The Plot Against Einstein
Nazi Germany’s targeting of Albert Einstein and other Jewish scientists is used as a case study in how racism and ideology can corrupt scientific institutions, from branding relativity as “Jewish physics” to driving out top talent that could have altered the course of the war. Commenters revisit common misconceptions about Einstein’s role in the atomic bomb, noting that his main practical contribution was co-signing the Szilard letter rather than originating the Manhattan Project, and clarifying the limits of the iconic E=mc² formula. The exchange broadens into a reflection on whether scientists are actually more rational than others, how “rational” frameworks can coexist with or even justify atrocities, and how similar politicization of knowledge appears in modern contexts.
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Einstein’s role in nuclear weapons
- Commenters emphasize Einstein was not the “father of the atomic bomb”; his famous equation explained mass–energy equivalence but wasn’t itself the breakthrough leading to the bomb.
- One explanation notes the more general relativistic energy–momentum relation and how the simple formula is a special case.
- Debate on whether to use “relativistic mass” vs “rest mass”:
- One side says E=mc² with relativistic mass is valid and intuitive enough.
- Another argues rest mass is what people usually mean and is simpler for non-experts.
- A counterpoint says relativistic mass might actually be more intuitive for gravitation and inertia, and rest mass can confuse people about phenomena like photon momentum.
- On policy impact, some say Einstein’s co-signed letter to the U.S. president “kick-started” the Manhattan Project; others quote historical summaries arguing it only created mild interest, and that British reports and later lobbying were more decisive.
Racism, “Jewish physics,” and science
- Discussion highlights how Nazi ideology dismissed relativity and related work as “Jewish physics,” with some prominent German physicists opposing this, but the movement still gaining traction.
- Several see this as evidence that even top scientists are vulnerable to nationalism, antisemitism, and broader cultural pressures.
- Others argue this is not “remarkable” but typical of how politics and prejudice routinely distort technical fields, drawing modern parallels to research being influenced or blocked by ideological tests.
Rationality, emotion, and atrocity
- Multiple comments stress scientists are not inherently more rational or morally better than others.
- There is debate over whether “rationality” reduces violence or can actually enable it when coupled with bad premises (e.g., Nazi use of eugenics and misapplied Darwinism).
- Some note that extreme internal logical consistency can coexist with horrific external consequences.
Impact of Nazi policies on wartime science
- Commenters suggest expelling and denouncing leading physicists likely weakened Germany’s war effort.
- Related discussion touches on German strengths (rockets, jets) and weaknesses (radar, cryptography decisions), with disagreement on how decisive codebreaking was to the war’s outcome.