ALBERT EINSTEIN WAS BORN IN THE CITY OF ULM GERMANY ON MARCH 14 1879 GROWING UP HE LIKED TO SPEND TIME WITH HIS SISTER MAJA AND BUILD HOUSES OF CARDS THE TWO OF THEM BOTH PLAYED MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS TOO MAJA PLAYED THE PIANO AND ALBERT PLAYED THE VIOLIN ONE DAY WHEN ALBERT WAS ILL HIS FATHER GAVE HIM A GIFT A COMPASS HOW DOES IT WORK THANKS TO EARTH’S MAGNETIC FIELD A MAGNETIC FIELD WOW ALTHOUGH ALBERT’S FAMILY WAS JEWISH HE ATTENDED A CATHOLIC SCHOOL THE TEACHERS THERE WERE VERY STRICT 5
ALBERT HAD AN EARLY TALENT FOR SCIENCE AND HIS UNCLE JAKOB LIKED TO CHALLENGE HIM WITH MATH PROBLEMS ALBERT HOW CAN YOU ALREADY DEMONSTRATE THE PYTHAGOREAN THEOREM SOME NIGHTS MAX TALMUD A FRIEND OF THE FAMILY WOULD VISIT THE EINSTEIN HOUSE HE WOULD ALWAYS BRING BOOKS AS A GIFT EUCLIDEAN GEOMETRY THANKS MAX I’M GLAD YOU LIKE THE BOOKS I LOVE THEM ESPECIALLY BERNSTEIN’S POPULAR BOOKS ON NATURAL SCIENCE ALBERT WENT TO HIGH SCHOOL IN THE GERMAN CITY OF MUNICH LIKE THIS PART ABOUT THE SPEED OF LIGHT THE SCHOOL HAD A SPECIAL FOCUS ON MATH AND SCIENCE 6
ALBERT WHAT’S GOING ON I FEEL SO ALONE BUT WHY MY FAMILY MOVED TO ITALY SO MY FATHER CAN FIND WORK AND HERE IT WON’T BE LONG UNTIL WE HAVE TO SERVE IN THE MILITARY I DON’T WANT ANY PART OF THAT I KNOW BUT WHAT CAN YOU DO HMM I HAVE AN IDEA 1894 A LITTLE LATER IN PAVIA ITALY I’VE DECIDED TO TAKE THE ENTRANCE EXAM FOR THE POLYTECHNIC IN ZÜRICH SWITZERLAND BUT THERE’S MORE RATHER THAN SERVING IN THE MILITARY I’M GOING TO GIVE UP MY GERMAN CITIZENSHIP ALBERT WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE 7
OH NO WHAT IS IT ALBERT MY ENTRANCE EXAM I DID WELL IN THE SCIENCES BUT FRENCH AND LITERATURE WERE A DISASTER I FAILED WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO NOW WELL I STILL HAVE TWO YEARS LEFT BEFORE I HAVE TO ENTER UNIVERSITY I’LL FIND A SCHOOL IN SWITZERLAND AND STUDY HARD FOR THE NEXT EXAM HELLO ALBERT I’M PROFESSOR WINTELER YOU’LL BE LIVING WITH US WHILE YOU STUDY IN AARAU ALFRED WORKED HARD AND KEPT ONE GOAL IN MIND AT ALL TIMES TO STUDY SCIENCE AND BECOME A PROFESSOR I PASSED 8
