PURPOSE AND PLAN 9break with the past than had been the case with the coming of special relativity
in 1905 or of general relativity in 1915. That had not been obvious to me earlier,
as I belong to the generation which was exposed to 'ready-made' quantum
mechanics. I came to understand how wrong I was in accepting a rather wide-
spread belief that Einstein simply did not care anymore about the quantum theory.
On the contrary, he wanted nothing more than to find a unified field theory which
not only would join together gravitational and electromagnetic forces but also
would provide the basis for a new interpretation of quantum phenomena. About
relativity he spoke with detachment, about the quantum theory with passion. The
quantum was his demon. I learned only much later that Einstein had once said to
his friend Otto Stern, 'I have thought a hundred times as much about the quantum
problems as I have about general relativity theory' [Jl]. From my own experiences
I can only add that this statement does not surprise me.
We talked of things other than physics: politics, the bomb, the Jewish destiny,
and also of less weighty matters. One day I told Einstein a Jewish joke. Since he
relished that, I began to save good ones I heard for a next occasion. As I told these
stories, his face would change. Suddenly he would look much younger, almost like
a naughty schoolboy. When the punch line came, he would let go with contented
laughter, a memory I particularly cherish.
An unconcern with the past is a privilege of youth. In all the years I knew
Einstein, I never read any of his papers, on the simple grounds that I already
knew what to a physicist was memorable in them and did not need to know what
had been superseded. Now it is obvious to me that I might have been able to ask
him some very interesting questions had I been less blessed with ignorance. I
might then have learned some interesting facts, but at a price. My discussions with
Einstein never were historical interviews. They concerned live physics. I am glad
it never was otherwise.
I did read Einstein's papers as the years went by, and my interest in him as an
historical figure grew. Thus it came about that I learned to follow his science and
his life from the end to the beginnings. I gradually became aware of the most
difficult task in studying past science: to forget temporarily what came afterward.
The study of his papers, discussions with others who knew him, access to the
Einstein Archives, personal reminiscences—these are the ingredients which led to
this book. Without disrespect or lack of gratitude, I have found the study of the
scientific papers to be incomparably more important than anything else.
In the preface, I promised a tour through this book. The tour starts here. For
ease I introduce the notation, to be used only in this and in the next chapter, of
referring to, for example, Chapter 3 as (3) and to Chapter 5, Section (c), as (5c).
To repeat, symbols such as [Jl] indicate references to be found at the end of the
chapter.
I shall begin by indicating how the personal biography is woven into the nar-