6pm - 7:30pm BST
Thursday 29 June 2023
Jim Meets... Paul Davies
Despite amazing advances in fundamental science, some profound questions remain unanswered, such as what happened before the big bang, how life originated and what quantum physics implies for the nature of reality. Join two renowned theoretical physicists for a romp across the cosmic frontier in search of the meaning of existence.
Free
Daphne Jackson Road
University of Surrey
Guildford
Surrey
GU2 7AL
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About
The hugely successful Jim Meets Series is hosted by Jim Al-Khalili, Professor of Physics and presenter of BBC Radio 4's 'The Life Scientific'. The series has featured a variety of well-loved public figures and we are delighted to welcome theoretical physicist, cosmologist, astrobiologist and best-selling science author Paul Davies to our next event on Thursday 29 June, for an 'on the couch' style interview with Jim. The two will debate on their mutual interest in scientific developments and there will be an opportunity for the audience to get involved and pose questions to both Jim and Paul.
This event will be taking place at the School of Veterinary Medicine Building on our Manor Park Campus and free parking will be available.
Speaker
Professor Jim Al-Khalili
Distinguished Professor Emeritus in Physics
Biography
Jim Al-Khalili CBE FRS is a theoretical physicist who is currently Distinguished Professor Emeritus.
He received his PhD in theoretical nuclear physics from Surrey in 1989 and then spent two years as an SERC Postdoctoral Research Fellow at University College London before returning to Surrey in 1991. He was appointed lecturer in 1992 and, in 1994, was awarded an EPSRC Advanced Research Fellowship for five years during which time he established himself as a world leading authority on nuclear reaction theory of light exotic nuclei, publishing widely. Following this he reverted to a full-time lectureship in the Department at Surrey. He was elected Fellow of the Institute of Physics in 2000 and promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2001. He was promoted to professor of physics in 2005. He has published over a hundred papers in nuclear physics, quantum mechanics and quantum biology and has supervised 22 PhD students.
Jim is also a prominent author and broadcaster. He has written 14 books on popular science and the history of science, between them translated into twenty-six languages. His book, The World According to Physics, was shortlisted for the Royal Society Book Prize. His latest, published in 2022 is The Joy of Science. He is a regular presenter of TV science documentaries, such as the Bafta nominated Chemistry: a volatile history, and has hosted the long-running weekly BBC Radio 4 programme, The Life Scientific, since 2011.
Despite his profile as a public scientist, Jim has continued to teach undergraduate physics students in an unbroken run of 32 years since 1992. He is still very research active, with five current PhD students working on different aspects of quantum mechanics and open quantum systems and is co-director of the Leverhulme Doctoral Training Centre for Quantum Biology and leads the Quantum Foundations and Technologies Research Group in the School of Mathematics and Physics. He is also Principle Investigator on a research project on the Quantum Arrow of Time.
Jim is a past president of the British Science Association and a recipient of the Royal Society's Michael Faraday medal and the Wilkins-Bernal-Medawar Medal, the Institute of Physics Kelvin Medal and the Stephen Hawking Medal for Science Communication. He received an OBE in 2007 and a CBE in 2022 for ‘services to science’.
Speaker
Paul Davies
Theoretical physicist, cosmologist, astrobiologist and best-selling science author
Biography
Paul Davies is a theoretical physicist, cosmologist, astrobiologist and best-selling science author. He is Regents’ Professor and Director of the Beyond Center for Fundamental Concepts in Science, and co-Director of the Cosmology Initiative, at Arizona State University. He has published 31 books and hundreds of research papers and review articles across a range of scientific fields. He is also well-known as a media personality and science popularizer in several countries. His research interests have focused mainly on quantum gravity, early universe cosmology, the theory of quantum black holes, the nature of time, the foundations of quantum mechanics and the origin of life. He has also made important contributions to the field of astrobiology, and help found the Australian Centre for Astrobiology. For several years he directed a major cancer research project funded by the US National Cancer Institute, and developed a new theory of cancer based on tracing its deep evolutionary origins. Among his many awards are the 1995 Templeton Prize, the Faraday Prize from The Royal Society, the Kelvin Medal and Prize from the Institute of Physics, the Robinson Cosmology Prize and the Bicentenary Medal of Chile. He was made a member of the Order of Australia in the 2007 Queen's birthday honours list and the asteroid 6870 Pauldavies is named after him. His more recent books include What’s Eating the Universe?, The Demon in the Machine, About Time, The Goldilocks Enigma: Why Is the Universe Just Right for Life?, How to Build a Time Machine, The Eerie Silence: Are We Alone in the Universe?
About the Jim Meets Series
Jim Meets… is a series of in conversation events featuring a variety of well-loved public figures who are connected in some way to the academic disciplines and research initiatives that the University of Surrey champions. Jim chairs an informal interview with the guest on their life, works and mutual interest in science, including questions from the audience. Amongst others, we have welcomed the Archbishop of Canterbury, David Attenborough, Brian Cox, Dara O´ Briain, Ruby Wax and Brian Blessed for these special events.