Born in Germany, Max Abraham was the son of Jewish merchants who used their trade to accumulate wealth. He later attended the University of Berlin where he was able to study under Max Planck. Upon graduation, Abraham became Planck’s assistant and he continued his work for three years after his 1897 graduation.
In 1900, Max Abraham began his nine year stint as an unpaid lecturer at Gottingen. It is believed that he remained unpaid for nine years because of his ruthless tongue that didn’t care to strike out at his peers regardless of their position or title.
It was 1902 when Max Abraham would develop his theory of the electron. His theory held that the electron was a sphere and shaped perfectly with a charge distributed to cover the surface evenly. Abraham believed his theory was one that could be backed up by what he referred to as "common sense" but in 1905, Albert Einstein came out with a different theory. Einstein’s belief was accepted and since it varied considerably from that of Abraham’s, Max Abraham’s theory was soon forgotten.
In 1909, Max Abraham was extended an invitation to go to the United States to teach at the University of Illinois but Abraham didn’t like the United States so he later returned to Gottingen. He would later go on to work on the theory of radio transmission which is what Max Abraham did during World War I.
After the war, Abraham worked as a Professor of Physics at Technische Hochschule in Stuttgart. After his work in Stuttgart, Abraham planned to begin work in Aachen but would discover that he had a brain tumor before he could begin. Max Abraham died in Germany on November 16, 1922.
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