Wright Lecture Series


Wright Lecture SeriesEach fall, in the odd years, the Wright Lectures on Cosmic Evolution are held in Boston, at the Cahners Auditorium at the Boston Museum of Science. In this series of four evening presentations that follow the "arrow of time," a diverse spectrum of leading scientists explore the many varied changes that have led to our universe, our galaxy, our planet, and ourselves. Cosmic evolution is the modern scientific story of who we are and where we've come from.

The Wright Science Lectures are free and minimally technical, and will appeal to all intelligent people. They are especially appropriate for high-school teachers and their students. The intent is to involve the audience in a dialogue with the speakers and panelists each evening, thereby challenging the experts on the interpretation of their subjects--which span astronomy, physics, chemistry, geology, biology, and anthropology, among others.

The Wright Science Lectures are hosted by Eric Chaisson, director of the Wright Center at Tufts, who moderates a panel discussion after each pair of talks, inviting active participation from the audience. The program runs from 7-9pm; doors open at 6:30pm. Admission is free.

The Wright Lectures for 2005

21 September, The early universe and the origin of galaxies

  • Frank Wilczek (Nobel particle physicist, MIT)
  • Colin Norman (astrophysicist, STScI, Johns Hopkins Univ.)

28 September, Birth and death of stars and planets

  • Michael Shara (astronomer, American Museum of Natural History)
  • Dimitar Sasselov (planetologist, Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)

05 October, Origin and evolution of life on Earth

  • Lynn Rothschild (astrobiologist, NASA Ames Research Center)
  • James Hanken (evolutionary biologist, MCZ, Harvard Univ. )

12 October, Onset of civilization and prospects for the future

  • Fred Spier (anthropologist/world historian, Univ. of Amsterdam)
    • Onset of Civilization and Prospects for the Future Part I (watch the video)
  • Jill Tarter (radio astronomer/astrobiologist, SETI Institute)
    • Onset of Civilization and Prospects for the Future Part II (watch the video)

The Wright Science Lectures for 2001

03 October, The early universe and the origin of galaxies

10 October, The birth and death of stars and planets

17 October, The origin and evolution of life on Earth

24 October, The onset of civilization and prospects for the future

The Wright Science Lectures for 1999

20 Oct, The early universe and the nature of space, time and energy

  • Philip Morrison (astrophysicist, Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
  • Steven Weinberg (Nobel physicist, University of Texas)

27 Oct, The birth and death of galaxies, stars and planets

  • Megan Urry (galactic astronomer, Space Telescope Science Institute)
  • Andrea Dupree (stellar astronomer, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory)

03 Nov, The origin, evolution and nature of life on Earth

  • Robert Shapiro (chemist, New York University)
  • Andrew Knoll (paleontologist, Harvard University)

10 Nov, The onset of intelligence and prospects for life elsewhere

  • Gerald Soffen (biologist, NASA Goddard Space Center)
  • Frank Drake (astronomer, SETI Institute)

*For those of you who could not attend the lectures, please check out our archived video of the events.

The Wright Science Lectures for 1997

8 October, The early universe and the nature of galaxies

  • Leon Lederman (Nobel physicist, Illinois Inst. Tech./Fermi Lab)
  • Vera Rubin (extragalactic astronomer, Carnegie Institution)

15 October, The birth of stars, planets and the chemical elements

  • George Field (interstellar astrophysicist, Harvard University)
  • Dudley Herschbach (Nobel chemist, Harvard University)

22 October, The roots and evolution of life on Earth

  • William Schopf (paleontologist, UCLA)
  • Ursula Goodenough (geneticist, Washington University)

29 October, The onset of intelligence and prospects for the future

  • Terrence Deacon (biological anthropologist, Boston University)
  • Christopher Corbally (Jesuit scientist, Vatican Observatory)

The Wright Science Lectures for 1995

18 October, The early universe and evolution of cosmic structure

  • Sheldon Glashow (physicist, Harvard)
  • David Schramm (astrophysicist, FermiLab/Univ. of Chicago)

25 October, The evolution of galaxies, stars, and planets

  • Anne Kinney (astronomer, Space Telescope Science Inst.)
  • Michael McElroy (atmospheric chemist, Harvard)

1 November, The origin and evolution of life on Earth

  • John Corliss (oceanographer, Biosphere 2)
  • June Aprille (cell biologist, Tufts)

8 November, The evolution of intelligence and prospects for the future

  • Daniel Dennett (cognitive scientist, Tufts)
  • Allen Tough (futurist, Univ. of Toronto)

The Wright Science Lectures for 1993

6 October, The early universe and the origins of galaxies

  • Alan Guth (physicist, MIT)
  • Edmund Bertschinger (astrophysicist, MIT)

13 October, The evolution of galaxies and stars

  • Debra Elmegreen (astronomer, Vassar)
  • Bruce Elmegreen (physicist, IBM)

20 October, The development of life on Earth

  • Lynn Margulis (biologist, Univ. of Massachusetts)
  • David Hubel (neurobiologist, Harvard)

27 October, The onset of culture and prospects for alien life

  • Irven DeVore (anthropologist, Harvard)
  • Paul Horowitz (physicist, Harvard)

The Wright Lectures are cosponsored by the Boston Museum of Science and the Fondation H. Dudley Wright of Geneva, Switzerland.