In my view, it is the most important function of art and science to awaken this feeling and keep it alive in those who are capable of it.

Truly novel inventions emerge only in one's youth. Later one becomes ever more experienced, famous-and foolish.

But could not our situation be compared to one of a menacing epidemic? People are unable to view this situation in its true light, for their eyes are blinded by passion. General fear and anxiety create hatred and aggressiveness. The adaptation to warlike aims and activities has corrupted the mentality of man; as a result, intelligent, objective and humane thinking has hardly any effect and is even suspected and persecuted as unpatriotic.

The real difficulty, the difficulty which has baffled the sages of all times, is rather this: how can we make our teaching so potent in the motional life of man, that its influence should withstand the pressure of the elemental psychic forces in the individual?

Long live impudence. It was my guardian angel in this world.

It is only men who are free, who create the inventions and intellectual works which to us moderns make life worth while.

When forced to summarize the general theory of relativity in one sentence: Time and space and gravitation have no separate existence from matter.