Albert Einstein

He is the man on my avatar - and one of my great inspirations in life.

Not as a scientist, I will never be able to even understand some of what he has written in that field. I have basic knowledge in physics, but that is not why I admire his thinking so much.

He was born in a jewish family - and grew up to be a man during the time before second world war. He was more or less forced to flee the Germany that was his country, and sought refuge in US.

So, he knew oppression, and he experienced the war, but even before that he wrote:

"This topic brings me to that worst outcrop of herd life, the military system, which I abhor... This plague-spot of civilization ought to be abolished with all possible speed. Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism -- how passionately I hate them!"

Albert Einstein 1931

He was also - after the war - supporting the thought of a World Government.

He was a humanist, pacifist and believer in democracy.

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Some links to sites with information on Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein Archives (The Jewish National & University Library)
http://www.albert-einstein.org/

Einsteins Papers Project (Caltech)
http://www.einstein.caltech.edu/

Einstein Archives Online
http://www.alberteinstein.info/

Collected Papers of Albert Einstein (Princeton)
http://pup.princeton.edu/catalogs/series/cpe.html

Einstein Revealed (PBS / Nova)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/einstein/

Einstein - Image and Impact (American Institute of Physics)
http://www.aip.org/history/einstein/

Albert Einstein Library
http://www.geocities.com/einstein_library/index.htm

Albert Einstein Online (Links, many broken)
http://www.westegg.com/einstein/

Quotes
http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Quotations/Einstein.html

Images
http://www.th.physik.uni-frankfurt.de/~jr/physpiceinstein.html