James Michelin Distinguished Visitors Program

William Shakespeare lived at a remarkable time – a period we now recognize as the first phase of the Scientific Revolution – and yet "Shakespeare" and "science" are rarely uttered in the same breath. However, as award-winning journalist Dan Falk has found, a reassessment is at hand. In this illustrated talk, Falk will explore Shakespeare's interest in the scientific discoveries of his time, with a particular focus on the changing conceptions of the cosmos, from Aristotle to Copernicus and Galileo.

Dan Falk is a journalist and author with a particular interest in science, especially physics and astronomy. His freelance writing credits include Smithsonian, New Scientist, Scientific American, Astronomy, and many other publications. The Science of Shakespeare is his third book; his two previous books are In Search of Time and Universe on a T-Shirt. The Toronto native is a regular contributor to Canadian public radio, and he has won several international awards for his radio documentaries. He also hosts a podcast called BookLab, which reviews popular science books. Falk was a 2011-12 Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT.

The Science of Shakespeare will be available for purchase in the lecture hall, and Falk will be available to sign books after the lecture.