The migration of birds fascinated Einstein

While watching the BBC report on bees in 2019, Judith Davis recalled the existence of a letter Einstein had sent to her late husband, Glenn. In the 1940s, the latter became interested in the behaviorist Carl von Frisch’s research on the ability of bees to direct light from the sky thanks to the polarization of light.

In this short letter Einstein tells that he was familiar with the work of Carl von Frisch. Above all, he believes that analyzing the perceptions of animals can enable an understanding of as yet unknown physical processes. He cites a study of the behavior of migratory birds as a promising example.

An assumption that has proven itself after 70 years! It was in 2004 that a study first showed that castles navigate thanks to some kind of magnetic compass. A theory to explain this phenomenon It comes from quantum biology, which, as the name suggests, deals with the connections between quantum mechanics and biology.

“It shows us how extraordinary Einstein was,” said Adrian Dyer, the scientist who saw Judith Davis on the BBC report. He must have been thinking about this problem, those birds that orient themselves at incredible distances. He sensed how difficult this achievement would be and felt that his studies could push the boundaries of our understanding of physics. ”Professor Dyer and colleagues recounted the whole thing. in an article Journal of Comparative Physiology A Posted last May.

Expectations are not supernatural to Annie Angers, professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Montreal. “All scientists know that nature has a lot to teach us, so I’m not surprised that Einstein thought about it.”

Instead, it was Professor Dyer’s investigative work that impressed her. In fact, Adrian Dyer and his team must have researched the Davys family’s memories and archives from that time in order to clarify the subject of the first letter from Glyn Davys (now undetectable) and understand why he was in contact with Einstein. first of all. “I found Mr. Dyer’s words very convincing,” says Annie Ingres. But when we finally read this famous letter from Einstein, we found that it was only 10 lines long. Something falls flat! Which strengthens the reputation of this great spirit as a man of few words.