Full disclosure: On my 7th grade report card, a sympathetic science teacher tempered a shockingly low grade with a handwritten note to my parents. Something to the effect of it being her opinion that my interest in theater would, ultimately, serve me far better than any information she was attempting to ram through my skull.
Thank you, Miss Cooper, for your compassion and exceptional foresight.
There are times, though, when I do wish I was just a teensy bit better informed about certain buzzy scientific theories. Hank Green’s information-packed science Crash Courses are helpful to a degree, but he talks so damn fast, I often have the sensation of stumbling stupidly behind…
Which I am, but still…
Alok Jha, the author and ITV Science Correspondent who narrates the brief animated guide to some of Stephen Hawking’s big ideas, takes things at a more encouraging pace. His delivery reminds me of Alain de Botton‘s, and that alone is enough to sooth me into believing I stand a chance of somewhat grasping such quantum concepts as black holes, gravitational singularities, and Hawking radiation.
As long as I don’t lose myself in non-scientific flourishes like the cat in a box anchoring some of Hawking’s equations or a sweet homage to ET, I may be able to keep hold of this tiger’s tail. Or at least nod with something resembling interest, the next time a science-obsessed teen is sharing his or her passion…
The video above come from The Guardian‘s Animations and Explainers video series. And it was created by Scriberia, a London animation studio.
via Brain Pickings
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Carl Sagan, Stephen Hawking & Arthur C. Clarke Discuss God, the Universe, and Everything Else
Ayun Halliday is an author, homeschooler, and Chief Primatologist of the East Village Inky zine. Follow her @AyunHalliday
I thought the presenter sounded exactly like Neil Gaiman, actually… Great presentation by the way! Thank you for sharing.
Clare