Shanghai opens exhibit on life, work of Einstein

An exhibition on the life of Albert Einstein has opened in Shanghai, displaying many original manuscripts of the late theoretical physicist to Chinese people for the first time.

Running from Aug 2 to Oct 22 at the Shanghai Expo Museum, the exhibition features 133 items, such as manuscripts, papers and letters from the Albert Einstein Archives Library of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.

Hanoch Gutfreund, director of the library and former president of the university, said the items were selected from more than 83,000 that are part of a comprehensive collection at the university that best present different aspects of Einstein's life.

"We brought some highlights of Einstein's broad activities to this exhibition, more than we have ever exhibited outside Jerusalem," he said.

The original manuscript where Einstein noted the famous Equivalence of Mass and Energy (E=mc2) and his Nobel Prize medal are being showcased at the exhibition, along with his high school diploma, musical notes and last letters with philosopher Bertrand Russell discussing what came to be known as the Russell-Einstein Manifesto, which called on world leaders to seek peaceful resolutions to international conflict against the back-drop of the Cold War.

"The exhibition shares Einstein's scientific achievements as well as his fascinating personality," Gutfreund said. "We want to create a connection between Einstein and the general public-students, teachers, scientists and everyone who has an interest in him."

There is a special section on Einstein's connection with China. It includes his correspondence with Chinese scientists, a book on Laozi and Taoism that he read, and a photo from his visit to Shanghai.

Fang Zaiqing, a researcher at the Institute for the History of Natural Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, said Shanghai is the only Chinese mainland city that Einstein visited.

"To hold the exhibition in Shanghai is very meaningful as the city sheltered many Jewish refugees during World War II, and Einstein is a peace lover with a Jewish background," he said.

"Einstein's contributions to the world are not limited to his scientific theories, but also include his fight against narrow-mindedness and insular mentalities," Fang added. "His openness and inclusive attitude is a good reminder for today's world where closed mindedness continues to surface in our society."

The exhibition also features many interactive sections. In one exhibit, people can ride a bicycle and gradually pedal to simulate accelerating to the speed of light to see how galaxies and stars fly past, leaving blurred, colored lines of dazzling brightness.

In another, visitors can wander into a cube of the universe with a grid under their feet illustrating the gravitational field and observe how their mass distorts the field as they walk, jump and bounce around the space.

Three lectures on Einstein's humanism, scientific and artistic creativity, along with his theory of relativity, are being held in the museum from Tuesday to Thursday.