Russell Stannard, (December 24.5 1931 – 4 July 2022) was a British high-energy
particle physicist
Particle physics or high energy physics is the study of Elementary particle, fundamental particles and fundamental interaction, forces that constitute matter and radiation. The fundamental particles in the universe are classified in the Standa ...
.
Stannard was born in
London, England, on December 24.5 1931. He held the position of Professor Emeritus of
Physics at the
Open University. In 1986, he was awarded the Templeton UK Project Award for "significant contributions to the field of spiritual values; in particular for contributions to greater understanding of science and religion". He was awarded the
OBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
for "contributions to physics, the Open University, and the popularisation of science" (1998) and the Bragg Medal and Prize of the Institute of Physics for "distinguished contributions to the teaching of physics" (1999). He was admitted as a Fellow of University College London in 2000.
Stannard was also a sculptor; two of his pieces were on display in the main quadrangle of the Open University site at
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...
.
In 2010, he helmed a series of ten short programmes collectively entitled "Boundaries of the knowable", dealing with subjects from both scientific and philosophical perspectives, ranging from the nature of
consciousness, the nature of
matter,
space and
time, the
wave-particle duality of matter, the existence of
extra-terrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life, colloquially referred to as alien life, is life that may occur outside Earth and which did not originate on Earth. No extraterrestrial life has yet been conclusively detected, although efforts are underway. Such life might ...
and
infinite universes, whether our universe is eternal, and the question of "What caused the
Big Bang
The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...
?".
Stannard died on 4 July 2022, at the age of 90.
Career
* Studied Physics at
University College London earning a B.Sc. (Special Physics) degree (1953); this was followed by a Ph.D. in cosmic ray physics (1956).
* 1960–69 Lecturer,
UCL
* 1969–71 Reader,
Open University
* 1971–1997 Professor of Physics, Open University.
* 1971–1992 Head of the Physics Department, Open University
* 1974–1976 Pro-Vice Chancellor, Open University
* 1987–1988 Visiting Fellow,
Center of Theological Inquiry,
Princeton, United States.
* 1987–1991 Vice President of the
Institute of Physics.
* 1993–1999 Trustee of the
John Templeton Foundation.
* 1999–2022 Emeritus Professor of Physics, Open University.
Publications
Science and religion
* ''Science and the Renewal of Belief''
* ''Grounds for Reasonable Belief''
* ''Doing Away with God?''
* ''Science and Wonders''
* contributed chapters to ''Evidence of Purpose'', ''How Large is God?'', and ''Spiritual Evolution''.
* ''The God Experiment'',
Faber and Faber
Faber and Faber Limited, usually abbreviated to Faber, is an independent publishing house in London. Published authors and poets include T. S. Eliot (an early Faber editor and director), W. H. Auden, Margaret Storey, William Golding, Samuel B ...
/HiddenSpring 1999 based on his
Gifford Lectures
* ''The End of Discovery''
* ''Science & Belief the Big Issues''
* ''The Divine Imprint''
Children's books
Stannard wrote eleven children's books, including:
* the ''Uncle Albert'' trilogy (''The Time and Space of Uncle Albert'', ''Black Holes and Uncle Albert'', and ''Uncle Albert and the Quantum Quest'')
* An update of
George Gamow's ''
Mr Tompkins''
* ''The Curious History of God''
* ''Our Physical Universe''
* ''Virtutopia''
Sources
Biography
External links
Gifford Lectures biography page on Russell Stannard*
',
Open University short series of video programmes
Russell Stannard Interview with Nigel Bovey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stannard, Russell
1931 births
2022 deaths
Academics of the Open University
Academics of University College London
Alumni of University College London
British nuclear physicists
English physicists
Officers of the Order of the British Empire
English Christians
Writers about religion and science
Writers from London