Physical concepts are free creations of the human mind,
and are not, however it may seem, uniquely determined by
the external world. In our endeavor to understand reality
we are somewhat like a man trying to understand the
mechanism of a closed watch. He sees the face and the
moving hands, even hears its ticking, but he has no way of
opening the case. If he is ingenious he may form some
picture of a mechanism which could be responsible for all
the things he observes, but he may never be quite sure his
picture is the only one which could explain his observations.
He will never be able to compare his picture with the real
mechanism and he cannot even imagine the possibility of
the meaning of such a comparison."
EVOLUTION OF PHYSICS
by Albert Einstein, Leopold Infeldand are not, however it may seem, uniquely determined by
the external world. In our endeavor to understand reality
we are somewhat like a man trying to understand the
mechanism of a closed watch. He sees the face and the
moving hands, even hears its ticking, but he has no way of
opening the case. If he is ingenious he may form some
picture of a mechanism which could be responsible for all
the things he observes, but he may never be quite sure his
picture is the only one which could explain his observations.
He will never be able to compare his picture with the real
mechanism and he cannot even imagine the possibility of
the meaning of such a comparison."
EVOLUTION OF PHYSICS
Touchstone, 1938, p31
