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Article ID: CBB336192597

Can we trust Einstein’s accounts of the genesis of special relativity? (2021)

Darrigol, Olivier (Author)

Studies in History and Philosophy of Science
Volume: 89
Pages: 138-154
Publication date: 2021
Language: English

URI: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0039368121000492

DOI: 10.1016/j.shpsa.2021.04.005

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Explanation; hypotheses; theories Correspondence and corresponding Personal narratives Development of science; change in science Rhetorical analysis Physics Relativity, special 20th century, early Einstein, Albert

There are three kinds of sources available to reconstruct the reflections that led Einstein to special relativity: a few contemporary letters and documents, his impersonal accounts of the genesis of this theory, and recollections of his own path. At first glance, contradictions within and between these sources hamper the reliability of Einstein’s accounts. Yet, a closer analysis reveals much more consistency than foreseen and helps eliminate the dubious, contradictory elements. It then becomes possible to combine the three kinds of sources to produce a minimally speculative and yet fairly coherent account of the genesis of special relativity.

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