85 BAUMAN RARE BOOKS Typed Letter Signed By Albert Einstein With Important Scientific Content, Making Historic Connections Between Kepler’s Work And His Own 92EINSTEIN, Albert. Typed letter signed. Princeton, November 3, 1942. One sheet, measuring 8-1/2 by 11 inches, typing on recto only. $38,000 An exceptional typed letter signed by Einstein on precursors like Johannes Kepler’s work to his Special and General Theories of Relativity, The letter, on letterhead from the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, reads in part: “Since the times of Kepler one has found approximation formulae for the mean distances of the planets from the sun. It is sure that there are not precise laws behind those approximate relations. It may be possible to understand the irregularities of this kind with the methods of statistical mechanics. But hitherto nobody seems to have been able to do so. In any case there is no analogy between such regularities and the quantum laws in molecular physics. Very truly yours, [signed] A. Einstein.” Einstein’s letter reflects on some of the most important scientific revelations in the history of physics and astronomy. Early in the 17th century, Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) discovered that planets orbit the sun in ellipses rather than perfect circles. This great discovery paved the way for Isaac Newton’s laws of gravity, and for Albert Einstein’s general and special theories of relativity, to explain why these ellipses were not perfect, either. Expected fold lines. An incredible letter, scarce in its important content.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDg3OTM=