Alan Lightman, Author of The Miraculous from the Material: Understanding the Wonders of Nature
International bestselling author Alan Lightman will join the library for a virtual discussion of his newest book The Miraculous from the Material: Understanding the Wonders of Nature. Nature is capable of extraordinary phenomena. Standing in awe of those phenomena, we experience a feeling of connection to the cosmos. The Miraculous from the Material is an illustrated exploration of the science behind the universe’s most stunning natural phenomena—from atoms and paramecium to rainbows, snowflakes, spider webs, the rings of Saturn, galaxies, and more. Publishers Weekly praises Lightman’s work saying, “readers will marvel at the eye-opening science.”
For acclaimed physicist and novelist Alan Lightman, just as remarkable is that all of what we see around us—soap bubbles, scarlet ibises, shooting stars—are made out of the same material stuff and obey the same rules and laws. This is what Lightman calls “spiritual materialism,” the belief that we can embrace spiritual experiences without letting go of our scientific worldview. Lightman’s imagination travels from the world of atoms and molecules to the animal kingdom, from places like Ha Long Bay, Vietnam and the Grand Canyon out to the solar system and beyond in an effort to illuminate the beauty of the world and the remarkable science and wonder around us.
Alan Lightman earned his PhD in physics from the California Institute of Technology and is the author of seven novels, including the international bestseller Einstein’s Dreams and The Diagnosis, a finalist for the National Book Award. His nonfiction includes The Transcendental Brain, The Accidental Universe, Searching for Stars on an Island in Maine, and Probable Impossibilities. He has taught at Harvard and at MIT, where he was the first person to receive a dual faculty appointment in science and the humanities. He is currently a professor of the practice of the humanities at MIT. He is the host of the public television series Searching: Our Quest for Meaning in the Age of Science.
Registration for this program is required and a valid email address is required at the time of registration. Participants will receive an email invitation a day before the program begins.
If you have any questions, please email [email protected] or call (330) 653-6658 x1010.
Event Links
Tickets: https://go.evvnt.com/2758668-0
Website: https://go.evvnt.com/2758668-2
