Top astrophysicist reveals truth in natural sciences

World-renowned astrophysicist, scholar and science communicator Professor Bengt Gustafsson will give a public lecture titled The Emergence of Truth in Natural Sciences at UCT on 16 February.

Using examples from the physical sciences, Gustafsson will look at how scientific hypotheses become 'true', and how this process often reveals more about humanity and culture than generally believed.

An eloquent speaker and gifted teacher, he has worked and published in cross-disciplinary areas such as research ethics, the social responsibilities of science, science-religion interaction, and science policy. He has held posts at Stockholm and Uppsala Universities and is Corresponding Fellow at the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics. He serves on numerous boards as well as on the Nobel Committee for Physics.

Gustafsson is also celebrated for his popularisation of science (and astronomy in particular). Apart from radio shows, he's written two science theatre plays.

UCT will host the lecture in tandem with the Academy of Science in South Africa and it takes place at 17h00 in Teaching Venue 3A, New Snape Building, upper campus.