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GP: Fachverband Geschichte der Physik

GP 9: Freie Sektion II

GP 9.3: Vortrag

Mittwoch, 18. März 2015, 16:00–16:30, HL 001

Einstein's Unrecognized Masterstroke — •Alexander Unzicker — Pestalozzi-Gymnasium München

The aniversary of the general theory of relativity in 2015 reminds us that Einstein struggled with developing the theory for an entire decade. Questioning the common narrative that the breakthrough occurred late in 1915, it is argued that Einsteins idea of a variable speed of light, first mentioned in papers in 1907 and 1911, already contained the essential elements of what is considered the best tested theory of physics since then.

The talk focusses on the historical accidents that hindered a broader interest in Einsteins early theory of a variable speed of light: The circumstances of his collaboration with Grossmann and his competition with Hilbert; the outbreak of world war II that intercepted the communication between Einstein and Dirac, whose Large Number hypothesis shows a close relation to Einstein's idea. In first place however, it is almost tragic that Edwin Hubble's discovery of the true size of the universe around 1930 came almost 20 years too late. It is argued that, had Einstein known about the data of the cosmos in 1911, he would have given much more credit to his own idea that had in fact anticipated Hubbles discovery. Discussions about the historical details of the sequence of event are most welcome.