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ALS in German, signed “A. Einstein,” one page both sides, 5.5 x 9, no date but circa July–August 1940. Handwritten letter to Mr. and Mrs. Fritz Reiche, expounding on one of Einstein’s most fundamental, influential, and controversial beliefs: that 'God does not play dice with the universe,' an idea he famously expressed in conversation with Niels Bohr while objecting to Bohr’s Copenhagen Interpretation of quantum mechanics.
In full (translated): "It gives me real pleasure to know that you are in our house and to hear that you feel so at home there. However, you should no longer send us anything from the garden and instead be our representatives in the eating of the fruit, as is the natural order of things.
My dear Mr. Reiche, I admire you very much for reading everything. I myself am so antiquated and stubborn that I still do not believe that God plays dice. If this is what He had intended, then he would have done this very thoroughly and not even have kept to any kind of plan while he was throwing dice: but if he does, then he does. Then we would not even have to look for laws. However, all appearances seem to indicate against the view of complete governance by laws. I will though search incessantly for such laws. If what I find is worthless, then that is probably down to me rather than Him.
I have told Mr. Bergmann that he should get in contact with you as he is in correspondence with several institutions regarding an appointment. Given the current shortage of teachers, it should be possible to find a provisional appointment for you at a real university. Something permanent could easily develop from a temporary employment contract like this. If something should show up, I will be happy to advocate warmly for you anywhere. Enjoy the rest of the holiday with your good lady wife and I send my warmest wishes to you both." In fine condition.
Einstein also expressed the sentiment with slightly different wording in a famous letter to Max Born of December 4, 1926: 'I, in any case, am convinced that He does not play dice' (Halpern, Einstein's Dice and Schrodinger's Cat). This widely-quoted phrase captured Einstein's qualms about quantum mechanics and his view of the fundamental nature of reality as being fixed and discoverable according to deterministic laws. The phrase expresses a central tenet of his understanding of both the nature of reality and the scientific project itself. In the present letter from Einstein we see a variant of this famous phrase, followed by a full throated expression of Einstein’s view that if randomness were fundamental that would undermine the entire scientific project. Einstein’s conviction that 'God does not play dice' was in direct opposition to many of his colleagues' understanding of the implications of quantum theory and formed the core of arguably the most significant scientific and philosophical debate of the century, a debate that is still not settled today.
The recipient of this letter, Fritz Reiche (1883–1969), was a German physicist who studied under Max Planck and made important contributions to the early development of quantum mechanics, including the co-authorship of the Thomas-Reiche-Kuhn sum rule. Reiche published more than 55 scientific papers and books, including a 1921 textbook on quantum theory, and after emigrating to the United States worked for NASA and the US Navy. At the time of this letter, Reiche was staying at Einstein’s home while Einstein was on vacation (for more context on this letter, see Einstein: A Life by Denis Brian).
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