Scientific discoveries are made after many years of painstaking work. Sometimes the insight comes to a scientist by accident. There are no strict rules in this process. Brian Greene was fond of mathematics, but became famous in the study of outer space.
Childhood prodigy
By modern standards and rules in force in a sports environment, a promising child should be brought to the gym no later than four years old. 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 agronomist. For the selection of future academicians and professors, other methods are used. Subject teachers in a regular school play an important role in this process.
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 could not graduate from high school, was listed as an actor in a third-rate theater. He liked to have a glass or two of whiskey on weekends. The mother worked as a nurse in one of the hospices. At preschool age, the boy did not stand out among his peers. He lacked the leadership qualities to lead a street company. But he did not allow himself to be made a whipping boy either.
When the age approached, Brian went to the regular school, which was located next door. Already in elementary school, he began to demonstrate excellent mathematical abilities. It turned out that Green has a phenomenal memory and the head works like a calculating machine. To the surprise of his neighbors and the admiration of his 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 science from one of the professors of the famous Columbia University.
After graduation, Green continued his education at the physics department of Harvard University. Within the walls of this educational institution, the student began to communicate with specialists in astronomy and space physics. By participating in seminars and debates, he unexpectedly discovered interesting ground for research. The Big Bang theory, which was the basis of the doctrine of the origin of outer space, seemed attractive to him, but not fully disclosed. Green continued to study this topic already at Oxford University, where he entered thanks to a personal scholarship from the patron of 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 constructed by the brilliant scientist Isaac Newton three hundred years ago, no longer corresponds to the new realities. Green, taking into account the accumulated experience, is trying to define a space that extends beyond the earth's atmosphere. To this end, he conducts experiments and analyzes the results obtained. On the basis of observations and comparisons, the scientist formulates "String theory", which allows explaining the processes occurring in the universe.
In 1996, Green was invited to the position of Leading Research Fellow at Columbia University. Here all the necessary conditions were created for the scientist for research. Nothing limited in scientific research and creativity. One of the results of this approach was the discovery of "relict radiation". As experiments carried out many times have shown, radiation of this type arose at the time of the Big Bang and filled the entire Universe. Building a simplified model of the real world required Green's knowledge of related fields of cosmology.
This means that information from astronomers has been 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 only talk about the subjects of his research with colleagues. To broaden his audience, Greene went to great lengths to popularize complex concepts in simple language.
Books and festivals
Brian Greene spends a lot of time and effort to bring his knowledge of nature to a wide range of interested people. He called his first book The Elegant Universe. In it, he talks about string theory and searches for answers to emerging questions in a simple and easy-to-understand language. For this book, the author received an award in the category "Non-fiction". Since 2008, the scientist has been holding a regular World Science Festival in New York. This event takes place in early May.
Green called his next book The fabric of the 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 offered to shoot a series based on a popular work. Brian agreed with pleasure and acted as a presenter.
Hobbies and personal life
A scientific career does not prevent Green from doing other things. He confidently keeps in front of the camera and is often invited to participate in popular TV shows. Brian enjoys acting in cameo roles. Advises producers on science fiction projects.
Little is known about Green's personal life, although he makes no secret of this topic. Brian is married to Tracy Day, who worked as a television producer. Nowadays, husband and wife share common interests. They are vegetarians. There are no children in the family yet.
