爱因斯坦及其所生活的世界

This is a history of science course focusing on some leading physicists and physics revolution at the turn of the 20th century. It discusses what drew scientists to their subjects, how scientific ideas were produced in the first place, how they were received (among both their peers and laypeople), and what consequences the discoveries resulted in. It introduces to students not only Albert Einstein’s scientific achievements and their impacts, but also his views on social, political, and religious issues in the world he lived. In fact, students will study Einstein’s own writings on world peace and scientists’ social responsibilities.This course intends to bridge two different cultures—science and humanities. Non-science-major students will learn to appreciate some fundamental scientific concepts that Einstein and other physicists discovered, while science-major students will understand better the historical contexts of these great physicists’ scientific achievements as well as the contributions of their predecessors and contemporaries.