In this very readable biography of one of the most famous scientists of all time, Bodanis tells “the story of a fallible genius but also the story of his mistakes”. Although he breezes through Einstein’s whole life, including his annus mirabilis, 1905, when aged 26 he wrote five papers that transformed physics, the main focus is on the later years. Einstein was furious with himself for changing his 1915 theory of general relativity to bring it in line with current but misleading astronomical observations, a mistake he had to rectify in 1931. It was, he said, “the greatest blunder of my life”. Bodanis argues that he increasingly distrusted new experimental data. His insistence “that all underlying reality was clear, exact, understandable” meant that he refused to accept growing evidence of the fundamental unknowability of the universe as revealed by quantum mechanics. “Unreasonable stubbornness” characterised Einstein’s final two decades, a tragic waste of a great intellect. This is a perceptive and lucid account of a brilliant but flawed physicist.
• Einstein’s Greatest Mistake: The Life of a Flawed Genius is published by Abacus. To order a copy for £9.34 (RRP £10.99) go to bookshop.theguardian.com or call 0330 333 6846. Free UK p&p over £10, online orders only. Phone orders min p&p of £1.99.
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