Albert Einstein

by Milton Dank

Describes Einstein's life and his work whose impact caused a revolution in physics. Summarizes Newton's theories and Einstein's theory of relativity. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0531045870
• ISBN13: 9780531045879
• Release Date: December 1983
• Publisher: Franklin Watts
• Length: 122 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Age Range: 12 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 7 and higher

Customer Reviews

Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein by Milton Dank is an excellent example of a scientific biography. To begin, it quickly makes something very clear about Einstein: Despite his genius, he was not arrogant and conceited. He was a kind and gentle person. The book does an excellent job of demonstrating to the reader that Einstein was a good person just like many of us in this world, thus endearing him to any reader. At the beginning of the book, Einstein's academic troubles are described. However, he still was a great genius. By revealing the stories of Einstein's lousy grades in school, the book provides a sense of hope for children, telling them that everyone, even a "bad" student, can succeed in life. The book also closely describes Einstein's intellectual leaps in the field of physics. It discussed almost all aspects of Einstein's laws of physics undescribed, and goes over many of his thought experiments, using them as excellent examples of the scientific laws he developed. The appendices at the end of the book, as well as their accompanying diagrams, clarify the concepts of physics for readers outside the physics field. Furthermore, the book describes the fact that Einstein made many contributions in many different areas of physics. It helps to hone the image of Einstein's genius. Also, it serves to promote Einstein's image among fans of all the areas of physics he worked on. Fans of physics will enjoy the descriptions of the theory of relativity, E = mc2, and quantum physics. Astronomy fans will like the description of Einstein's discovery that space is curved. And, those who enjoy nuclear chemistry will find the story of the creation of the atom bomb fascinating. The book shows readers that Einstein was truly a compassionate and brave person by describing his yearning for peace. During World War I, while the rest of Europe's scientists worked on new weapons, Einstein was sickened, and spoke out against the fighting at a time when all of Germany supported the war. However, he was also wise enough to realize that the Nazis needed to be stopped, and that fighting was necessary at that time. It must have taken Einstein a great deal of strength to change his peaceful views. He was a righteous citizen of the world, helping Jewish scientists who had fled Germany as refugees. Finally, although the atom bomb was a stunning scientific achievement, Einstein felt bad about its use on Japan, and the deaths of thousands of innocent people. There is only one slightly negative aspect of this book. Young children may find the descriptions of advanced physics to be difficult to understand. However, that may reflect the complexity of the concepts that Einstein studied, and may not be a fault on the book's part. The book remedied this problem through its detailed descriptions, and its diagrams. Undoubtedly, this book was very well written. It describes all aspects of Albert Einstein's life. It tells of Einstein's genius, but makes the concepts of physics relatively easier to