Last Reviewed and Updated on July 12, 2022
Einstein is one of the most well-known scientists of all time. Find out some interesting facts about Albert Einstein including his early life, unique quirks, and even the fact that at one time there was a bounty for his head. Yikes!
1. He didn’t speak until he was about 4 years old
He didn’t speak full sentences until he was 5 years old but was gifted in other areas. He had a syndrome that is now known as Einstein syndrome. Children with Einstein syndrome have a delayed onset of language skills but demonstrate giftedness in other areas. Children with this syndrome will eventually develop normal language skills.
2. He was born with a misshaped head
His parents feared there was something wrong with him as he was born with a larger than normal and misshaped head. Within a matter of weeks, his head was normal.
3. His brain size was below average size
If you think someone with such intellect would have a larger than average brain you would be mistaken. Albert Einstein had a smaller than average brain. Luckily, the size of the brain doesn’t really play a significant role when it comes to intelligence.
Also read: Facts about the brain
4. He formulated the world’s most famous equation
He derived the equation E=mc2. He was just 26 years old when he formulated this equation. It is the most fundamental equation, shedding light on the workings of the universe.
You might also like: the most interesting facts about space
5. He didn’t fail math, he excelled at it
A common myth states that Albert Einstein failed grade school math. This myth started during his lifetime when a (false) story was published in a newspaper and is still a popular one today. But this was never true.
6. He discovered his own original proof of the Pythagorean theorem at the age of 12
Just one of the things that showcase the brilliance of his mathematical mind is the fact he discovered his own original proof of the Pythagorean theorem at the age of 12. Most of us didn’t get past learning the equation for it c2 = a2 + b2. Many people don’t go past memorizing the equation, a few understand it, but rarely do you find someone proving the theorem in their own way. And certainly, that is even more true for a 12-year-old.
7. He liked to sleep
Unlike Nikola Tesla who barely slept at all, Einstein tried to sleep 10 hours every day. He also liked to take naps.
8. There was a bounty on his head
As Einstein was Jewish, it shouldn’t come as a surprise he wasn’t a popular man in Nazi Germany. He and his works were targeted and many of his books were burned. One of the German magazines proclaimed him as an enemy of the German regime and offered a $5000 bounty on his head.
9. Einstein wrote a list of conditions for his first wife to follow
Einsten met his first wife, Mileva Marić in 1896 at the Zurich Polytechnic, Eidgenossische Technische Hoschule. Both he and she studied there. She studied for a diploma in mathematics and physics. Over the years their friendship grew into romance and they got married in 1903. After 11 years of marriage, they agreed the spark of romance was gone but they didn’t want to divorce for the sake of their 2 sons.
They stayed together but his wife had to follow some conditions. Some of the conditions were doing his laundry, cooking and serving him 3 meals, and keeping their home clean, no affections, and no personal relationships with him unless strictly necessary… She agreed to these conditions but a few months later left taking their two sons with her.
10. He could have lived longer
Einstein died at the age of 76 from an abdominal aortic aneurysm. A surgery that could potentially save his life was offered but he refused it by stating; “I want to go when I want. It is tasteless to prolong life artificially. I have done my share; it is time to go. I will do it elegantly.”
11. His brain was “stolen” after his death
He requested to be cremated and his ashes spread in an unmarked location. Einstein didn’t want people to come “worship at his bones”, he wasn’t comfortable with the fame and worship he was given in life and didn’t want it after.
While his bones and most of his body were cremated, his brain was not. The pathologist who performed his autopsy, Thomas Harvey, took Einstein’s brain. This wasn’t exactly an unusual practice at that time, but his family protested as this was against Einstein’s wishes.
Harvey was later given retroactive permission from the family, as he promised the brain would be used strictly for scientific study.
Today the brain resides at the University Medical Center of Princeton.
12. After graduating he worked at a patent office
He was trying really hard to get a job as a teacher after he graduated but wasn’t successful so he took a job at a patent office.
13. If not a scientist, he wanted to be a musician
He really loved music. He said;
“If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music… I get most joy in life out of music.”
Albert Einstein
14. He didn’t wear socks
Last on our list of facts about Albert Einstein is an odd one. One of the quirkiest facts about Albert Einstein is he absolutely despised socks and was proud to avoid the,