Einstein and his peers were 'irrationally resistant' to black holes
Physicists, including Einstein, initially resisted the concept of black holes due to their strangeness and implications of singularities. Despite early skepticism, the existence of black holes has been confirmed, reshaping cosmic understanding.
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In an illustrated feature, the resistance of Albert Einstein and other physicists to the concept of black holes is explored. Despite evidence dating back to 1916, prominent scientists, including Einstein, initially denied the existence of black holes due to their strangeness. The theoretical groundwork for black holes was laid by Einstein's theory of general relativity, but it was Karl Schwarzschild who provided the solutions hinting at black holes in 1915. Einstein and others struggled with the implications of singularities and infinities within black holes, proposing alternative concepts like wormholes to avoid them. The resistance to accepting black holes stemmed from a clash between scientific evidence and personal convictions about the rationality of the universe. The inability to observe black holes directly in the early 20th Century led to reliance on philosophical and spiritual beliefs, such as Einstein's confidence in the rational nature of reality and Eddington's Quaker beliefs in a harmonious universe. Despite initial skepticism, the existence of black holes has now been confirmed, reshaping our understanding of the cosmos.
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