MEMETERIA by Thomas May

Music & the Arts

Stephen Hawking, RIP

Stephen Hawking died at the age of 76 today, on 14 March — the birthday of Albert Einstein and Pi Day.

BBC coverage, with obituary, tributes, career highlights, etc.

–“A star just went out in the cosmos. We have lost an amazing human being. Stephen Hawking fought and tamed the cosmos bravely for 76 years and taught us all something importantabout what it truly means to celebrate about being human. I will miss him.” — theoretical physicist Lawrence Krauss

Stephen Hawking website

Spiegel coverage

–Stephen Hawking’s favorite music:

Professor Stephen Hawking has nominated his three favourite classical works for a special concert at this year’s Cambridge Music Festival, which is taking place throughout this month. The festival’s theme is “Mozart, Music and Maths”, making the University of Cambridge’s Lucasian Professor of Mathematics the obvious person to approach for his all-time favourite pieces.

The concert will take place at King’s College Chapel on November 11 and will feature Igor Stravinsky’s Symphony Of Psalms, Henryk Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No. 1 and Francis Poulenc’s Gloria.

Filed under: astrophysics, science news

Video of the Day

From the Royal Burgers’ Zoo in Arnhem, the Netherlands: note the selfie-taking at the end.

Notes Gretchen Vogel

Researchers say it’s not clear whether Tushi was annoyed by the drone or only curious — they say her facial expression suggests she wasn’t particularly afraid. But the footage is evidence that her actions were planned and deliberate, and it shows just how resourceful chimps can be at using whatever materials are available as tools.

Filed under: animal behavior, science news

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