alt Hacker NewsIf (as you seem to be suggesting) relativity was effectively lying there on the table waiting for Einstein to just pick it up, how come it blindsided most, if not quite all, of the greatest minds of his generation?
If (as you seem to be suggesting) relativity was effectively lying there on the table waiting for Einstein to just pick it up, how come it blindsided most, if not quite all, of the greatest minds of his generation?
That's the case with all scientific discoveries - pieces of prior work get accumulated, until it eventually becomes obvious[0] how they connect, at which point someone[1] connects the dots, making a discovery... and putting it on the table, for the cycle to repeat anew. This is, in a nutshell, the history of all scientific and technological progress. Accumulation of tiny increments.
--
[0] - To people who happen to have the right background and skill set, and are in the right place.
[1] - Almost always multiple someones, independently, within short time of each other. People usually remember only one or two because, for better or worse, history is much like patent law: first to file wins.