Seeing the light - Albert Einstein’s legacy

EARLIER this month we celebrated the bicentenary of the birth of George Boole, the mathematician and father of the digital age who taught at Queen’s University Cork (now UCC) and whose development of so-called Boolean logic paved the way for the computer age. This logic underpins all digital devices from laptops to mobile phones, existing in almost every line of computer code.

On November 25, 100 years later, Albert Einstein presented his theory of general relativity, showing how light was at the centre of the very structure of space and time.

His theory challenged the prevailing Newtonian view of the universe and revolutionised the study of gravity and showed how it affects space and time.

Nowadays we encounter Albert Einstein in different fields of everyday life. His abstract thoughts on light and spacetime have helped to lead to many technological innovations such as CD players and GPS systems.

Just like George Boole before him, modern life would not be the same without Einstein.