The world’s greatest genius?

Albert Einstein is one of the most famous scientists in the world. He changed how physicists saw the world and helped with the development of technology. He knew things that were going to happen, like black holes.

Born in Germany

Albert Einstein was born in Ulm, Germany, in 1879. He came up with theories about how time and space affect the laws of physics. His thoughts led to a different understanding of the natural forces. 

Einstein has had a huge impact on research.

Albert Einstein som barn

Fascinated by a compass

Einstein was sick when he was about five years old, and to cheer him up, his father gave him a compass. Einstein liked how the needle moved, and it made him realize that there must be something hidden that makes things work the way it does.

Skipping classes

Einstein struggled at school. He skipped a lot of classes but was still allowed to graduate.

Portrett av Albert Einstein
Portrett av Albert Einstein

Einsteins career

Einstein was mocked by other scientists in the beginning. But then they realized that he was a genius. In the early 1920s, his theories became famous for their importance. 

Einstein got the Nobel prize in physics in 1921, 16 years after his theories were published.

Svart hull
Svart hull

E=mc2

Einstein is best known for the equation E=mc2 (Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity). It is a complicated equation that shows that materials can be seen both as mass and energy and that they relate. 

Einstein’s theories have an impact on all of us.

Pacifist

Einstein wasn’t sure that it was possible to build an atomic bomb. But he wanted the American government to do research on nuclear reactions with uranium. Einstein was afraid that the Germans would create an atomic bomb before the United States. 

Einstein himself wasn’t a part of creating the atomic bomb, but the work was based on his ideas. When the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, in August 1945, Einstein was shocked by the terrible destruction. For the rest of his life, he fought against the use of atomic bombs.

Five facts about Einstein

1. A quiet boy

Einstein spoke very little as a child. When he said something, it was in a very quiet voice. This lasted until he was nine years old.

2. Curious 

Einstein’s interest in science began when he was five, and his father gave him a compass. He was curious about the needle and how it worked.

3. Off to a bad start  

Einstein did not get good grades in school. After graduation, he didn’t get a job at the university. Instead, he started working at the patent office in Bern.

4. Against atomic weapons  

Einstein was against war. In the beginning, he supported the use of atomic weapons but later changed his mind.

5. Einstein’s brain has been preserved  

When Einstein died in 1955, his brain was saved for science. It is now kept at a university in the United States.

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Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein

Sources:

  • Historie – Junior (2016)
    Orage Forlag AS
  • Slik funker verden – Junior (2019)
    Orage Forlag AS

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