Peter Coles (born 1963) is a theoretical cosmologist at

Maynooth University The National University of Ireland, Maynooth (NUIM; ga, Ollscoil na hÉireann Mhá Nuad), commonly known as Maynooth University (MU), is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland in Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland. It ...

. He studies the large scale structure of our Universe. He studied for his PhD in 1985-1988, subsequently becoming a postdoctoral researcher at Sussex and Queen Mary, subsequently becoming a lecturer there. He was a professor at

Cardiff University , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

starting in 2007, and from 2013 he was the head of the School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences at the

University of Sussex , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

. In 2017 he started working at Maynooth University, becoming head of the Department of Theoretical Physics in 2019.

Early life and education

He was born in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

and educated at the

Royal Grammar School, Newcastle (By Learning, You Will Lead) , established = , closed = , type = Grammar SchoolIndependent school (UK), Independent day school , religion = , president = , head_label = Headmaster , head = Geoffrey Stanford , r_head_label = , r_head ...

. He did his first degree at

Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary ...

, in Natural Sciences, specialising in Theoretical Physics. In 1985 he started studying for his doctorate at the

, supervised by

John D. Barrow John David Barrow (29 November 1952 – 26 September 2020) was an English cosmologist, theoretical physicist, and mathematician. He served as Gresham Professor of Geometry at Gresham College from 2008 to 2011. Barrow was also a writer of pop ...

, and completed 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 ...

thesis in 1988. Coles advises LGBT scientists not to worry excessively that their sexual orientation will retard their careers. He enjoys a wide range of music, especially classical and jazz and he listens to Radio 3, but he does not like the sound produced by

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

Career

Coles has been a

cosmologist 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 philosopher ...

and theoretical astrophysicist since 1985. During 1988 and 1990 he was a

postdoctoral researcher A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to p ...

at the

, before moving to the mathematics department of the Queen Mary & Westfield College, University of London, where he worked from 1990 until 1999, first as a temporary lecturer, then as a

PPARC The Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC) was one of a number of research councils in the United Kingdom. It directed, coordinated and funded research in particle physics and astronomy for the people of the UK. Its head office wa ...

Advanced Fellow from 1993 to 1998, becoming Lecturer-in-waiting in 1994 and Reader-in-waiting in 1997. He then worked at the

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...

between 1999 and 2007 as a Professor of Astrophysics, where he set up a new group in astronomy. Coles was a Professor of Theoretical Astrophysics at

from 2007 to 2013, and was the Deputy Head of the School of Physics and Astronomy. In February 2013 he became the Head of the School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences at the

. He left the University of Sussex in 2016 to return to Cardiff to hold a joint position with the School of Physics and Astronomy and the Data Innovation Research Institute. On 1 December 2017 he started working part-time at both

and Cardiff, moving full-time to Maynooth in July 2018. He became head of the Department of Theoretical Physics on 1 September 2019. He is a Fellow of the

Royal Astronomical Society (Whatever shines should be observed) , predecessor = , successor = , formation = , founder = , extinction = , merger = , merged = , type = NGO ...

and of the

Institute of Physics The Institute of Physics (IOP) is a UK-based learned society and professional body that works to advance physics education, research and application. It was founded in 1874 and has a worldwide membership of over 20,000. The IOP is the Physica ...

. He has served on the Council of the Royal Astronomical Society. He currently resides in

Maynooth Maynooth (; ga, Maigh Nuad) is a university town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to Maynooth University (part of the National University of Ireland and also known as the National University of Ireland, Maynooth) and St Patrick's ...

. Among the places he has previously lived in are

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, Beeston in Nottinghamshire,

Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in the East End of London northeast of Charing Cross. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common land, Green, much of which survives today as Bethnal Green Gardens, beside Cambridge Heat ...

in London, and

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

Research

His primary research interest is in

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 (lexicographer), Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in ...

and the

large-scale structure of the Universe The observable universe is a ball-shaped region of the universe comprising all matter that can be observed from Earth or its space-based telescopes and exploratory probes at the present time, because the electromagnetic radiation from these obj ...

, specifically on theoretical models that try to account for the properties of the

observable universe The observable universe is a ball-shaped region of the universe comprising all matter that can be observed from Earth or its space-based telescopes and exploratory probes at the present time, because the electromagnetic radiation from these obj ...

, including 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

galaxy cluster A galaxy cluster, or a cluster of galaxies, is a structure that consists of anywhere from hundreds to thousands of galaxies that are bound together by gravity, with typical masses ranging from 1014 to 1015 solar masses. They are the second-l ...

s. He also researches cosmological models that feature

magnetic field A magnetic field is a vector field that describes the magnetic influence on moving electric charges, electric currents, and magnetic materials. A moving charge in a magnetic field experiences a force perpendicular to its own velocity and to ...

Non-Gaussianity In physics, a non-Gaussianity is the correction that modifies the expected Gaussian function estimate for the measurement of a physical quantity. In physical cosmology, the fluctuations of the cosmic microwave background are known to be approximate ...

and

asymmetries Asymmetry is the absence of, or a violation of, symmetry (the property of an object being invariant to a transformation, such as reflection). Symmetry is an important property of both physical and abstract systems and it may be displayed in pre ...

, as well as the application of probability and statistics in astronomy and physics. He has taught undergraduate courses in mathematics, statistics, and

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

. Along with Francesco Lucchin he wrote a textbook on "Cosmology: the origin and evolution of cosmic structure" (), and a second edition of it was published by

John Wiley & Sons John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American multinational publishing company founded in 1807 that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company produces books, journals, and encyclopedias, in p ...

in July 2002. He is the only Irish-based member of the

Euclid (spacecraft) Euclid is a visible to near-infrared space telescope currently under development by the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Euclid Consortium. The objective of the Euclid mission is to better understand dark energy and dark matter by accurately ...

collaboration, where he studies the clustering of galaxies. He has a blog named ''In the Dark'', where he writes under the name ''Telescoper'' (an anagram of his name), covering a range of topics including astronomy, science funding, opera, jazz, rugby and crosswords. In 1999 it was one of "Five great physics blogs" listed by the ''Daily Telegraph''.

References

External links

*
Coles' blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coles, Peter People educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle upon Tyne Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge Alumni of the University of Sussex Academics of the University of Nottingham Academics of Queen Mary University of London Academics of the University of Sussex Academics of Cardiff University Academics of Maynooth University Living people 21st-century British physicists British cosmologists People from Beeston, Nottinghamshire Fellows of the Royal Astronomical Society Fellows of the Institute of Physics Irish astronomers 1963 births British LGBT scientists 20th-century British physicists