19 Amazing Facts About Albert Einstein

In 1999, Albert Einstein was honored as TIME Person of the Century. As the pioneering mind behind special and general relativity, Einstein’s revolutionary theories laid the groundwork for numerous modern technological advances. Einstein famously remarked, “I have no special talents, I am only passionately curious.” Let’s take a look at some surprising facts about the physicist known for his wild hair and the equation E=MC^2.

1. Albert Einstein’s unusual head shape at birth caused quite a stir in the delivery room.

On March 14, 1879, baby Einstein was born with a “swollen, misshapen head and an unusually chubby body,” as described in Denis Brian’s biography, Einstein: A Life. His grandmother, horrified by his plump appearance, later screamed, “Much too fat! Much too fat!” Thankfully, Albert would grow into his body, though he struggled in other areas: It’s said that he didn’t speak until the age of 2.

2. As a child, he had a notorious habit of throwing tantrums.

The young genius often threw objects when upset; once, a frustrated Einstein hurled a chair at his teacher. At the age of 5, he enjoyed bombarding his family and tutors. His sister Maja, who was frequently struck by his outbursts, later humorously remarked, “It takes a sound skull to be the sister of an intellectual.”

According to a biography by Alice Calaprice and Trevor Lipscombe, “When he became angry, his entire face would turn yellow, except for the tip of his nose, which would turn white.”

3. Einstein had no trouble in school.

The notion that Einstein struggled in school is a myth. As a pre-teen, Einstein spent his summers studying mathematics and physics for fun, and by the age of 15, he had already mastered differential and integral calculus. However, this doesn’t mean he was a model student. Einstein disliked rote memorization and refused to study subjects that didn’t captivate his interest. So, when he took the entrance exam for the polytechnic school in Zurich, he failed the sections on language, zoology, and botany.

4. Einstein's IQ remains a mystery.

Einstein's IQ was never officially measured, but that hasn't stopped people from making educated guesses. Many websites suggest that the physicist's IQ was 160, though there's no way to validate this. “One fundamental problem with the estimates I’ve seen is that they tend to confuse intellectual ability with domain-specific achievement,” stated Dean Keith Simonton, professor emeritus of psychology at the University of California, Davis, in an interview with Biography. For all we know, Einstein's skills in fields outside of physics may have been as average as anyone else's.

5. He kept his mind sharp by playing the violin.

Whenever Einstein needed to unwind, he turned to music. He began taking violin lessons at age 5 and, by 17, had already impressed his cantonal school teachers during a music exam with his playing. Around 1914, while living in Berlin, he played sonatas with his friend and fellow theoretical physicist, Max Planck. After becoming famous, Einstein also performed in several benefit concerts alongside celebrated musicians like Fritz Kreisler. “Music helps him when he is thinking about his theories,” said his second wife, Elsa. “He goes to his study, comes back, strikes a few chords on the piano, jots something down, then returns to his study.”

6. Einstein wasn’t known for his fashion sense.

Einstein despised wearing socks and was proud of the fact that he didn’t wear them while lecturing at Oxford in the 1930s. His aversion to socks reportedly stemmed from a childhood discovery: “When I was young, I found that the big toe always ends up making a hole in a sock,” Einstein is said to have remarked. “So I stopped wearing socks.” As an adult, he often wore an undershirt, baggy pants held up by a rope, and a pair of sandals—sometimes women’s sandals.

7. He enjoyed sailing (though he wasn’t very good at it).

While studying in Zurich, Einstein developed a love for sailing, a passion he would continue throughout his life. However, he was an awful sailor. He often capsized his boat and needed rescue many times. (His sailboat was called Tinef, which means “worthless” in Yiddish.) In 1935, The New York Times covered Einstein’s sailing blunders with a witty headline: “Relative Tide and Sand Bars Trap Einstein.”

8. Fatherhood gave Einstein his famous hairstyle.

As a young man, Einstein had neatly groomed dark hair. That was until his son Hans was born in 1904. Like many new parents, Einstein found that the arrival of a child changed everything: The patent clerk became so consumed with providing for his family that he stopped combing his hair and visiting the barber. Gradually, his now-iconic messy hair became his trademark look.

Einstein avoided barbers for the rest of his life. Instead, his wife Elsa would trim his unruly hair whenever it got too messy.

9. He often ate without paying attention to what he was consuming.

While working as a patent clerk, Einstein started a book club with two of his friends, calling it the 'Olympia Academy.' The trio typically enjoyed sausages, Gruyère cheese, fruit, and tea for their meals. However, on Einstein’s birthday, his friends surprised him with expensive caviar. Engrossed in discussing Galileo’s principle of inertia, Einstein began stuffing his face with the caviar without realizing what he was eating. Later, he offered this explanation: “Well, if you offer gourmet foods to peasants like me, you know they won’t appreciate it.”

10. He had a cheeky sense of humor.

Einstein had a fondness for off-color humor. When he landed his first job as a professor, he said, '[N]ow I too am an official member of the guild of whores.' When a fellow book club member gave him a nameplate that read 'Albert, Knight of the Backside,' Einstein proudly displayed it on his apartment door. Later, he’d entertain his pet parrot, Bibo, with jokes. (Einstein thought the bird was depressed and in need of a laugh.)

11. He adored the famous tongue photo.

On his 72nd birthday, after an event held in his honor, Einstein was getting into his car when photographers asked him to smile for the camera. Tired of smiling for the entire evening, he decided to stick his tongue out instead. He found the photo so amusing that he used it on his greeting cards.

12. He was also an inventor.

Having spent seven years at the Swiss patent office, Einstein developed a natural curiosity for inventing, earning around 50 patents over his lifetime. He took a keen interest in tinkering with electronics and even patented items like a self-adjusting camera, a refrigerator designed to last 100 years, and a blouse.

13. Einstein wasn’t exactly a love expert.

Einstein, who married twice, had several extramarital affairs, including one with a suspected Russian spy. His first marriage to Mileva Marić, a physicist he met at the Swiss Polytechnic School, deteriorated after the birth of their third child. As their relationship faltered, Einstein presented a list of harsh—borderline cruel—demands, such as: “You will obey the following points in your relations with me: 1. Do not expect intimacy from me … 2. If I request, you will stop speaking to me.” Unsurprisingly, they divorced. Later, Einstein married his cousin, Elsa Löwenthal.

14. A letter Einstein signed played a role in the creation of the Manhattan Project.

Einstein didn’t work on the Manhattan Project, but his actions helped trigger its initiation. In the late 1930s, German scientists discovered uranium nuclear fission, a critical milestone in the development of the atomic bomb. Much of the world’s uranium was in the Congo, a Belgian colony at the time. Two Hungarian-American physicists, Leo Szilard and Eugene Wigner, persuaded Einstein to write a letter to his friend, the Queen of Belgium. Einstein, however, suggested sending the letter to a Belgian minister instead. Eventually, a meeting with an economist connected to President Franklin D. Roosevelt led to a change in strategy and a letter that set the U.S. on the path to its own nuclear experiments.

15. He enjoyed responding to letters from young fans.

Einstein received many letters from the public, but he made a point of replying to those from children. One such letter came from a young girl who was struggling with math. Einstein supposedly responded, “Do not worry about your difficulty in mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater.” His warm, encouraging letters to children were later compiled in the book *Dear Professor Einstein* by Alice Calaprice.

16. Einstein turned down the presidency of Israel.

After the death of Chaim Weizmann, Israel’s first president, in 1952, the prime minister invited Einstein to take on the largely ceremonial role of president. Einstein respectfully declined, writing: “I am deeply moved by the offer from our state of Israel, and at once saddened and ashamed that I cannot accept it. All my life I have dealt with objective matters, hence I lack both the natural aptitude and the experience to deal properly with people and to exercise official functions.”

17. Einstein was a passionate advocate for racial equality.

Having fled Germany in 1933 to escape Nazi persecution, Einstein became keenly aware of the racial injustices in the United States. He strongly supported Black Americans’ rights and joined the NAACP. In 1937, when the celebrated Black singer Marian Anderson was denied a hotel room in Princeton, Einstein invited her to stay at his home. He also corresponded with W.E.B. Du Bois, and when Du Bois found himself targeted during the Red Scare, Einstein stepped up as his character witness. In a 1946 speech at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, Einstein referred to segregation as “a disease of white people” and vowed, “I do not intend to be quiet about it.”

18. Einstein inspired the creation of Yoda.

Yoda’s face was partially inspired by Einstein’s features. Star Wars special-effects artist Nick Maley explained, “A photo of Einstein was pinned to the wall behind the Yoda sculptures, and the wrinkles around Einstein’s eyes ended up influencing the Yoda design. Over time, Yoda evolved from a more energetic, tall, thin, grasshopper-like figure into the wise, elderly, spirited gnome we all recognize today.”

19. Einstein’s theories are more impactful than you might think.

It’s common to believe that Einstein’s theories of relativity are just abstract concepts, but they have significant real-world effects. For example, general relativity explains how gravity influences time, making it pass more quickly for objects in space compared to those on Earth. This principle has vital implications for many space-based technologies, especially for the precision of GPS systems. His theories also provide an understanding of how electromagnets function and are key to nuclear technology.