Albert Einstein March 14, 1879April 18, 1955

A LBERT E INSTEIN IS KNOWN FOR :  Proposing the theory of relativity, a physical theory of gravity, space, and time.  Explaining the photoelectric effect and Brownian motion.

CAREER 1905 Published papers on special relativity, Brownian motion, and the photoelectric effect Taught physics at the University of Zürich Taught physics at the German-speaking university in Prague Returned to teach at the University of Zürich.

1914 Became a professor at the University of Berlin and director of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Physics Published a paper on general relativity, extending his earlier theory of special relativity 1919 A solar eclipse confirmed Einstein's prediction that starlight bends in the vicinity of a massive body such as the sun.

1921 Won the Nobel Prize in physics for his work on the photoelectric effect 1933 Began teaching at Princeton University 1939 Pointed out, in a letter to President Roosevelt, the possibility that an extremely powerful bomb might be constructed using atomic chain reactions in uranium, and suggested that the Germans might be working on such a bomb

D ID Y OU K NOW ? Einstein could not find a job in physics upon graduating from college, and became a technical assistant in the Swiss Patent Office. He worked on theoretical physics in his spare time. Einstein did not receive a Nobel Prize for his theory of relativity. Einstein immediately left Germany for the United States following Hitler's rise to power.

Einstein spent much of his later career searching for a unified field theory, but was unsuccessful. Einstein declined the presidency of the state of Israel when it was offered to him in 1952 by state leaders. The element einsteinium, discovered in 1952, was named in honor of Albert Einstein.