How Simple Math Led Einstein to Relativity

Einstein turned the world on its head in November of 1919, when data collected during a solar eclipse matched the predictions of his Theory of General Relativity. But Einstein’s path to discovering his theory traces back much further, to when he was 12 years old and he first learned about an ancient mathematical method…

Special thank you to Professor ‪@AlexKontorovichMath‬ of Rutgers University and Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) for his help and participation.

Additional credits:

Giacomo Belletti - camera
Brandt Adams - newscaster voice
Kolja Gjoni - drum roll
Valentin Cazako - help with creating the “Pringle chip” model and 3D animations

Music from Epidemic Sound and Envato Elements.

Thank you to Joel Simser (‪@CreateSmarter‬) for valuable feedback on edits, and everybody else who gave me feedback and advice during this process.
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This video was originally inspired by a 2015 article by Steven Strogatz in The New Yorker Magazine about Einstein’s proof of the Pythagorean Theorem: https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals...

“Einstein, His Life and Universe” by Walter Isaacson served as a primary source for the biographical details: https://amzn.to/3TxtJRS
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To learn more about Special Relativity and Minkowski space-time:

‪@Mahesh_Shenoy‬The Triplet Paradox -    • The complete intuitive explanation fo...  
'We all move at speed of light through spacetime'.. What does it really mean? -    • 'We all move at speed of light throug...  
‪@MinutePhysics‬SpaceTime Intervals: Not EVERYTHING is Relative | Special Relativity Ch. 7 -    • Spacetime Intervals: Not EVERYTHING i...  

To learn more about General Relativity:

‪@veritasium‬Why Gravity is NOT a Force -    • How Gravity Actually Works  
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*A Note about how I use AI generated images in my videos*

The emerging ability of artificial intelligence to generate compelling images from text prompts opens new possibilities for compelling storytelling. However, when mixed with real historical imagery, as is in my video, it has the potential to create confusion, or worse, if not handled properly.

I have set a few guidelines for my use of AI generated images in this video so that a viewer can easily understand which images are real photographs and which are synthetically generated:

ALL images that have been placed in a “frame” (eg a border that resembles an old photo print, etc) are REAL historical images.

ALL images that include Einstein's full face, as well as all World War I related images, are REAL historical images.

I have used Midjourney AI to create “stock” image elements including backgrounds, illustrations, and objects.

I have used Midjourney AI to create some images that are implied to be of Einstein. In these, Einstein’s face is FULLY OR PARTIALLY OBSCURED.

Please send me a message or drop a comment and I'll be happy to clarify any specific images.
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Items that Appear in the Video:

•“Notes for an Autobiography” by Albert Einstein - originally published in the Saturday Review of Literature, November 26, 1949
•Fractals, Chaos, Power Laws: Minutes from an Infinite Paradise - Manfred Schroeder - https://amzn.to/3viq1n6
•Documents from Einstein’s Studies at the Zurich Polytechnical Institute - https://tinyurl.com/33ds27xa
•On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies - Albert Einstein - https://tinyurl.com/42hmyftj
•Space and Time: Minkowski’s Papers on Relativity - Hermann Minkowski - https://tinyurl.com/5n79k9ef
•An Introduction to Riemannian Geometry - https://tinyurl.com/yc5x2ac7
•The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein - https://einsteinpapers.press.princeto...
•A Peek Into Einstein’s Zurich Notebook - John D. Norton - https://tinyurl.com/4w2df5xt
•Hilbert Paper - https://tinyurl.com/3mdcercw
•Solar Eclipse Maps from 1911 - 1920 - https://tinyurl.com/3p8pmx8b
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Additional Sources:

•Relativity: The Special and General Theory - Albert Einstein - https://amzn.to/43xh4Tx
•Richard Feynman’s lecture on the Special Theory of Relativity - https://www.feynmanlectures.caltech.e...
•Hermann Minkowski’s Spacetime: The Theory That Einstein Overlooked - David D. Nolte - https://tinyurl.com/27aa9nw5
•How Einstein Lost His Bearings, and with them, General Relativity - Kevin Hartnett - https://tinyurl.com/3zv5awwk
•The 1919 Eclipse Results that verified General Relativity and their later detractors: a story retold - Gerard Gilmore and Gudrun Tausch-Pebody - https://tinyurl.com/54p2e4kt
•Marcel Grossman and his contribution to the General Theory of Relativity - T. Sauer - https://tinyurl.com/5ate8m6r
•Einstein’s Pathway to General Relativity - John D. Norton - https://tinyurl.com/3mjajz4c

Photos:

•Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Ma...
•Leo Baeck Institute - https://tinyurl.com/f6vt5uhk

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