October 8, 2002
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lawrence Krauss, professor of physics and astronomy at Case Western Reserve University, will discuss “Nonsense, Non-Science and Science: From Aliens to Creationism” on Monday, Oct. 14, at 6 p.m. in Turner Hall at Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music. The event is free and open to the public. A reception with Krauss precedes the lecture at 5 p.m.
In March of 1996, presidential candidate Pat Buchanan said on national television that he wasn’t descended from apes, and he didn’t think children should be taught that they are. Not a single U.S. journalist questioned him on this position. In 1999, the Kansas state school board removed evolution and discussions of the Big Bang theory from its curriculum, in spite of the fact that these are no longer widely considered controversial scientific issues. In his lecture, Krauss will examine examples from news media, advertisements, television, film and politics to discuss the difference between science and fiction and how the distinction between sense and nonsense is becoming blurred in popular discourse.
An internationally known theoretical physicist with wide research interests, Krauss has investigated questions ranging from the nature of exploding stars to the origin of all mass in the universe. Krauss is the author of several acclaimed books for popular audiences, including The Physics of Star Trek.
In 2000 Krauss was awarded the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Award for the Public Understanding of Science and Technology. Nobel Prize-winning physicist Stephen Hawking, author of A Brief History of Time, says, “Lawrence Krauss has Carl Sagan’s knack of expanding the imagination and explaining the mysteries of the universe in simple terms.”
Krauss’ appearance is sponsored by the Chancellor’s Lecture Series at Vanderbilt. The Chancellor’s Lecture Series is designed to advance and integrate classroom learning with broader social issues and concerns and to connect the Vanderbilt and Nashville communities.
Parking for the event is available in the Capers Avenue Garage at the corner of 24th and Capers Avenues. For more information about the Chancellor’s Lecture Series, please call 322-4959.
Contact: Kara Furlong, 615-322-NEWS, kara.c.fulong@vanderbilt.edu