Speaker 1: Section seven of the Einstein Theory of Relativity by Hendrik A. Lawnz.
Speaker 1: This LibriVox recording is in the public domain recording by
Speaker 1: AVAI in February twenty twenty. Difficulty exaggerated during a discussion
Speaker 1: of the results obtained at a joint meeting of the
Speaker 1: Royal Society and the Royal Astronomical Society held especially for
Speaker 1: that purpose recently in London. It was the general opinion
Speaker 1: that Einstein's prediction might be regarded as justified, and warm
Speaker 1: tributes to his genius were made on all sides. Nevertheless,
Speaker 1: I cannot refrain, while I am mentioning it, from expressing
Speaker 1: my surprise that, according to the report in the Times,
Speaker 1: there should be so much complaint about the difficulty of
Speaker 1: understanding the new theory. It is evident that Einstein's little
Speaker 1: book about the Special and the General theory of Relativity
Speaker 1: in plain terms did not find its way into England
Speaker 1: during war time. Any One reading it will, in my opinion,
Speaker 1: come to the conclusion that the basic ideas of the
Speaker 1: theory are really clear and simple. It is only to
Speaker 1: be regretted that it was impossible to avoid clothing them
Speaker 1: in pretty involved mathematical terms. But we must not worry
Speaker 1: about that. I allow myself to add that as we
Speaker 1: follow Einstein, we may retain much of what has been
Speaker 1: formerly gained. The Newtonian theory remains in its full value
Speaker 1: as the first great step, without which one cannot imagine
Speaker 1: the development of astronomy, and without which the second step
Speaker 1: that has now been made would hardly have been possible.
Speaker 1: It remains, moreover, as the first and in most cases
Speaker 1: sufficient approximation. It is true that according to Einstein's theory,
Speaker 1: because it leaves us entirely free as to the way
Speaker 1: in which we wish to represent the phenomena, we can
Speaker 1: imagine an idea of the Solar system in which the
Speaker 1: planets follow paths of peculiar form, and the rays of
Speaker 1: light shine along sharply bent lines. Think of a twisted
Speaker 1: and distorted planetarium. But in every case where we apply
Speaker 1: it to concrete questions, we shall so arrange it that
Speaker 1: the planets describe almost exact ellipses, and the rays of
Speaker 1: light almost straight lines. It is not necessary to give
Speaker 1: up entirely even the ether. Many natural philosophers find satisfaction
Speaker 1: in the idea of a material intermediate substance in which
Speaker 1: the vibrations of light take place, and they will very
Speaker 1: probably be all the more inclined to imagine such a
Speaker 1: medium when they learn that, according to the Einstein theory,
Speaker 1: gravitation itself does not spread instantaneously, but with a velocity that,
Speaker 1: at the first estimate may be compared with that of light,
Speaker 1: especially in former years where such interpretations, current and repeated
Speaker 1: attempts were made by speculations about the nature of the
Speaker 1: ether and about the mutations and movements that might take
Speaker 1: place in it, to arrive at a clear presentation of
Speaker 1: electromagnetic phenomena and also of the functioning of gravitation. In
Speaker 1: my opinion, it is not impossible that in the future
Speaker 1: this road, indeed abandoned at present, will once more be
Speaker 1: followed with good results, if only because it can lead
Speaker 1: to the thinking out of new experimental tests. Einstein's theory
Speaker 1: need not keep us from so doing. Only the ideas
Speaker 1: about the ether must accord with it. Nevertheless, even without
Speaker 1: the color and clearness that the ether theories and the
Speaker 1: other models may be able to give, and even we
Speaker 1: can feel it this way just because of the soberness
Speaker 1: induced by their absence Einstein's work, we may now positively
Speaker 1: expect will remain a monument of science. His theory entirely
Speaker 1: fulfills the first and principal demand that we may make,
Speaker 1: that of deducing the course of phenomena from certain principles
Speaker 1: exactly and to the smallest details. It was certainly fortunate
Speaker 1: that he himself put the ether in the background. If
Speaker 1: he had not done so, he probably would never have
Speaker 1: come upon the idea that has been the foundation of
Speaker 1: all his examinations. Thanks to his indefatigable exertions and perseverance,
Speaker 1: for he had great difficulties to overcome in his attempts,
Speaker 1: Einstein has attained the results which I have tried to
Speaker 1: sketch while still young. He is now forty five years old.
Speaker 1: He completed his first investigations in Switzerland, where he first
Speaker 1: was engaged in the patent bureau at bern and later
Speaker 1: as a professor at the Polytechnic in Zurich. After having
Speaker 1: been a professor for a short time at the University
Speaker 1: of Prague, he settled in Berlin, where the Kaiser Wilhelm
Speaker 1: Institute afforded him the opportunity to devote himself exclusively to
Speaker 1: his scientific work. He repeatedly visited our country and made
Speaker 1: his Netherland colleagues, among whom he counts many good friends,
Speaker 1: partners in his studies and his results. He attended the
Speaker 1: last meeting of the Department of Natural Philosophy of the
Speaker 1: Royal Academy of Sciences, and the members then had the
Speaker 1: privilege of hearing him explain in his own fascinating, clear
Speaker 1: and simple way, his interpretations of the fundamental questions to
Speaker 1: which his theory gives rise. End of section seven, end
Speaker 1: of the Einstein Theory of Relativity. A concise statement by
Speaker 1: Hendrik A. Lauranz. Thanks for listening.