Brian Greene

String theorist, blower of minds, and all-around smarty-pants

Brian Greene at the 2008 World Science Festival with Muppet scientist Dr. Bunsen Honeydew.

A timeline of Brian Greene's life:

  • 1963 - Born in New York City.
  • 1984 - Greene graduates from Harvard with a degree in Physics.
  • 1986 - Greene completes his Ph.D. dissertation entitled "Superstrings: topology, geometry and phenomenology & astrophysical implications of supersymmetric models."
  • 1987 - Greene receives his Ph.D. from Oxford.
  • 1990 - Joins the faculty at Cornell University.
  • 1996 - Joins Columbia University as a full professor.
  • 1999 - Greene's first book, The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory is released. It was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in nonfiction, and the winner of The Aventis Prizes for Science Books in 2000.
  • 2003 - The Elegant Universe is made into a PBS television special of the same name hosted and narrated by Greene, and wins a 2003 Peabody Award.
  • 2004 - Publishes his second book, The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality.
  • 2005 - Appers on The Late Show with David Letterman and The Colbert Report.
    By saying that science has more validity than a feeling, Brian Greene is implying Stephen descended from a monkey.
  • 2008 - Co-creates the World Science Festival with wife Tracy, a five-day festival in New York City, whose mission is to promote the wonder and value of science for the general public.
  • 2011 - Publishes his third book, The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos, which deals in greater depth with multiple universes.
  • 2011 - The Fabric of the Cosmos TV series debuts on PBS.

  • "I believe we owe our young people an education that captures the exhilirating drama of science."

    — Brian Greene

For more information on Brian Greene, visit his website.