Follow-up paper on mass–energy equivalence – In this paper [Einstein, 1907a], Einstein expanded on his famous 1905 proposal that mass and energy are equivalent. While his earlier paper had declared that mass (or inertia, as he called it) possesses energy, this 1907 work went a step further by postulating that energy itself possesses inertia—that is, the more energy a body contains, the more it resists acceleration. This idea later became foundational to the general theory of relativity, in which both mass and energy cause the curvature of space-time.

Newton’s Miracle Year – As described by Nate in his presentation, Isaac Newton had a “Miracle Year” of his own. In 1666, when Cambridge University closed due to a plague outbreak, Newton returned to his native village. During that period of isolation, he laid the groundwork for several of his major discoveries, including calculus, the laws of motion and gravity, and the theory of optics—all within a remarkably short span of time. A good summary of Newton’s Miracle Year can be found in [Petroski, 2022].

Zwang – As recounted by C. P. Snow in Variety of Men [Snow, 1967], Einstein despised the unquestioned force of authority, which he called by the German word Zwang, meaning “coercion.” He carried this independent spirit throughout his life, resisting authoritarianism in education, politics, science, and society. Snow memorably described Einstein as “unbudgeable”—a man who would not yield when it came to matters of principle.

Scientific reasoning and cosmic wonder – Einstein’s approach to science reflected a deep fusion of rigorous reasoning and a profound sense of wonder about the universe. His preference for deductive theory-building over inductive observation [Einstein, 1919] mirrored his broader philosophical outlook: the belief that uncovering nature’s hidden laws was not merely an intellectual pursuit, but a form of reverence for the underlying harmony of existence. As described in [Isaacson-1, Ch. 17], this “cosmic religious feeling” was central to Einstein’s view of both science and life.

Experimental confirmation of Einstein’s theories – Each of Einstein’s 1905 papers was later confirmed experimentally. Robert A. Millikan verified the photoelectric effect in 1914 [Millikan, 1914], earning him the 1923 Nobel Prize. Einstein’s estimate of Avogadro’s number (from his doctoral thesis on atomic structure) was soon validated by a French student [Isaacson-1]. His Brownian motion predictions were confirmed within months, as he noted in a later paper [Einstein, 1906].