--- title: Albert Einstein on the Secret to Learning description: Find that which brings you joy canonical: https://time.com/3765673/albert-einstein-secret-learning/ author: Shane Parrish article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-04-06T11:00:23.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T08:18:56.208Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Albert Einstein on the Secret to Learning og:description: Find that which brings you joy og:url: https://time.com/3765673/albert-einstein-secret-learning/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt369b51c984ce2395/6987860bcd68483fe109a683/128612847-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=750&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: albert-einstein og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Albert Einstein on the Secret to Learning twitter:description: Find that which brings you joy twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt369b51c984ce2395/6987860bcd68483fe109a683/128612847-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=750&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Albert Einstein on the Secret to Learning ## Video: Johns Hopkins University Researchers Find Element of Surprise Helps Babies Learn [Watch (HLS stream): Johns Hopkins University Researchers Find Element of Surprise Helps Babies Learn](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/nWQJYyA7.m3u8) (1:52)  _Published 2015-04-02. Johns Hopkins University Researchers Find Element of Surprise Helps Babies Learn_ by [Shane Parrish](https://time.com/author/shane-parrish/) ## Shane Parrish Apr 6, 2015 11:00 AM UTC  Albert Einstein (1879-1955). Albert Einstein (1879-1955).Getty Images by [Shane Parrish](https://time.com/author/shane-parrish/) ## Shane Parrish Apr 6, 2015 11:00 AM UTC In 1915 Einstein, who was then 36, was living in wartime Berlin with his cousin Elsa, who would eventually become his second wife. His two sons, Hans Albert Einstein and Eduard “Tete” Einstein were with his estranged wife Mileva in neutral Zurich. After eight long years of effort his theory of general relativity, which would propel him to international celebrity, was finally summed up in just two pages. Flush with his recent accomplishment, he sent his 11-year-old Hans Albert the following letter, which is found in [Posterity: Letters of Great Americans to Their Children](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0767909046/farnamstreet-20). --- > “” --- **_Follow your curiosity_** _and read letters from_ [_Hunter S. Thompson_](http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2014/05/hunter-s-thompson-to-hume-logan/)_,_ [_Eudora Welty_](http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2014/05/eudora-welty-to-the-new-yorker-the-best-job-application-ever/)_,_[_van Gogh_](http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2015/01/van-gogh-letter-life/)_,_ [_Charles Bukowski_](http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2014/06/charles-bukowski-on-censorship/)_, and_ [_Richard Feynman_](http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2013/08/richard-feynmans-love-letter-to-his-wife-sixteen-months-after-her-death/)_._ **_This piece originally appeared on_** [**_Farnam Street_**](http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/)**_._** **Join over 50,000 readers and get a free weekly update via email** [**here**](http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/newsletter/)**.** _Read next:_ [_The Future of Education According to Generation Z_](http://time.com/3764545/future-of-education/?iid=time%5Freadnext) [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3765673/albert-einstein-secret-learning/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3765673/albert-einstein-secret-learning/"},"headline":"Albert Einstein on the Secret to Learning","datePublished":"2015-04-06T11:00:23.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T08:18:56.208Z","description":"Find that which brings you joy","url":"https://time.com/3765673/albert-einstein-secret-learning/","keywords":["Psychology"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt369b51c984ce2395/6987860bcd68483fe109a683/128612847-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Shane Parrish","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/shane-parrish/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt369b51c984ce2395/6987860bcd68483fe109a683/128612847-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"albert-einstein","caption":"albert-einstein","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/psychology/","name":"Psychology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3765673/albert-einstein-secret-learning/","name":"Albert Einstein on the Secret to Learning"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Johns Hopkins University Researchers Find Element of Surprise Helps Babies Learn","description":"Johns Hopkins University Researchers Find Element of Surprise Helps Babies Learn","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/nWQJYyA7/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-04-02T16:48:37.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/nWQJYyA7.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3765673/albert-einstein-secret-learning/","duration":"PT1M52S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3765673/albert-einstein-secret-learning/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```