Einstein from `B' to `Z' (Q5959422)

This welcome addition to the Einstein Studies book series presents a collection of selected articles and talks on Albert Einstein prepared over the past 25 years by John Stachel, the founding editor of the Collected Works of Albert Einstein. The material, some of it previously unpublished, is grouped into eight Sections with the following headings: I: The Human Side. II: Editing the Einstein Papers. III: Surveys of Einstein's Work. IV: Special Relativity. V: General Relativity. VI: Quantum Theory. VII: Einstein and Others. VIII: Book Reviews. The emphasis of the present volume lies on the development of Einstein's scientific ideas especially in his formative years. The articles selected survey the subject from different angels without going into too much technical detail, which makes them accessible to a wide audience of readers. Other themes given attention in this volume are Einstein's relations to colleagues, his personal life including his views on political and philosophical topics (including his highly interesting views on the nature of the creative process), and the editing of Einstein's paper for the Collected Works. At the end, the reader will find reviews of the recent Einstein biographies by Abraham Pais and Albert Fölsing, to which the reader of this volume is likely to turn for further information. The present volume can be recommended as a brief introduction into the life and work of Einstein. Thanks to sensibly provided annotations and references, it may also serve well as a departure point for deeper studies.