万物简史英文版_比尔·布莱森- 第32节

they　are　two　forms　of　the　same　thing：　energy　is　liberated　matter；　matter　is　energy　waiting　tohappen。　since　c2（the　speed　of　light　times　itself）　is　a　truly　enormous　number；　what　theequation　is　saying　is　that　there　is　a　huge　amount鈥攁　really　huge　amount鈥攐f　energy　bound　upin　every　material　thing。

4you　may　not　feel　outstandingly　robust；　but　if　you　are　an　average…sized　adult　you　willcontain　within　your　modest　frame　no　less　than　7　x　1018joules　of　potential　energy鈥攅nough　toexplode　with　the　force　of　thirty　very　large　hydrogen　bombs；　assuming　you　knew　how　toliberate　it　and　really　wished　to　make　a　point。　everything　has　this　kind　of　energy　trappedwithin　it。　we鈥檙e　just　not　very　good　at　getting　it　out。　even　a　uranium　bomb鈥攖he　mostenergetic　thing　we　have　produced　yet鈥攔eleases　less　than　1　percent　of　the　energy　it　couldrelease　if　only　we　were　more　cunning。

among　much　else；　einstein鈥檚　theory　explained　how　radiation　worked：　how　a　lump　ofuranium　could　throw　out　constant　streams　of　high…level　energy　without　melting　away　like　anice　cube。　（it　could　do　it　by　converting　mass　to　energy　extremely　efficiently　脿　lae　=mc2。）　itexplained　how　stars　could　burn　for　billions　of　years　without　racing　through　their　fuel。　（ditto。）at　a　stroke；　in　a　simple　formula；　einstein　endowed　geologists　and　astronomers　with　theluxury　of　billions　of　years。　above　all；　the　special　theory　showed　that　the　speed　of　light　wasconstant　and　supreme。　nothing　could　overtake　it。　it　brought　light　（no　pun　intended；　exactly）　tothe　very　heart　of　our　understanding　of　the　nature　of　the　universe。　not　incidentally；　it　alsosolved　the　problem　of　the　luminiferous　ether　by　making　it　clear　that　it　didn鈥檛　exist。　einsteingave　us　a　universe　that　didn鈥檛　need　it。

physicists　as　a　rule　are　not　overattentive　to　the　pronouncements　of　swiss　patent　officeclerks；　and　so；　despite　the　abundance　of　useful　tidings；　einstein鈥檚　papers　attracted　little　notice。

having　just　solved　several　of　the　deepest　mysteries　of　the　universe；　einstein　applied　for　a　jobas　a　university　lecturer　and　was　rejected；　and　then　as　a　high　school　teacher　and　was　rejectedthere　as　well。　so　he　went　back　to　his　job　as　an　examiner　third　class；　but　of　course　he　keptthinking。　he　hadn鈥檛　even　e　close　to　finishing　yet。

when　the　poet　paul　val茅ry　once　asked　einstein　if　he　kept　a　notebook　to　record　his　ideas；einstein　looked　at　him　with　mild　but　genuine　surprise。　鈥渙h；　that鈥檚　not　necessary；鈥潯�he　replied。

鈥渋t鈥檚　so　seldom　i　have　one。鈥潯�i　need　hardly　point　out　that　when　he　did　get　one　it　tended　to　begood。　einstein鈥檚　next　idea　was　one　of　the　greatest　that　anyone　has　ever　had鈥攊ndeed；　the　verygreatest；　according　to　boorse；　motz；　and　weaver　in　their　thoughtful　history　of　atomic　science。

4how　c　came　to　be　the　symbol　for　the　speed　of　light　is　something　of　a　mystery；　but　david　bodanis　suggests　itprobably　came　from　the　latin　celeritas；　meaning　swiftness。　the　relevant　volume　of　the　oxford　englishdictionary；　piled　a　decade　before　einsteins　theory；　recognizes　c　as　a　symbol　for　many　things；　from　carbonto　cricket；　but　makes　no　mention　of　it　as　a　symbol　for　light　or　swiftness。

鈥渁s　the　creation　of　a　single　mind；鈥潯�they　write；　鈥渋t　is　undoubtedly　the　highest　intellectualachievement　of　humanity；鈥潯�which　is　of　course　as　good　as　a　pliment　can　get。

in　1907；　or　so　it　has　sometimes　been　written；　albert　einstein　saw　a　workman　fall　off　a　roofand　began　to　think　about　gravity。　alas；　like　many　good　stories　this　one　appears　to　beapocryphal。　according　to　einstein　himself；　he　was　simply　sitting　in　a　chair　when　the　problemof　gravity　occurred　to　him。

actually；　what　occurred　to　einstein　was　something　more　like　the　beginning　of　a　solution　tothe　problem　of　gravity；　since　it　had　been　evident　to　him　from　the　outset　that　one　thing　missingfrom　the　special　theory　was　gravity。　what　was　鈥渟pecial鈥潯�about　the　special　theory　was　that　itdealt　with　things　moving　in　an　essentially　unimpeded　state。　but　what　happened　when　a　thingin　motion鈥攍ight；　above　all鈥攅ncountered　an　obstacle　such　as　gravity？　it　was　a　question　thatwould　occupy　his　thoughts　for　most　of　the　next　decade　and　lead　to　the　publication　in　early1917　of　a　paper　entitled　鈥渃osmological　considerations　on　the　general　theory　of　relativity。鈥�

the　special　theory　of　relativity　of　1905　was　a　profound　and　important　piece　of　work；　ofcourse；　but　as　c。　p。　snow　once　observed；　if　einstein　hadn鈥檛　thought　of　it　when　he　did　someoneelse　would　have；　probably　within　five　years；　it　was　an　idea　waiting　to　happen。　but　the　generaltheory　was　something　else　altogether。　鈥渨ithout　it；鈥潯�wrote　snow　in　1979；　鈥渋t　is　likely　that　weshould　still　be　waiting　for　the　theory　today。鈥�

with　his　pipe；　genially　self…effacing　manner；　and　electrified　hair；　einstein　was　too　splendida　figure　to　remain　permanently　obscure；　and　in　1919；　the　war　over；　the　world　suddenlydiscovered　him。　almost　at　once　his　theories　of　relativity　developed　a　reputation　for　beingimpossible　for　an　ordinary　person　to　grasp。　matters　were　not　helped；　as　david　bodanis　pointsout　in　his　superb　book　e=mc2；　when　the　new　york　times　decided　to　do　a　story；　and鈥攆orreasons　that　can　never　fail　to　excite　wonder鈥攕ent　the　paper鈥檚　golfing　correspondent；　onehenry　crouch；　to　conduct　the　interview。

crouch　was　hopelessly　out　of　his　depth；　and　got　nearly　everything　wrong。　among　the　morelasting　errors　in　his　report　was　the　assertion　that　einstein　had　found　a　publisher　daring　enoughto　publish　a　book　that　only　twelve　men　鈥渋n　all　the　world　could　prehend。鈥潯�there　was　nosuch　book；　no　such　publisher；　no　such　circle　of　learned　men；　but　the　notion　stuck　anyway。

soon　the　number　of　people　who　could　grasp　relativity　had　been　reduced　even　further　in　thepopular　imagination鈥攁nd　the　scientific　establishment；　it　must　be　said；　did　little　to　disturb　themyth。

when　a　journalist　asked　the　british　astronomer　sir　arthur　eddington　if　it　was　true　that　hewas　one　of　only　three　people　in　the　world　who　could　understand　einstein鈥檚　relativity　theories；eddington　considered　deeply　for　a　moment　and　replied：　鈥渋　am　trying　to　think　who　the　thirdperson　is。鈥潯�in　fact；　the　problem　with　relativity　wasn鈥檛　that　it　involved　a　lot　of　differentialequations；　lorentz　transformations；　and　other　plicated　mathematics　（though　it　did鈥攅veneinstein　needed　help　with　some　of　it）；　but　that　it　was　just　so　thoroughly　nonintuitive。

in　essence　what　relativity　says　is　that　space　and　time　are　not　absolute；　but　relative　to　boththe　observer　and　to　the　thing　being　observed；　and　the　faster　one　moves　the　more　pronouncedthese　effects　bee。　we　can　never　accelerate　ourselves　to　the　speed　of　light；　and　the　harderwe　try　（and　faster　we　go）　the　more　distorted　we　will　bee；　relative　to　an　outside　observer。

almost　at　once　popularizers　of　science　tried　to　e　up　with　ways　to　make　these　conceptsaccessible　to　a　general　audience。　one　of　the　more　successful　attempts鈥攎ercially　atleast鈥攚as　the　abc　of　relativity　by　the　mathematician　and　philosopher　bertrand　russell。　init；　russell　employed　an　image　that　has　been　used　many　times　since。　he　asked　the　reader　toenvision　a　train　one　hundred　yards　long　moving　at　60　percent　of　the　speed　of　light。　tosomeone　standing　on　a　platform　watching　it　pass；　the　train　would　appear　to　be　only　eightyyards　long　and　everything　on　it　would　be　similarly　pressed。　if　we　could　hear　thepassengers　on　the　train　speak；　their　voices　would　sound　slurred　and　sluggish；　like　a　recordplayed　at　too　slow　a　speed；　and　their　movements　would　appear　similarly　ponderous。　even　theclocks　on　the　train　would　seem　to　be　running　at　only　four…fifths　of　their　normal　speed。

however鈥攁nd　here鈥檚　the　thing鈥攑eople　on　the　train　would　have　no　sense　of　thesedistortions。　to　them；　everything　on　the　train　would　seem　quite　normal。　it　would　be　we　on　theplatform　who　looked　weirdly　pressed　and　slowed　down。　it　is　all　to　do；　you　see；　with　yourposition　relative　to　the　moving　object。

this　effect　actually　happens　every　time　you　move。　fly　across　the　united　states；　and　youwill　step　from　the　plane　a　quinzillionth　of　a　second；　or　something；　younger　than　those　you　leftbehind。　even　in　walking　across　the　room　you　will　very　slightly　alter　your　own　experience　oftime　and　space。　it　has　been　calculated　that　a　baseball　thrown　at　a　hundre