A fascinating, provocative hour-long documentary that tries, and ultimately fails, to prove that Einstein's so-called "secret" first wife, Mileva Maric, was an intimate collaborator on Einstein's legendary theories of Brownian Motion, Special Relativity, and Photoelectric Effect, filmmaker Nicola Woolmington's PBS-aired Einstein's Wife combines expert interviews, archival documents (including love letters that remained hidden for decades), and dramatic reenactments to build the case that Maric--a brilliant mathematician in her own right, who met Einstein in college--had a profound influence on the formation of Einstein's revolutionary scientific breakthroughs. While there's enough evidence to substantiate her influence, the degree of that influence is widely open to debate, making this more of a pointed and semi-tragic story of a rocky relationship that suffered under Einstein's selfishness, fell apart under the weight of his global success and fame, and ultimately ended on amicable terms after divorce (in fact, Maric's story is a pointed example of how gifted women were victimized and limited by male-dominated institutions and society at the turn of the 20th century). Unfortunately, however, as several science historians have successfully argued, the central premise is flawed. Optional. Aud: H, C, P. (J. Shannon)
Einstein's Wife
(2003) 60 min. VHS: $24.98 ($54.95 w/PPR), DVD: $29.98 ($59.95 w/PPR). PBS Video. Color cover. Closed captioned. ISBN: 0-7806-4409-7 (vhs), 0-7806-4530-8 (dvd). Volume 19, Issue 4
Einstein's Wife
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