Einstein. His Life and Universe.

Walter Isaacson's biography (Simon and Shuster, 2007) of Albert Einstein has been frequently reviewed and praised. What seems especially valuable is Isaacson's analysis of the roots of Einstein's creativity. Like most great scientists, he had great curiosity. He also cherished an almost religious belief in the underlying primacy of natural law. As he drew his last breath he was still struggling to pull back the curtain even further on the hidden principles that embody a predictable universe.

Embracing the uncertainty of quantum behavior, many of Einstein's contemporaries were bemused by what they felt was his stubborn adherence to an old-fashioned 19th century positivism. Einstein himself probably relished the role of outsider.

This tendency to rub against the grain becomes understandable when we consider Einstein's core values: freedom, independence, flexibility, simplicity and solitude. Whether these values were the cause or the effect of his creativity is difficult to say, but there is little doubt after reading this book that without these values, Einstein would not have been the man he was.

Like his countryman, Thomas Mann, Albert Einstein found refuge in the United States. Each also contributed a son to the faculty at UC Berkeley. Someone once said Thomas Mann was the last great 19th century German author, one might say the something similar of Einstein.