A Stubbornly Persistant Illusion: The Essential Scientific Writings of Albert Einstein [Hardcover]

"(n)ovice readers will be surprised at how readable much of it is, and everyone will feel the thrill of reading Einstein's own words. As you manoeuvre through his symbolic world of clocks, rods, trains and light beams, you come to understand not only his physics, but also how he thought about physics. If nothing else, read Autobiographical Notes, a powerful combination of physics, philosophy and memory, in which both the sage and the rebel in Einstein shine through." --New Scientist

"By bringing many of (Einstein's writings) together in a single volume, combined with a few words of introduction by Stephen Hawking (who earns a cover mention in a typeface three times the size of Einstein's), Running Press has done us a signal service It is not a relaxing read, I grant you, but one in which effort brings proportionate reward." --The Times

"(Stephen Hawking is)the ideal man to edit the essential scientific works of Albert Einstein ... Hawking s introductions to each section are insightful and provide historical context. --BBC Focus Magazine

From the work that "made" modern scientific thought and his important discoveries, to his later musings on his landmark findings and his philosophical essays on Zionism and other important issues of the 20th Century, "Einstein" is the most extensive anthology of the scientist, and the only one to provide the wide breadth of his work. The works included in the anthology include: "The Principle of Relativity" (1920); "Space-Time" (1929); "About Zionism" (1930); "Cosmic Religion" (1931); "The World As I See It" (1934); "The Evolution of Physics" (1938); "The Meaning of Relativity" (1945); and, "Out of My Later Years" (1950) At the beginning of each chapter, Stephen Hawking gives a short summary of the work, highlighting its significance, followed by an unabridged reproduction of Einstein's original essay.

Stephen Hawking is, like Sir Isaac Newton before him, a Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge. He is the author of numerous books, including the phenomenally successful A Brief History of Time which has sold over 10 million copies in 40 different languages.