Robert Myers (physicist)
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Robert C. Myers is a Canadian
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 experime ...
who specializes in black holes, string theory and quantum entanglement.


Career

Myers is Director of the
Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics (PI, Perimeter, PITP) is an independent research centre in foundational theoretical physics located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1999. The institute's founding and major benefactor i ...
. where he holds the BMO Financial Group Isaac Newton Chair in Theoretical Physics. He served as Perimeter Institute's Faculty Chair from 2011 to 2018. He is also an Adjunct Professor of physics at the
University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a public research university with a main campus in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is on of land adjacent to "Uptown" Waterloo and Waterloo Park. The university also operates ...
.


Education

He was previously a professor at
McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
. He did his undergraduate studies at
University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a public research university with a main campus in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is on of land adjacent to "Uptown" Waterloo and Waterloo Park. The university also operates ...
, gained his PhD at
Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...
, and was a postdoctoral researcher at
University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...
.


Research and awards

Myers' research concerns quantum fields and strings, and quantum gravity. His work focuses on foundational questions in
quantum theory Quantum theory may refer to: Science *Quantum mechanics, a major field of physics *Old quantum theory, predating modern quantum mechanics * Quantum field theory, an area of quantum mechanics that includes: ** Quantum electrodynamics ** Quantum ...
and gravity. His contributions span a broad range, from foundational quantum field theory to gravitational physics, black holes, and cosmology. Myers won the 2005 CAP-CRM Prize in Theoretical and Mathematical Physics "for his outstanding contributions to theoretical physics, ranging from aspects in gravitational physics to foundational aspects of string theory." The Myers-Perry metric describes the higher-dimensional generalization of the
Kerr metric The Kerr metric or Kerr geometry describes the geometry of empty spacetime around a rotating uncharged axially symmetric black hole with a quasispherical event horizon. The Kerr metric is an exact solution of the Einstein field equations of gen ...
. Other awards Myers has won include the Canadian Association of Physicists' Herzberg Medal in 1999, the CAP-TRIUMF Vogt Medal in 2012, the
Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...
, and the
University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a public research university with a main campus in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is on of land adjacent to "Uptown" Waterloo and Waterloo Park. The university also operates ...
Distinguished Alumni Award in 2018. In 2006, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.
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See also

*
List of University of Waterloo people The University of Waterloo, located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, is a comprehensive public university that was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles. It has grown into an institution of more than 42,000 students, faculty, and ...


References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Canadian string theorists University of Waterloo faculty Princeton University alumni {{Improve categories, date=February 2021