Scientific discoveries are made after many years of painstaking work. Sometimes an insight into a learned person comes by chance. There are no strict rules in this process. Brian Green was keen on mathematics, but became famous in space exploration.
Childhood geek
By modern standards and the rules in force in a sports environment, a budding child must be brought to the gym no later than four years. Many parents find this approach too harsh. In the scientific community, such attitudes are not observed. If a boy shows interest in bugs and spiders, stamens and pistils, this does not mean that he will become a biologist or an agronomist. For the selection of future academicians and professors, other methods are used. A large role in this process is assigned to subject teachers in a regular school.
The future theoretical physicist Brian Green was born on February 9, 1963 in an ordinary American family. Parents lived at that time in the city of New York. The father, who failed to finish high school, was listed as an actor in a third-rate theater. He liked to drink a glass of whiskey on the weekend. Mother worked as a nurse in one of their hospices. In preschool age, the little boy did not stand out among his peers. He lacked leadership qualities to lead a street company. But he did not allow himself to be a whipping boy.
When the age approached, Brian went to a regular school, which was located next door. Already in the lower grades, he began to demonstrate excellent mathematical abilities. It turned out that Green has a phenomenal memory and his head works like a computer. To the surprise of the neighbors and the admiration of relatives, he mastered the entire school curriculum in four years. At the age of twelve, as a teenager, Brian took private lessons in mathematics and other natural sciences from one of the professors of the famous Columbia University.
After leaving school, Green continued his education at the physical department of Harvard University. Within the walls of this educational institution, the student began to communicate with specialists in astronomy and space physics. Participating in seminars and disputes, he unexpectedly discovered an interesting ground for research. The Big Bang theory, which was the basis of the doctrine of the emergence of outer space, seemed to him attractive, but not fully disclosed. Green continued to deal with this topic already at Oxford University, where he entered thanks to a personal scholarship from philanthropist Rhodes.
Scientific activity
The young scientist was attracted by the problems over which the best minds of mankind fought for many years. The classical picture of the world, which was invented by the brilliant scientist Isaac Newton three hundred years ago, no longer corresponds to new realities. Green, taking into account the accumulated experience, is trying to define space that extends beyond the earth's atmosphere. To this end, he conducts experiments and analyzes the results. Based on observations and comparisons, the scientist formulates the "String Theory", which allows to explain the processes taking place in the universe.
In 1996, Green was invited to the position of lead fellow at Columbia University. Here, for research, the scientist has created all the necessary conditions. Nothing limited in scientific research and creativity. One of the results of this approach was the discovery of "relict radiation." As shown by repeated experiments, radiation of this type arose at the time of the Big Bang and filled the entire Universe. The construction of a simplified model of the real world required Green's knowledge in related fields of cosmology.
This means that information from astronomers was processed using a variety of mathematical methods. As a result of such procedures, Green made several fundamental discoveries that became possible at the intersection of astronomy, physics and mathematics. It is important to emphasize that the scientist could talk about the subjects of his research only with colleagues. To expand the audience of listeners, Green made great efforts for the popular presentation of complex concepts in simple language.
Books and festivals
Brian Green devotes a lot of time and energy to bring his knowledge of nature to a wide range of interested people. He called his first book, The Elegant Universe. In it, in a simple and understandable language, he talks about string theory and the search for an answer to emerging questions. For this book, the author received a prize in the category "Non-Fiction". Since 2008, the scientist holds in New York a regular World Science Festival. This event takes place in early May.
Greene called the next book, The Cloth of Cosmos. Space, Time, and Texture of Reality. It is interesting to note that this book was received and read with great attention by middle school students. After such success, the scientist was asked to make a series based on a popular work. Brian agreed with pleasure and acted as host.
