Comments on: Even Einstein feared change

By: Seth Finkelstein

Seth Finkelstein — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 05:36:14 +0000

The history is much more complicated than the fairy-tale of the Lone Genius against The Establishment. For example, there’s a reason there’s something called the “Lorenz contraction”.

There were plenty of Establishment types who thought Einstein was right from the start and embraced his work immediately.

And fitting quantum mechanics into a straightjacket of “NEw IDeas” glosses over just how difficult it can be.

By: Peter Ralph

Peter Ralph — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 13:17:31 +0000

Steve - you are too kind. I am confident that my recommendation of Kuhn’s book will repay some of your generosity. It is a seminal work.

googling “paradigm shift” retruns Kuhn in first place.

By: Tony S

Tony S — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 01:30:56 +0000

Does the bio have any info about how Einstein used to disguise himself as Robin Hood?

By: Rob

Rob — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 23:08:25 +0000

… and when we hit exactly 88 miles an hour the flux capacitor will send us back to the future!

By: Safran

Safran — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 20:12:40 +0000

Peter: Excellent, excellent, excellent thoughts. Thanks for sharing them.

Please note, I did not write, nor do I mean to imply that quantum mechanics supplanted relativity. It was the reconciliation of quantum mechanics and relativity that Einstein spent the better part of his life working on - and to his frustration, he could not reconcile. He tangled with younger physicists and, by his own admission, became less creative in his older years. That’s the point I’m going with here.

Newer isn’t necessarily better than older. But right now in news, on the web, the default answer can’t be “no.” It has to be, at the very least, “let’s try.”

I will check out Kuhn based upon your recommendation. Thank you for sharing that.

By: Richard

Richard — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 16:05:26 +0000

Grumpy Einstein = Fat Elvis

and all that stuff peter said too

By: Peter Ralph

Peter Ralph — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 13:33:20 +0000

Describing quantum mechanics as the “new thing” that supplanted Einstein’s theories of relativity is totally misleading.
Relativity is still the theory we use to explain the visible universe. Quantum mechanics is limitied to the sub atomic world. They contradict one another is a very fundamental way, and no-one has of yet been able to resolve that contradiction.

A newer theory is not necessarily better than an older one. It only looks that way in the rear view mirror.

As Seth Godin recently blogged “the default answer is no”. It has to be that way - progress is impossible otherwise.

The nature of the sciencific enterprise is that it requires thousands of “normal” scientists for each revolutionary. I recommend Kuhn’s “Structure of scientific revolutions” if you are interested in this subject.