- Albert Einstein Memorial
The Albert Einstein Memorial is a monumental
bronze statue depictingAlbert Einstein seated with manuscript papers in hand. It is located in centralWashington, D.C. ,United States , in a grove of trees at the southwest corner of the grounds of the National Academy of Sciences onConstitution Avenue , near to theVietnam Veterans Memorial .tatue
The statue was sculpted by
Robert Berks in 19 sections and then welded together.(Bronzed in art foundery owned by Jeff Spring). It was installed in 1979.It weighs 7,000 pounds (3.2
metric ton s) and would stand 21 feet (6.4 m) high. The statue sits on a bench that is whitegranite fromMount Airy ,North Carolina .Platform
The statue and bench are at one side of a circular
dais , 28 feet (8.5 m) in diameter, made from emerald-pearl granite fromLarvik ,Norway . Embedded in the dais are more than 2,700 metal studs representing the location of astronomical objects (Sun ,Moon ,planet s, 4asteroid s, 5 galaxies, 10quasar s, and manystar s) at noon onApril 22 ,1979 , when the memorial was dedicated. The studs are different sizes to denote theapparent magnitude of the relevant object, and different studs denotebinary star s, spectroscopic binaries,pulsar s,globular cluster s,open cluster s, andquasar s. To a visitor standing at the epicenter of the dais, Einstein appears to be making direct eye contact, and any spoken words are notably amplified.Description
Engraved as though written on the papers held in the statue's left hand are three equations, summarising three of Einstein's important scientific advances:
* eV=h u-A, (the
photoelectric effect )
* R_{mu u} - {1 over 2} g_{mu u}R = kappa T_{mu u} (the theory ofgeneral relativity )
* E=mc^{2}, (the equivalence of energy and matter)Three quotes from Einstein are printed on nearby informational panels, and inscribed on the back of the granite bench:
* "As long as I have any choice in the matter, I shall live only in a country where civil liberty, tolerance, and equality of all citizens before the law prevail."
* "Joy and amazement of the beauty and grandeur of this world of which man can just form a faint notion …"
* "The right to search for truth implies also a duty; one must not conceal any part of what one has recognized to be true."The and subsequently used in the opening title sequence of "
Sesame Street " during the show's 20th season.References
*"The Einstein Memorial at the National Academies — A Visitor's Guide"
* [http://www.nasonline.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ABOUT_building_einstein_memorial National Academy of Sciences: The NAS Building: The Albert Einstein Memorial]External links
* [http://www.dcmemorials.com/index_indiv0001310.htm DC Memorials]
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