Albert Einstein
14 March 1879 (in Ulm, Germany)- 18 April 1955 (in the USA). Physicist.
Childhood and Youth
Albert Einstein was born on 14 March 1879 in Ulm, Germany. It is said, that his speaking skills developed rather late. He himself told his biographer that he started speaking at the age of 3. He said that he skipped babytalk on purpose in order to be able to talk in full sentences. However, his Grandmother belied Einstein's claim by stating her grandson could definitely talk before the age of 3. Einstein was an introverted child. He did not play with other children. When something happened he disliked he had outbursts of fury. Mostly, he vented on his little sister Maja. At school, to which he went at the age of 7, Einstein was an outsider. Before, he had been taught at home. His tutor called him 'wunderkind' whereas his schoolteacher thought that Einstein developed rather late and slow. However, at the age of 9 he showed his talent in Mathematics and Latin for the first time. His scientific interest was fuelled by a medicine student, Max Talmud, who went to dinner at the Einstein's every week. This interest and knowledge developed even further with the help of Einstein's Uncle Jakob, especially during his years on the secondary school. At the age of 13, he tried higher mathematics for his enjoyment. He also showed interest in Immanuel Kant's philosophical theories and in literature, especially Goethe, Schiller and Shakespeare who were his favourite writers. He was interested in music as well; he could play the violin. His sister Maja said once, that Einstein, after playing the violin for a while, could solve physical or mathematical problems better. Einstein quit school at the age of 15 because, according to his doctor, he was close to a depression due to the fact that he was too good at mathematics but could not keep up with his classmates in all the other subjects. Thus, he was not able to study Philosophy at University which was his big dream. Therefore, he decided to go to the Federal Polytechnic School in Zurich but he failed the qualifying examination because he did not show interest in Chemistry or Biology. Despite that, a professor at this school saw Einstein's abilities and told him that he was allowed to attend the school when achieving his matriculation standard. In 1896, he achieved his matriculation standard and went directly to the Federal Polytechnic School in Zurich where he studied mathematics and physics in order to become a teacher. In 1901 he gained his diploma but could not find a teaching position. Therefore, he worked for the Swiss Patent Office.
Physical Achievements
He developed the theory of general relativity. Einstein received a Nobel Prize in 1921 for the discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect.
References:
Brian, Denis. Einstein. Sein Leben.Weinheim: WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaG, 2005.
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1921/einstein-bio.html