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| Sunday, 1 May 2005 |
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Albert Einstein and the World Year of Physics - 2005 by Lakshman Dissanayake
The United Nations and the International Union of Pure and Applies Physics (IUPAP) have declared the year 2005 as the World Year of Physics to mark the 100th anniversary of Albert Einstein's 'miraculous year, 1905' in which he experienced a burst of genius highlighted by the publication of three illustrious papers describing ideas that have since influenced all of modern physics and the way we see the nature and the universe. By coincidence, this year is also the 50th anniversary of Einstein's death in 1955. The conceptual mutiny he started by showing that time and space, matter and energy are all interconnected continues to shape our understanding of the nature, modern technology, science and technology policy and philosophy today. In 1905 Einstein, one of the greatest physicists of all times, shook the world by publishing a series of papers, where he demonstrated the reality of molecules by explaining the Brownian motion, explained the phoelectric effect using the quantum nature of radiation and proposed the special theory of relativity dealing with the length contraction and time dilation when objects are moving with high velocities. No other set of academic papers in the 20th century had such a profound impact on both science and society. His paper on Brownian motion reinforced kinetic theory and laid the ground work for quantum mechanics. In his paper on photoelectric effect Einstein showed that light consists of discrete particles known as 'photons', for which he won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921. His theory of special relativity for which Einstein is best known, transformed our understanding of the relationship between space and time 'A storm broke lose in my mind' Einstein later remarked! Einstein took mankind beyond the world of everyday experience to show much more was going on in the universe than we could imagine. As a scientific icon, Einstein, who died in 1955 at 76, stands alone. The atomic bomb, the weapon that has defined and haunted civilisation since 1945 sprang indirectly from ideas he started and directly from a letter he wrote to US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939, warning of a potential danger of such a bomb. Many of Einstein's ideas such as the theory of relativity or E=mc2, are better known than they are understood. Physicists themselves are still grappling with a lot of his ideas. Einstein represents a lot of different things to different people, but he was famous for a reason. He changed the way we understand the nature and the universe. Einstein was born to a middle-class German Jewish family in 1879. At the age of 12, he was fascinated by a geometry book. At the age of 15 he quit high school because he was disgusted by rote learning and strict teachers. After a year of wandering and loafing he entered the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich and in 1900 graduated with exceptional results. After graduation, he had to do odd jobs and wait for two years to find a position as a clerk at the Swiss Patent office. He married a former classmate. In 1905, at the age of 26, he published the landmark scientific papers dealing with Brownian motion, photoelectric, effect and the special theory of relativity. Although Einstein made many other contributions to science, his special theory of relativity alone represents one of the greatest intellectual achievements of the 20th century. With this theory, one can correctly predict experimental observations over a range of velocities from zero to those approaching the speed of light. In 1909, Einstein became an assistant Professor at the University of Zurich. In 1911 he joined the German University of Prague and continued to publish important physics papers and met fellow scientists. In 1912 he returned to the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich as Professor. After a decade of thought and much hard work, Einstein completed his general theory of relativity in 1915, overturning earlier notions of space and time. His theory predicted the bending of star light due to gravity. He also continued to sign petitions for peace. In 1916, Einstein published his work on the general theory of relativity, which in effect is a new theory gravitation. Today, a large number of experiments have been performed that have confirmed the predictions of the general theory of relativity to high precision. In 1921 he received the Nobel prize for his theory of photoelectric effect. In 1933, unwilling to live in Germany under the new Nazi government, Einstein left for USA and joined the Institute of Advanced study in Princeton, New Jersey. The search for a true unified theory of fundamental forces for a more profound understanding of nature continued during 1955. At the same time, he was corresponding about a new anti-war project. Einstein died in 1955 and was unable to complete both these tasks. 'One thing I have learned in a long life is that all our science, measured against reality, is primitive and child-like and yet it is the most precious thing we have.' Einstein's illustrious papers not only led to such modern miracles as the laser, global positioning satellite and the atomic bomb and nuclear energy, but also uncorked the fundamental questions that are still being addressed by cosmologists today - things like the fundamental nature of the atom, time and the universe. What is so special about Einstein is not only the ideas he presented, but also the way he was thinking, deeply about nature in a way that is fascinating. It is amusing to see how much Einstein did and how much of his ideas are still alive. People are still searching for gravitational waves using cutting-edge experimental techniques based on ideas proposed by Einstein in 1915. A special state of matter known as the 'Bose-Einstein condensates', first proposed by Einstein and Bose in 1924, was recently made in the Laboratory. These ultra-cold gases behave like giant atoms, allowing researchers to probe atomic behaviour at very low temperatures. The outcome of this research is expected to lead to the creation of an 'Atomic Laser' that shoots atomic beams, instead of the light beam from an ordinary laser. Research is also under way in physics research labs worldwide, to produce the first 'quantum computer', whose programs would use the rules of quantum mechanics. In such a computer, every calculation is performed simultaneously instead 'one at a time' as happens now in conventional computers. Much of the thinking in the 'quantum information field' derives from a paper co-authored by Einstein in 1935. The biggest mystery in our understanding of the universe is 'dark energy' an anti-gravity that appears to be pushing galaxies apart at an accelerating rate. Einstein first proposed the idea of dark energy in 1917. In 1998 dark energy shook the astrophysics world when a study of distant exploding stars revealed its existence. Dark energy has been confirmed in galaxy surveys and signatures seen in heat left over from the origin of the universe. For all his greatness, Einstein never achieved his final goal of unifying his theory of gravity with the theories that explain electromagnetic phenomena and atomic forces. His attempts took his far away from the mainstream of physics by the time of his death, but theoretical physicists are still striving to reach his goal of a unified theory of all interactions in the universe. It is interesting to note some famous quotes by this great scientist; On knowledge imagination and creativity "When I examine myself and my methods throughout, I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing positive knowledge." "The Intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift." "Reading after a certain age, diverts the mind too much from its creative pursuits. Any person who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking." On Nature, the Universe and the Mysterious "Two things inspire me to awe - the starry heavens above and the moral universe within." "The most beautiful thing one can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true and science." "The human mind is not capable of grasping the Universe. We are like a little boy entering a huge library - The boy notes a mysterious order of arrangement of books which he does not comprehend but only dimly suspects." "Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I am not sure of the former." On Religion and God "I cannot believe that God would choose to play dice with the universe." "The ideals which have always shone before me and filled me with the joy of living are goodness, beauty and truth. To make a goal of comfort or happiness has never appealed to me, a system of ethics built on this basis would be sufficient only for a herd of cattle." "I believe in Spinoza's God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists not in a God who concerns himself with fates and actions of human beings." "Scientific research is based on the idea that everything that takes place is determined by laws of nature, and therefore, this holds for the actions of people. For this reason, a research scientist will hardly by inclined to believe that events could be influenced by a prayer, i.e. by a wish addressed to a supernatural being." "The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. The religion which is based on experience and which refuses dogmatic. If there is any religion that would cope the scientific needs, it will be Buddhism...." Throughout much of the 20th century and continuing to this day, Einstein remains the public face of Physics. Einstein's unique appearance in his photographs have made the world's most recognisable scientist. Einstein has become more famous in death than in life. How many people worldwide are familiar with Einstein's formula E=mc2? How many people can recognise one other physics formula? Participants of the World Year of Physics celebrations worldwide hope to accomplish two goals which parallel Einstein's broad influence; First they plan to provide the public with easily accessible information on current state of Physics and its growing ties to biology and chemistry, to development of new materials and nano-technologies, its critical role in exploring the cosmos and our understanding of the origin of the universe and its centrality in efforts to develop a unified theory of fundamental forces of nature. Second, they seek to organise workshops, lectures, seminars, exhibitions in order to draw the attention of students and the general public helping to spark broader interest in Physics. In the past, physics has made tremendous contributions to the health and welfare of people and nations. Physics has made contributions to the world economy in areas such as electronics and communications, new materials, computer technology, to health through x-rays, lasers, magnetic resonance imaging, and nuclear medicine. However, many of these contributions have benefitted people in the developed world more than those in the developing world. The World Conference on Physics and Sustainable Development to be held during 31st December - 2nd November 2005 in Durban, South Africa is expected to focus on how the Physics community work towards bringing more benefits to the developing world. The author is the Director of the Postgraduate Institute of Science (PGIS),
Senior Professor of the Department of Physics, University of Peradeniya and
Chairman, Asian physics Education Network (ASPEN) |
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