2021-11-22
59 分钟I do think that this is all part of the cosmological story, and I also think dreams deferred are part of the cosmological story.
But I hope that there will be a generation for whom dreams defer to something that they study, not something that they live.
So when you think of physics, do you think about something that will change your world, that draws you in, that you're just juicily excited to dive into?
Well, that was the experience of Doctor Chanda Prescott Weinstein at the age of ten, when she was introduced to this world in a way that she never expected.
In fact, she kind of fought when her mom said, we need to go do this thing.
And yet it lit a fire of curiosity and discovery that has never left her.
Doctor Chanda Pressgaard Weinstein is a professor of physics and core faculty member in women's and gender studies at the University of New Hampshire.
She's also one of fewer than 100 black american women to earn a PhD from a department of physics.
Born in East LA, a devout Dodgers fan, she's a citizen of both the United States and Barbados, and a descendant of Afro Caribbean and Ashkenazi jewish immigrants.
And she decided to become a theoretical physicist.
At such a young age, we dive into this story.
Her vision of the cosmos is vibrant, buoyantly non traditional, and grounded in black feminist traditions.
Emerging as a powerful voice in her field, Chanda really urges us to recognize how science, like most fields, is far from an equal playing field, with racism, sexism, and other dehumanizing systems, playing a role not only in who participates in the field, but in the essential nature of the work and the potential discoveries and insights that it yields.
She lays out a bold new approach to science and society that begins with the belief that we all have a fundamental right to know and love the night sky.
In her groundbreaking new book, the Disordered Cosmos, Chanda shares her love for physics, from the standard model of particle physics and what lies beyond, to the physics of melanin in the skin, to the latest theories of dark matter, all with a new spin informed by history, politics, and even the wisdom of Star Trek.
We explore her personal journey and many of these ideas in today's conversation.
So excited to share it with you on a quick note before we dive in, so at the end of every episode, I don't know if you've ever heard this, but we actually recommend a similar episode.
So if you love this episode, at the end, we're going to share another one that we're pretty sure you're going to love, too.
So be sure to listen for that.
Okay, on to today's conversation.