Einstein's Mistakes: The Human Failings of Genius by Hans C. Ohanian

Einstein's Mistakes: The Human Failings of Genius
by Hans C. Ohanian

Explores the lesser-known aspect of Albert Einstein's life. One’s not very much-so discussed - his errors and missteps. Contrary to the common perception of Einstein as an infallible genius, this book sheds light on the human side of the iconic physicist.

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.”
- Albert Einstein

Ohanian explores various miscalculations, oversights, and misconceptions made by Einstein throughout his career, highlighting that even the greatest minds are prone to mistakes.

“The important thing is to not stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.”
- Albert Einstein

Of the approximately 180 original scientific papers that Einstein published in his lifetime, about 40 are infested with mistakes. For instance, Einstein’s first mathematical proof of the famous formula E =mc2 was incomplete and only approximately valid; he struggled with this problem for many years, but he never found a complete proof (better mathematicians did).

“I believe in one thing—that only a life lived for others is a life worth living.”
- Albert Einstein

Einstein was often lured by irrational and mystical inspirations, but his extraordinary intuition about physics permitted him to discover profound truths despite and sometimes because of the mistakes he made along the way. He was a sleepwalker: his intuition told him where he needed to go, and he somehow managed to get there without quite knowing how.
As this book persuasively argues, the defining hallmark of Einstein s genius was not any special mathematical ability but an uncanny talent to use his mistakes as steppingstones to formulate his revolutionary theories. 

The premise of the book serves as a reminder that genius is not immune to error, emphasizing the importance of humility, curiosity, and a willingness to learn from one's mistakes in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding.