Gary S. Berger

I'm a physician, not a physicist or historian. But I've always been fascinated by Albert Einstein and how he could perceive what nobody had before about physical reality. I've collected Einstein's original documents and signed photographs for the past three decades. This 10” x 13” book consists of selections from my collection. Michael DiRuggiero, Manhattan Rare Book Company owner, curated the collection. We wrote this book together to share what these historical materials reveal about Einstein─the man and his mind. Einstein: The Man and His Mind (Damiani Editore, November 2022) is a visual biography intended for the general reader as well as the scientist and historian. It interweaves biography, history, and art in a way that allows the reader to understand Einstein, a complex personality if there ever was one, in an engaging way. One hundred fifty full-page images cover all the decades of Einstein’s creative life. Most of the photos have not been seen before by the public. These include signed portrait photographs and candid pictures of Einstein at home, with family and colleagues, and at work in his study. Also included are Einstein’s private notes, equations, and letters written in his hand. Additionally, there are images of the early twentieth-century German journals in which he changed the world’s understanding of the universe. The publisher has meticulously printed ultra-high-resolution images on photographic-quality paper that has the feel of fine linen. Readers see the photos and documents in quality that approximates the originals. Comments accompanying each image tell stories about Einstein’s life and work without overwhelming technical explanations. The Foreword to the book is by Hanoch Gutfreund, director of the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and author of six books about Einstein. This is the Preface I wrote for the book: PREFACE Albert Einstein’s name was familiar to me in childhood, as it was to all my friends. It was synonymous with genius. We knew Einstein made important discoveries about the universe that had something to do with space and time. When I first learned about special relativity in college, I was bewildered. Having other interests, I put the subject out of my mind. But it must have lingered because years later, it seemed important to revisit these strange concepts of time slowing down and lengths contracting. I read and reread Einstein’s paper On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies, which presented the special theory of relativity. I read discussions about that famous paper and articles and books by and about Einstein and watched all the videos about him that I could find. The more I learned, the more fascinated I became with how Einstein could recognize what no one else had before about the nature of the universe. With insights from simple thought experiments, Einstein discovered that space and time are malleable and are shaped by matter. His general theory of relativity explained the force of gravity. It predicted the bending of light waves, black holes, gravitational waves, and the Big Bang. Einstein ushered in the era of quantum physics, having revealed light’s dual wave/particle nature and the relationship between mass and energy. With thought and imagination, he transformed our understanding of the cosmos. Eventually, I began collecting photographs and documents of the great scientist. Not being a physicist, I could appreciate his pictures, if not the complex mathematics in his writings. The photos gave me the feeling of a personal connection to Albert Einstein—the real, living man—almost as if I knew him. In retrospect, there was an indirect connection. During weekends in my late teens, I frequented the home of a physicist, Max Herzberger, who had been Einstein’s friend. On his living room wall was a beautiful portrait photograph of Einstein. Perhaps that image was the seed that led decades later to this collection. As you explore these pages, I hope you enjoy the same feeling they have given me of affinity to one of the most extraordinary individuals who ever lived. —GARY S. BERGER, MD