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Rwandan refugee wearing an Einstein t-shirt. Benaco camp, Tanzania.
UNHCR / T. Bolstad / November 1994

Albert Einstein

Profession:Scientist
Country of Origin:Germany
Country of Asylum:United States of America
Date of birth:14 March 1879
Died:18 April 1955

The face is human, thoughtful. We have all seen it, a mass of unruly white hair framing a weary, yet endearing face. And we've all heard of Albert Einstein and his scientific theories. Yet few of us know of his days as a refugee, when his books were thrown into Hitler's bonfires, and as a German Jew, Einstein was accused of treason.

Growing up in Munich, Einstein was particularly interested in music and mathematics, and his ambition was to study electrical engineering in Zurich. However, he failed the entrance exam, leading some biographers to speculate that he suffered from the learning difficulty, dyslexia. Undeterred, he moved to Switzerland and enrolled in a school in Aarau, hoping to get a second chance to qualify for a place at the technical college. Eventually he succeeded, but he was unable to secure a teaching post at the college, and eventually took up the position of technical expert, third class at the Bern patent office.

In Bern, he worked on his research in his spare time and in 1905 published three papers that formed the basis for his work on the theory of relativity. He was awarded a doctorate by the University of Zurich, and from then on his academic career was made. In 1909, he resigned from the patent office and moved to Prague to take up a university post. In 1914, he returned to Germany to take up a research position at the Prussian Academy of Sciences.

In 1919, Einstein's theory that gravity was equivalent to mass was confirmed by research into solar eclipses. He was idolised in the popular press. The London Times ran a headline on November 7, proclaiming: "Revolution in Science - New Theory of the Universe - Newtonian ideas overthrown." In 1921, Einstein received the Nobel Prize.

However, the rise of the Nazi party and anti-Semitism made it increasingly difficult for him to work and in 1932 he took up the offer of a post at Princeton. He became a citizen of the United States, but retained Swiss citizenship.

Einstein and his wife worked tirelessly on behalf of German Jews, making visa applications and vouching personally for many refugees. He expressed mixed feelings about his life in exile. "I am privileged by fate to live here in Princeton," he wrote to the Belgian Queen, who had befriended him in the early days. "In this small university town the chaotic voices of human strife barely penetrate. I am almost ashamed to be living in such peace while all the rest struggle and suffer."

In 1944, Einstein supported the war effort by putting up for auction his 1905 paper on special relativity. It fetched $6 million, and the manuscript is now in the Library of Congress. His final letter was to philosopher and pacifist Bertrand Russell, lending his support to the movement to ban nuclear weapons. Einstein died on April 18, 1955.

Shows started just after 1pm at various venues on Day 2 of Sled. I walked to Republik and checked out some Makeout Videotape. Yeah, 1pm inside the Republik isn't the best experience but it was timely to snag some bbq eats on the patio. I figured I should head my way back to the Local Library for some all ages action. More good timing as there were free pancakes and kool-aid. Stefana and Ellis were set to play at some point in the afternoon as their show was moved to this venue after Comrad Sound was shut down. A new-ish ambient experimental project called Blanket (featuring Chad Van Gaalen among others) played as well as Toronto's RatTail (Unfamiliar). Cave from Chicago slayed out some sweet psych/noise jams - another favourite surprise discovery at Sled. There was a Tron-themed washroom upstairs.

The afternoon wasn't finished as I headed on over to Tubby Dog to catch Feral Children from Saskatoon who were part of the Wierd Canada showcase. I think they played Hokos last summer but I just missed their set. They are coming back in August. A few blocks down was a house show @ Vanessa's featuring more bands I don't know but-I'm-curious-to-find-out. Across the street was this sweet yogurt fruit place called Spoon Me. Got me some fruit smoothies which was a much needed boost for the late afternoon. A 7-piece punk ensemble called Hamas played. Enter Vanessa's through the backyard. Fire up some more BBQ action, relax on the trampouline. Upstairs starting to warm up.

Ok, back to Tubby Dog for Cousins (from Halifax). Couple of members of Cousins were wearing their own band's t-shirt. Isn't that some kind of concert t-shirt etiquette violation? Overlooking that, they impressed though. Nice Nice (from Portland) on next. While they were setting up I thought this better not be some Starfucker kind of shit. It wasn't which was good.

Azeda Booth was on my list to see @ Vern's but skipped it as Azeda were slated to play the Arrata the next day - better sound and space there then at Vern's. Made my way to Broken City for Turbo Fruits and Ty Segall. Wasn't into the Turbo Fruits but Ty Segall really amped it up. He's played multiple shows at Sled so this last show he was shooting the shit with the band playing mostly covers. Last stop of the night was the Black Lips @ the Legion. There was no escaping the front area mayhem after the first song. Lead singer of Black Lips even managed to step right on me while stepping his way onto the crowd. Unhindered smoking, crowd surfing aplenty, lost articles of clothing, mass bruises were just some of the results of taking this in.