Top 10 Odd Facts about Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist. He developed the general theory of relativity, one of the two pillars of modern physics.  To commemorate his work, here are top 10 interesting, yet odd facts about Albert Einstein you probably did not know.

10. He did not speak until he was 4.

Einstein was slow in learning how to speak. His parents even consulted a doctor. Once while they were sitting at the dinner table, he broke his four year silence and said “”The soup is too hot.” Both parents were flabbergasted.

9. He had a poor memory.

He had trouble remembering things,  such as dates and phone numbers. In fact he even didn’t knew what his own phone number was. This proves critics wrong – he was not autistic. People who have ASD have powerful memory skills.

8. He was inspired by a compass.

When Einstein was five years old and sick in bed, his father showed him something that sparked his interest in science: a compass. There was a whole movie about it: Einsteins’ Compass. The story is simply told that when the boy (Albert Einstein) was five, ill in bed, his father showed him a pocket compass. What impressed the child was that since the iron needle always pointed in the same direction, whichever way the case was turned, it must be acted upon by something that existed in space-the space that had always been considered empty….

7. He had an illegitimate child.

In the 1980s, It was discovered, through his private correspondences, that he had an illegitimate daughter with a fellow former student Mileva Marić (whom he later married). No one knows what happened to the child.

6. He refused to wear socks.

Einstein refused to wearing socks because his big toes made holes in them. Maybe, he just needed a good pedicure.

5. He had a pet parrot.

Einstein was given a parrot as a gift for his 75th birthday. After deciding the bird was depressed, Einstein attempted to cheer it up by telling it bad jokes. Of course that did not help the bird.

4. His brain was removed after he died.

After the death of Albert Einstein his brain was removed for autopsy without the approval of his family. Recently, 46 small portions of Einstein’s brain were acquired by the Mütter Museum in Philadelphia. In 2013, these thin slices, mounted on microscope slides, went on exhibit in the museum’s permanent galleries. If you are ever in Philadelphia, be sure to visit the museum.

3. He almost became the Prime Minister of Israel.

He was offered the position in 1952, but nicely refused it. He was born  Jewish, but later became an atheist.

2. He invented the refrigerator.

Albert Einstein invented refrigerator and several models between 1926 and 1933.

1. He married his first/second cousin.

Einstein married for the second time on June 2, 1919 to Elsa Lowenthal, his first cousin maternally and second cousin paternally.  Einstein’s mom and Elsa’s mom were sisters, plus Albert’s dad and Elsa’s dad were cousins.