Theoretical physicist Brian Greene is set to give a talk next week titled “Explaining the Elegant Universe”, as part of the NSU Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences’ “Distinguished Speakers Series”. The talk will take place on Wednesday Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. in the Rose and Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center on NSU’s Main Campus in Davie.
Greene, who is well known across both academic and popular mediums, is the author of multiple bestselling books on advanced physical concepts.
In 1999, Greene published “The Elegant Universe”, an easy to read explanation on the reconciliation of quantum field theory and general relativity through string and superstring theory. Greene was one of the earliest proponents of the theory, and is well known for his elaborate —yet easy to grasp — detailings of complicated concepts such as this.
“The Elegant Universe” made the New York Times bestseller list after release, selling over a million copies in a year. Greene also hosted an episode of “NOVA”, a science documentary series on PBS.
Greene has published other books dealing with scientific explanations in layman’s language: “The Fabric of the Cosmos” and the more recent “The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos”, also delve into hard science and abstract concepts on the bleeding edge of theoretical physics. Greene’s work has appeared in many print and web magazines, such as Wired, The New York Times, and Newsweek.
In Greene’s upcoming talk, entitled “Explaining the Elegant Universe”, the subjects of string theory, quantum mechanics, and general relativity be a part of the discussion.
Greene’s coming is anticipated by students across all majors. Lauren Frey, a junior biology major, was excited for the upcoming “Distinguished Speaker Series”, mainly due to its speaker.
“He’s really good at explaining difficult concepts in relatively simple yet still exciting ways,” Frey said.
Even in an explanation of simplicity on a complex subject, there could possibly be information “lost in translation”. Stefan Kautsch, an asssistant professor of physics who teaches several astronomy classes at NSU shared his view on the matter.
“Communicating science in understandable and engaging ways is much needed to make the public aware of progress of science”, Kautsch said. Kautsch went on to also note that Greene is well known for simplifying abstruse topics in physics.
“His talk will undoubtedly excite the imagination of the audience,” Kautsch said, going on to hope that the talk will ignite wild enthusiasm among students for physics.
Greene is well represented by his bestselling books and “NOVA” Specials.
“I first heard of him when he had an appearance on ‘The Big Bang Theory’ show, and I’ve been a fan of his ‘NOVA’ specials ever since,” said Kayla Caldwell, senior marine biology major. “I’m extremely excited for his talk.”, Kayla said.
Free tickets are available for students, faculty, and staff in the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences’ Office of the Dean on the second floor of the Mailman-Hollywood building. There is a limit of two tickets per person, with a SharkCard. For more information, call the Office of the Dean at 954-262-8236.
