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Mr. Robin Parsons and I were discussing this issue on another thread. He claims sources show that Einstein confessed his belief in the "aether" after 1919 and thereafter held to that view. I showed him an Einstein quote from 1920 in which E. said "The aether of the general theory of relativity is a medium without mechanical and kinematic properties, but which codetermines mechanical and electromagnetic events." (Source, Pais, "Subtle is the Lord" p 313.) I claimed this shows the word aether for Einstein cannot mean the mechanical and kinematic ether that its proponents claim he supported.
Mr. Parsons declined to be persuaded so I went to the online Einstein Archives and looked up aether. http://Alberteinstein.info/db/QueryAnyText.do?criteria=aether&x=33&y=9 . The documents are handwritten in German and I cannot read German script. Perhaps someone on this board can? A little translation help could settle a great dispute.
Thanks.
Mr. Parsons declined to be persuaded so I went to the online Einstein Archives and looked up aether. http://Alberteinstein.info/db/QueryAnyText.do?criteria=aether&x=33&y=9 . The documents are handwritten in German and I cannot read German script. Perhaps someone on this board can? A little translation help could settle a great dispute.
Thanks.
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