively little prior familiarity with the man, EINSTEIN: The Man and His Mind is a standout in Einstein literature and in researched biographical and artistic studies. This extraordinary book deserves a place not just in Einstein libraries, but also in those representing the intersection between photographic art and biography.
EINSTEIN: The Man and His Mind
Einstein: The Man and His Mind
By Gary S. Berger and Michael DiRuggiero
Available in the United States in bookstores and online.
ISBN 978-8862087841
November 2022
