More than fifty years after his death, Albert Einstein's vital engagement with the world continues to inspire others, spurring conversations, projects, and research, in the sciences as well as the humanities. Einstein for the 21st Century shows us why he remains a figure of fascination.

In this wide-ranging collection, eminent artists, historians, scientists, and social scientists describe Einstein's influence on their work, and consider his relevance for the future. Scientists discuss how Einstein's vision continues to motivate them, whether in their quest for a fundamental description of nature or in their investigations in chaos theory; art scholars and artists explore his ties to modern aesthetics; a music historian probes Einstein's musical tastes and relates them to his outlook in science; historians explore the interconnections between Einstein's politics, physics, and philosophy; and other contributors examine his impact on the research, projects, and conversations of our time. Uniquely cross-disciplinary, Einstein for the 21st Century serves as a testament to his legacy and speaks to everyone with an interest in his work.

The contributors are Leon Botstein, Lorraine Daston, E. L. Doctorow, Yehuda Elkana, Yaron Ezrahi, Michael Friedman, Jurg Frohlich, Peter L. Galison, David Gross, Hanoch Gutfreund, Linda Henderson, Dudley Herschbach, Gerald Holton, Caroline Jones, Susan Neiman, Lisa Randall, Jurgen Renn, Matthew Ritchie, Silvan S. Schweber, and A. Douglas Stone.

This lovely compendium of essays on Einstein's cultural impact is as stunning in its breadth as Einstein was in his science. Among the book's contributors are such luminaries as Lisa Randall and E.L. Doctorow. Browsing through this book is like eavesdropping on the reminiscences of great artists, novelists, historians, and scientists as they discuss their favorite old teachers. How remarkable, then, that they are all discussing the same man.

Here is the complete Einstein: the physicist, whose many insights and achievements persist at the forefront of modern science; the man, who remained idealistic, philosophically minded, and politically engaged throughout his life; and the iconic visionary, who continues to inspire individual creativity. This is a generous book, rich with detail.

is accessible to a broad readership and attractive because its distinguished authors, all experts in their disciplines, cover a very large intellectual space. There are so many fine and interesting contributions that there is something for nearly every potential reader.

Books on Einstein are scarcely in short supply but much of this collection feels fresh, probably because, astonishingly, Einstein's work is still, at the forefront of physics. But it's also because his life touched so many worlds outside science, including nuclear weapons, Nazi Germany, Zionism and the Arab-Israeli conflict, civil rights and the arts.

Peter L. Galison is the Pellegrino University Professor of the History of Science and of Physics at Harvard University. Gerald Holton is the Mallinckrodt Research Professor of Physics and Research Professor of the History of Science at Harvard. Silvan S. Schweber is professor emeritus of physics and the Richard Koret Professor in the History of Ideas at Brandeis University.

Introduction ix

PART 1: Solitude and World

Chapter 1: Who Was Einstein? Why Is He Still So Alive? by Gerald Holton 3

Chapter 2: A Short History of Einstein's Paradise beyond the Personal by Lorraine Daston 15

Chapter 3: Einstein's Jewish Identity by Hanoch Gutfreund 27

Chapter 4: Einstein and God by Yehuda Elkana 35

Chapter 5: Einstein's Unintended Legacy: The Critique of Common-Sense Realism and Post-Modern Politics by Yaron Ezrahi 48

Chapter 6: Subversive Einstein by Susan Neiman 59

Chapter 7: Einstein and Nuclear Weapons by Silvan S. Schweber 72

PART 2: Art and World

Chapter 8: Einstein and 20th-Century Art: A Romance

of Many Dimensions by Linda Dalrymple Henderson 101

Chapter 9: Rendering Time by Caroline A. Jones 130

Chapter 10: Into the Bleed: Einstein and 21st-Century Art by Matthew Ritchie 150

Chapter 11: Einstein and Music by Leon Botstein 161

Chapter 12: Seeing the Unseen by E. L. Doctorow 176

PART 3: Science and World

Chapter 13: The Assassin of Relativity by Peter L. Galison 185

Chapter 14: Space, Time, and Geometry: Einstein and Logical Empiricism by Michael L. Friedman 205

Chapter 15: Einstein as a Student by Dudley Herschbach 217

Chapter 16: Learning from Einstein: Innovation in Science by Jürgen Renn 239

Chapter 17: Einstein and 'h: Advances in Quantum Mechanics by Jürg Fröhlich 257

Chapter 18: Einstein's Unknown Contribution to Quantum Theory by A. Douglas Stone 270

Chapter 19: Einstein and the Quest for a Unified Theory by David Gross 287

Chapter 20: Energy in Einstein's Universe by Lisa Randall 299

Notes 311

Contributors 341

Index 349