Brian Greene (basketball)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Brian Randolph Greene (born February 9, 1962) is an American
theoretical physicist Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain and predict natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental physics, which uses experim ...
and
mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...
. Greene was a physics professor at
Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to ...
from 19901995, and has been a
professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professor ...
at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
since 1996 and chairman of the
World Science Festival The World Science Festival is an annual science festival produced by the World Science Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in New York City. There is also an Asia-Pacific event held in Brisbane, Australia. The fou ...
since co-founding it in 2008. Greene has worked on
mirror symmetry In mathematics, reflection symmetry, line symmetry, mirror symmetry, or mirror-image symmetry is symmetry with respect to a reflection. That is, a figure which does not change upon undergoing a reflection has reflectional symmetry. In 2D t ...
, relating two different
Calabi–Yau manifold In algebraic geometry, a Calabi–Yau manifold, also known as a Calabi–Yau space, is a particular type of manifold which has properties, such as Ricci flatness, yielding applications in theoretical physics. Particularly in superstring ...
s (concretely relating the
conifold In mathematics and string theory, a conifold is a generalization of a manifold. Unlike manifolds, conifolds can contain conical singularities, i.e. points whose neighbourhoods look like cones over a certain base. In physics, in particular in flu ...
to one of its
orbifold In the mathematical disciplines of topology and geometry, an orbifold (for "orbit-manifold") is a generalization of a manifold. Roughly speaking, an orbifold is a topological space which is locally a finite group quotient of a Euclidean space. D ...
s). He also described the flop transition, a mild form of
topology In mathematics, topology (from the Greek words , and ) is concerned with the properties of a geometric object that are preserved under continuous deformations, such as stretching, twisting, crumpling, and bending; that is, without closing ho ...
change, showing that topology in string theory can change at the conifold point. Greene has become known to a wider audience through his books for the general public, ''
The Elegant Universe ''The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory'' is a book by Brian Greene published in 1999, which introduces string and superstring theory, and provides a comprehensive though non-technical assess ...
'', ''
Icarus at the Edge of Time ''Icarus at the Edge of Time'' is a 2008 children's book written by the physicist Brian Greene and illustrated by Chip Kidd with images from the Hubble Space Telescope. Plot introduction The book is a science fiction retelling of Icarus' tale ...
'', ''
The Fabric of the Cosmos ''The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality'' (2004) is the second book on theoretical physics, cosmology, and string theory written by Brian Greene, professor and co-director of Columbia's Institute for Strings, Cosmo ...
'', ''
The Hidden Reality ''The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos'' is a book by Brian Greene published in 2011 which explores the concept of the multiverse and the possibility of parallel universes. It has been nominated for the Royal S ...
'', and related
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of ed ...
television specials. He also appeared on ''
The Big Bang Theory ''The Big Bang Theory'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro, all of whom also served as head writers. It premiered on CBS ...
'' episode " The Herb Garden Germination", as well as the films ''
Frequency Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. It is also occasionally referred to as ''temporal frequency'' for clarity, and is distinct from '' angular frequency''. Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz) which is ...
'' and ''
The Last Mimzy {{Infobox film , name = The Last Mimzy , image = The Last Mimzy.jpg , caption = US Promotional poster , director = Robert Shaye , producer = Michael Phillips , based_on = {{Based on, "Mimsy Were the ...
''. He is currently a member of the board of sponsors of the ''
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists The ''Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists'' is a nonprofit organization concerning science and global security issues resulting from accelerating technological advances that have negative consequences for humanity. The ''Bulletin'' publishes conte ...
''.


Early life

Greene was born in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
of
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
background. His father, Alan Greene, was a one-time
vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic compositio ...
performer and high school dropout who later worked as a voice coach and composer. After attending
Stuyvesant High School Stuyvesant High School (pronounced ), commonly referred to among its students as Stuy (pronounced ), is a State school, public university-preparatory school, college-preparatory, Specialized high schools in New York City, specialized high school ...
, Greene entered
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
in 1980 to concentrate in physics. After completing his BA degree with ''
summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...
'' honors in 1984, Greene earned his
DPhil A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...
degree in theoretical physics at Magdalen College, Oxford, graduating in 1987. While at Oxford, Greene also studied piano with the concert pianist
Jack Gibbons Jack Gibbons (born 2 March 1962) is an English classical composer and virtuoso pianist. Biography Gibbons was born in England. His father was a scientist and his mother a visual artist. He began his piano studies in Stockton-on-Tees, late ...
.


Career

Greene joined the physics faculty of
Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to ...
in 1990 and was appointed to a full professorship in 1995. The following year, he joined the faculty of
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
as a full professor. At Columbia, Greene is co-director of the university's
Institute for Strings, Cosmology, and Astroparticle Physics An institute is an organisational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations ( research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...
(ISCAP) and is leading a research program applying
superstring theory Superstring theory is an attempt to explain all of the particles and fundamental forces of nature in one theory by modeling them as vibrations of tiny supersymmetric strings. 'Superstring theory' is a shorthand for supersymmetric string th ...
to cosmological questions. With co-investigators
David Albert David Z. Albert (born 1954) is Frederick E. Woodbridge Professor of Philosophy and Director of the MA Program in The Philosophical Foundations of Physics at Columbia University in New York. Education and career He received his bachelor's degree ...
and
Maulik Parikh Maulik is a popular Indian and Bangladeshi name. Also seen as Moulik, Maulick and Moulick. Notable people with the name include: As surname: *Samarendra Maulik (1881–1950), Indian entomologist *Ujjwal Maulik, Indian computer scientist *Asim ...
he is a
FQXi The Foundational Questions Institute, styled FQXi, is an organization that provides grants to "catalyze, support, and disseminate research on questions at the foundations of physics and cosmology." It was founded in 2005 by cosmologists Max Tegmark ...
large-grant awardee for his project entitled "
Arrow of Time The arrow of time, also called time's arrow, is the concept positing the "one-way direction" or "asymmetry" of time. It was developed in 1927 by the British astrophysicist Arthur Eddington, and is an unsolved general physics question. This ...
in the Quantum Universe".


Research

Greene's area of research is string theory, a candidate for a theory of
quantum gravity Quantum gravity (QG) is a field of theoretical physics that seeks to describe gravity according to the principles of quantum mechanics; it deals with environments in which neither gravitational nor quantum effects can be ignored, such as in the v ...
. He is known for his contribution to the understanding of the different shapes the curled-up dimensions of string theory can take. The most important of these shapes are so-called Calabi–Yau manifolds; when the extra dimensions take on those particular forms, physics in three dimensions exhibits an abstract symmetry known as
supersymmetry In a supersymmetric theory the equations for force and the equations for matter are identical. In theoretical and mathematical physics, any theory with this property has the principle of supersymmetry (SUSY). Dozens of supersymmetric theories e ...
. Greene has worked on a particular class of symmetry relating two different Calabi–Yau manifolds, known as
mirror symmetry In mathematics, reflection symmetry, line symmetry, mirror symmetry, or mirror-image symmetry is symmetry with respect to a reflection. That is, a figure which does not change upon undergoing a reflection has reflectional symmetry. In 2D t ...
and is known for his research on the
flop-transition In theoretical physics, particularly string theory and M-theory, the notion of a flop-transition is basically the shrinking of a sphere in a Calabi-Yau space to the point of tearing. Based on typical spacetime topology, this is not possible du ...
, a mild form of
topology In mathematics, topology (from the Greek words , and ) is concerned with the properties of a geometric object that are preserved under continuous deformations, such as stretching, twisting, crumpling, and bending; that is, without closing ho ...
change, showing that topology in string theory can change at the conifold point. Currently, Greene studies string cosmology, especially the imprints of trans-Planckian physics on the
cosmic microwave background In Big Bang cosmology the cosmic microwave background (CMB, CMBR) is electromagnetic radiation that is a remnant from an early stage of the universe, also known as "relic radiation". The CMB is faint cosmic background radiation filling all spac ...
, and
brane In string theory and related theories such as supergravity theories, a brane is a physical object that generalizes the notion of a point particle to higher dimensions. Branes are dynamical objects which can propagate through spacetime acco ...
-gas cosmologies that could explain why the space around us has three large
dimension In physics and mathematics, the dimension of a mathematical space (or object) is informally defined as the minimum number of coordinates needed to specify any point within it. Thus, a line has a dimension of one (1D) because only one coor ...
s, expanding on the suggestion of a
black hole electron In physics, there is a speculative hypothesis that, if there were a black hole with the same mass, charge and angular momentum as an electron, it would share other properties of the electron. Most notably, Brandon Carter showed in 1968 that the mag ...
, namely that the
electron The electron (, or in nuclear reactions) is a subatomic particle with a negative one elementary electric charge. Electrons belong to the first generation of the lepton particle family, and are generally thought to be elementary partic ...
may be a
black hole A black hole is a region of spacetime where gravity is so strong that nothing, including light or other electromagnetic waves, has enough energy to escape it. The theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass can defo ...
.


World Science Festival

In 2008, together with former
ABC News ABC News is the journalism, news division of the American broadcast network American Broadcasting Company, ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other progra ...
producer Tracy Day, Greene co-founded the
World Science Festival The World Science Festival is an annual science festival produced by the World Science Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in New York City. There is also an Asia-Pacific event held in Brisbane, Australia. The fou ...
.


Communicating science

Greene is well known to a wider audience for his work on popularizing theoretical physics, in particular string theory and the search for a
unified theory In physics, a unified field theory (UFT) is a type of field theory that allows all that is usually thought of as fundamental forces and elementary particles to be written in terms of a pair of physical and virtual fields. According to the modern ...
of physics. His first book, ''
The Elegant Universe ''The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory'' is a book by Brian Greene published in 1999, which introduces string and superstring theory, and provides a comprehensive though non-technical assess ...
: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory'', published in 1999, is a popularization of
superstring theory Superstring theory is an attempt to explain all of the particles and fundamental forces of nature in one theory by modeling them as vibrations of tiny supersymmetric strings. 'Superstring theory' is a shorthand for supersymmetric string th ...
and
M-theory M-theory is a theory in physics that unifies all consistent versions of superstring theory. Edward Witten first conjectured the existence of such a theory at a string theory conference at the University of Southern California in 1995. Witte ...
. It was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in nonfiction, and winner of ''
The Aventis Prizes for Science Books The Royal Society Science Books Prize is an annual £25,000 prize awarded by the Royal Society to celebrate outstanding popular science books from around the world. It is open to authors of science books written for a non-specialist audience, and ...
'' in 2000. ''The Elegant Universe'' was later made into a
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of ed ...
television special of the same name, hosted and narrated by Greene, which won a 2003
Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...
. Greene's second book, ''
The Fabric of the Cosmos ''The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality'' (2004) is the second book on theoretical physics, cosmology, and string theory written by Brian Greene, professor and co-director of Columbia's Institute for Strings, Cosmo ...
: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality'' (2004), is about
space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually con ...
,
time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...
, and the nature of the
universe The universe is all of space and time and their contents, including planets, stars, galaxies, and all other forms of matter and energy. The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological description of the development of the universe. A ...
. Aspects covered in this book include non-local particle entanglement as it relates to
special relativity In physics, the special theory of relativity, or special relativity for short, is a scientific theory regarding the relationship between space and time. In Albert Einstein's original treatment, the theory is based on two postulates: # The law ...
and basic explanations of string theory. It is an examination of the very nature of
matter In classical physics and general chemistry, matter is any substance that has mass and takes up space by having volume. All everyday objects that can be touched are ultimately composed of atoms, which are made up of interacting subatomic par ...
and
reality Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, r ...
, covering such topics as
spacetime In physics, spacetime is a mathematical model that combines the three dimensions of space and one dimension of time into a single four-dimensional manifold. Spacetime diagrams can be used to visualize relativistic effects, such as why diffe ...
and
cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in Latin by German philosophe ...
, origins and unification, and including an exploration into reality and the
imagination Imagination is the production or simulation of novel objects, sensations, and ideas in the mind without any immediate input of the senses. Stefan Szczelkun characterises it as the forming of experiences in one's mind, which can be re-creations o ...
. ''The Fabric of the Cosmos'' was later made into a PBS television special of the same name, hosted and narrated by Greene. Greene's third book, '' The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos'', published in January 2011, deals in greater depth with multiple universes, or, as they are sometimes referred to collectively, the
multiverse The multiverse is a hypothetical group of multiple universes. Together, these universes comprise everything that exists: the entirety of space, time, matter, energy, information, and the physical laws and constants that describe them. The di ...
. A book for a younger audience, ''
Icarus at the Edge of Time ''Icarus at the Edge of Time'' is a 2008 children's book written by the physicist Brian Greene and illustrated by Chip Kidd with images from the Hubble Space Telescope. Plot introduction The book is a science fiction retelling of Icarus' tale ...
'', which is a futuristic re-telling of the
Icarus In Greek mythology, Icarus (; grc, Ἴκαρος, Íkaros, ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the architect of the labyrinth of Crete. After Theseus, king of Athens and enemy of Minos, escaped from the labyrinth, King Minos sus ...
myth, was published September 2, 2008. In addition to authoring popular-science books, Greene is an occasional op-ed contributor for ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', writing on his work and other scientific topics. Greene's newest book is ''Until the End of Time''. (Knopf) The popularity of his books and his natural on-camera demeanor have resulted in many media appearances, including ''
Charlie Rose Charles Peete Rose Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American former television journalist and talk show host. From 1991 to 2017, he was the host and executive producer of the talk show '' Charlie Rose'' on PBS and Bloomberg LP. Rose also co- ...
'', ''
The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show focu ...
'', ''
The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer ''PBS NewsHour'' is an American evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS member stations. It airs seven nights a week, and is known for its in-depth coverage of issues and current events. Anchored by Judy Woodruff, the pro ...
'', ''The Century with
Peter Jennings Peter Charles Archibald Ewart Jennings (July 29, 1938August 7, 2005) was a Canadian-born American television journalist who served as the sole anchor of '' ABC World News Tonight'' from 1983 until his death from lung cancer in 2005. He dropped ...
'', CNN, ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...
'', ''
Nightline ''Nightline'' (or ''ABC News Nightline'') is ABC News' Late night television in the United States, late-night television news program broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC in the United States with a franchised formula to other network ...
in Primetime'', ''
Late Night with Conan O'Brien ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien. NBC aired 2,725 episodes from September 13, 1993, to February 20, 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musi ...
'', and the ''
Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production c ...
''. It has also led to Greene helping
John Lithgow John Arthur Lithgow ( ; born , 1945) is an American actor. Lithgow studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his work on the stage and screen. He has been the recipient of numerous ...
with scientific dialogue for the
television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of Transmission (telecommunications), television tra ...
series ''
3rd Rock from the Sun ''3rd Rock from the Sun'' is an American television sitcom created by Bonnie and Terry Turner, which originally aired from January 9, 1996, to May 22, 2001, on NBC. The show is about four Extraterrestrial life, extraterrestrials who are on an e ...
'', and becoming a technical consultant for the film ''
Frequency Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. It is also occasionally referred to as ''temporal frequency'' for clarity, and is distinct from '' angular frequency''. Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz) which is ...
'', in which he also had a cameo role. He was a consultant on the 2006
time-travel Time travel is the concept of movement between certain points in time, analogous to movement between different points in space by an object or a person, typically with the use of a hypothetical device known as a time machine. Time travel is a ...
movie ''
Déjà Vu ''Déjà vu'' ( , ; "already seen") is a French loanword for the phenomenon of feeling as though one has lived through the present situation before.Schnider, Armin. (2008). ''The Confabulating Mind: How the Brain Creates Reality''. Oxford Univers ...
''. He also had a cameo appearance as an
Intel Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the devel ...
scientist in 2007's ''
The Last Mimzy {{Infobox film , name = The Last Mimzy , image = The Last Mimzy.jpg , caption = US Promotional poster , director = Robert Shaye , producer = Michael Phillips , based_on = {{Based on, "Mimsy Were the ...
''. Greene was also mentioned in the 2002 ''
Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles inc ...
'' episode "
Supersymmetry In a supersymmetric theory the equations for force and the equations for matter are identical. In theoretical and mathematical physics, any theory with this property has the principle of supersymmetry (SUSY). Dozens of supersymmetric theories e ...
" and in the 2008 ''
Stargate Atlantis ''Stargate Atlantis'' (usually stylized in all caps and often abbreviated ''SGA'') is an Adventure film, adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's Stargate, ''Stargate'' franchise. The show was created by Brad Wr ...
'' episode " Trio". In April 2011 he appeared on ''
The Big Bang Theory ''The Big Bang Theory'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro, all of whom also served as head writers. It premiered on CBS ...
'' in the episode " The Herb Garden Germination" as himself, speaking to a small crowd about the contents of his most recent book. Greene has lectured outside of the collegiate setting, at both a general and a technical level, in more than twenty-five countries. In 2012 his teaching prowess was recognized when he received the
Richtmyer Memorial Award The Richtmyer Memorial Award is an award for physics education, named for physicist Floyd K. Richtmyer and given annually by the American Association of Physics Teachers. Its recipients include over 15 Nobel Prize winners. Establishment and awar ...
, which is given annually by the
American Association of Physics Teachers The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) was founded in 1930 for the purpose of "dissemination of knowledge of physics, particularly by way of teaching." There are more than 10,000 members in over 30 countries. AAPT publications includ ...
. In May 2013, the
Science Laureates of the United States Act of 2013 (H.R. 1891; 113th Congress) The Science Laureates of the United States Act of 2013 () is a bill that would create the position of Science Laureate of the United States, meant to be similar to the United States Poet Laureate. The Science Laureate would spend their term trav ...
was introduced into Congress. Brian Greene was listed by one commentator as a possible nominee for the position of Science Laureate, if the act were to pass. In March 2015, an Australian
spider Spiders (order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species d ...
that uses waves to hunt prey, '' Dolomedes briangreenei'', was to be named in honor of Brian Greene. He was interviewed at length by
Jim Al-Khalili Jameel Sadik "Jim" Al-Khalili ( ar, جميل صادق الخليلي; born 20 September 1962) is an Iraqi-British theoretical physicist, author and broadcaster. He is professor of theoretical physics and chair in the public engagement in scien ...
on the BBC radio program ''
The Life Scientific ''The Life Scientific'' is a BBC Radio 4 science programme, presented by Professor Jim Al-Khalili , in which each episode is dedicated to the biography and work of one living scientist. The programme consists of an interview between Al-Khalili a ...
'' on 28 April 2020.


Personal life

Greene is married to former
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
producer Tracy Day. They have one son, Alec, and one daughter, Sophia. Greene has been
vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat ( red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetaria ...
since he was nine years old and a
vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. ...
since 1997. Greene has stated that he regards science as being incompatible with literalist interpretations of religion and that there is much in the
New Atheism The term ''New Atheism'' was coined by the journalist Gary Wolf in 2006 to describe the positions promoted by some atheists of the twenty-first century. New Atheism advocates the view that superstition, religion and irrationalism should not sim ...
movement which resonates with him because he personally does not feel the need for religious explanation. However, he is uncertain of its efficacy as a strategy for spreading a scientific
worldview A worldview or world-view or ''Weltanschauung'' is the fundamental cognitive orientation of an individual or society encompassing the whole of the individual's or society's knowledge, culture, and point of view. A worldview can include natural ...
. In an interview with ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...
'' he stated: "When I'm looking to understand myself as a human, and how I fit in to the long chain of human culture that reaches back thousands of years, religion is a deeply valuable part of that story."


Bibliography


Popular science

* '' Until the End of Time: Mind, Matter, and Our Search for Meaning in an Evolving Universe'' (2020) * ''Light Falls: Space, Time, and an Obsession of Einstein'' (2016) * '' The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos'' (2011) * ''
Icarus at the Edge of Time ''Icarus at the Edge of Time'' is a 2008 children's book written by the physicist Brian Greene and illustrated by Chip Kidd with images from the Hubble Space Telescope. Plot introduction The book is a science fiction retelling of Icarus' tale ...
'' (2008) * '' The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality'' (2004) * '' The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory'' (1999)


Technical articles

For a full list of technical articles, consult th
publication list
in the
INSPIRE-HEP INSPIRE-HEP is an open access digital library for the field of high energy physics (HEP). It is the successor of the Stanford Physics Information Retrieval System (SPIRES) database, the main literature database for high energy physics since the 1970 ...
database. * * * R. Easther, B. Greene, W. Kinney, G. Shiu,
Inflation as a Probe of Short Distance Physics
. ''Physical Review''. D64 (2001) 103502. * Brian R. Greene,
D-Brane Topology Changing Transitions
. ''
Nuclear Physics Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the ...
''. B525 (1998) 284–296. * Michael R. Douglas, Brian R. Greene, David R. Morrison,
Orbifold Resolution by D-Branes
. ''Nuclear Physics''. B506 (1997) 84–106. * Brian R. Greene, David R. Morrison, Andrew Strominger,
Black Hole Condensation and the Unification of String Vacua
. ''Nuclear Physics''. B451 (1995) 109–120. * P.S. Aspinwall, B.R. Greene, D.R. Morrison,
Calabi–Yau Moduli Space, Mirror Manifolds and Spacetime Topology Change in String Theory
. ''Nuclear Physics''. B416 (1994) 414–480. * B.R.Greene and M.R.Plesser, "Duality in Calabi-Yau Moduli Space". ''Nuclear Physics''. B338 (1990) 15.


References


Further reading

* Online version is titled "String theorist Brian Greene wants to help you understand the cold, cruel universe".


External links


Brian Greene faculty homepage
* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Greene, Brian 1962 births Living people Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford American agnostics 21st-century American physicists American Rhodes Scholars American science writers Columbia University faculty Cornell University faculty Harvard College alumni Sentientists American string theorists Stuyvesant High School alumni People associated with the American Museum of Natural History Jewish American scientists Jewish agnostics Scientists from New York (state)