John C. Baez
Encyclopedia
John Carlos Baez is an American
mathematical physicist
and a professor
of mathematics
at the University of California, Riverside
(UCR) in Riverside
, California
. He is known for his work on spin foam
s in loop quantum gravity
. More recently, his research has focused on applications of higher categories
to physics. On January 14, 2010 Baez announced that he is leaving categorical mathematical physics. He said "I want to shift the focus of my research away from fancy abstract n-categorical math to slightly more practical things. My job at the CQT (Centre for Quantum Technologies
) will give me a chance to explore computer science, microtraps, and quantum optics. What I really want to do is help save our beleaguered planet."
Baez is also known to science fans as the author of This Week's Finds in Mathematical Physics, an irregular column on the internet featuring mathematical exposition and criticism. He started This Week's Finds in 1993 for the Usenet
community, and it now has a worldwide following in its new form, the blog "Azimuth". This Week's Finds anticipated the concept of a personal weblog
. Additionally, Baez is known on the World Wide Web
as the author of the crackpot index
.
.
He graduated from Princeton University
in Princeton
, New Jersey
, with a Bachelor of Arts
in mathematics in 1982. In 1986, he graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
in Cambridge
, Massachusetts
, with a Doctor of Philosophy
under the direction of Irving Segal
.
in New Haven
, Connecticut
, he has been teaching — since 1989 — at UCR.
Joan Baez
is his cousin and her father, physicist
Albert Baez
, was his uncle.
John Baez is married to Lisa Raphals who is a professor of Chinese and comparative literature at UCR.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
mathematical physicist
Mathematical physics
Mathematical physics refers to development of mathematical methods for application to problems in physics. The Journal of Mathematical Physics defines this area as: "the application of mathematics to problems in physics and the development of mathematical methods suitable for such applications and...
and a professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
at the University of California, Riverside
University of California, Riverside
The University of California, Riverside, commonly known as UCR or UC Riverside, is a public research university and one of the ten general campuses of the University of California system. UCR is consistently ranked as one of the most ethnically and economically diverse universities in the United...
(UCR) in Riverside
Riverside, California
Riverside is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, and the county seat of the eponymous county. Named for its location beside the Santa Ana River, it is the largest city in the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metropolitan area of Southern California, 4th largest inland California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. He is known for his work on spin foam
Spin foam
In physics, a spin foam is a topological structure made out of two-dimensional faces that represents one of the configurations that must be summed to obtain a Feynman's path integral description of quantum gravity...
s in loop quantum gravity
Loop quantum gravity
Loop quantum gravity , also known as loop gravity and quantum geometry, is a proposed quantum theory of spacetime which attempts to reconcile the theories of quantum mechanics and general relativity...
. More recently, his research has focused on applications of higher categories
Higher category theory
Higher category theory is the part of category theory at a higher order, which means that some equalities are replaced by explicit arrows in order to be able to explicitly study the structure behind those equalities.- Strict higher categories :...
to physics. On January 14, 2010 Baez announced that he is leaving categorical mathematical physics. He said "I want to shift the focus of my research away from fancy abstract n-categorical math to slightly more practical things. My job at the CQT (Centre for Quantum Technologies
Centre for Quantum Technologies
The Centre for Quantum Technologies in Singapore is a Research Centre of Excellence hosted by the National University of Singapore. The Centre brings together quantum physicists and computer scientists to explore the quantum nature of reality and the fundamental limits of information...
) will give me a chance to explore computer science, microtraps, and quantum optics. What I really want to do is help save our beleaguered planet."
Baez is also known to science fans as the author of This Week's Finds in Mathematical Physics, an irregular column on the internet featuring mathematical exposition and criticism. He started This Week's Finds in 1993 for the Usenet
Usenet
Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion system. It developed from the general purpose UUCP architecture of the same name.Duke University graduate students Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979 and it was established in 1980...
community, and it now has a worldwide following in its new form, the blog "Azimuth". This Week's Finds anticipated the concept of a personal weblog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
. Additionally, Baez is known on the World Wide Web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
as the author of the crackpot index
Crackpot index
The crackpot index is a number that rates scientific claims or the individuals that make them, in conjunction with a method for computing that number. The method, proposed semi-seriously by mathematical physicist John Baez in 1992, computes an index by responses to a list of 36 questions, each...
.
Early life and education
Baez was born in San Francisco, CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
He graduated from Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
in Princeton
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in mathematics in 1982. In 1986, he graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
in Cambridge
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, with a Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
under the direction of Irving Segal
Irving Segal
Irving Ezra Segal was a mathematician known for work on theoretical quantum mechanics.He was at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology...
.
Career
After a post-doctoral period at Yale UniversityYale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in New Haven
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, he has been teaching — since 1989 — at UCR.
Blog
Baez runs the blog "Azimuth," where he writes about a variety of topics ranging from This Week's Finds in Mathematical Physics to the current focus, combating climate change and various other environmental issues.Family
Singer and progressive activistActivism
Activism consists of intentional efforts to bring about social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing...
Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
is his cousin and her father, physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
Albert Baez
Albert Baez
Albert Vinicio Baez, Ph.D. was a prominent Mexican-American physicist, and the father of singers Joan Baez and Mimi Fariña. He was born in Puebla, Mexico, and his family moved to the United States when he was two years old because his father was a Methodist minister...
, was his uncle.
John Baez is married to Lisa Raphals who is a professor of Chinese and comparative literature at UCR.
External links
- Baez's home page at UCR's official website (ucr.edu)
- Azimuth blog by Baez
- The n-Category Café, a physics/mathematics/philosophyPhilosophyPhilosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
blog by Baez, philosopher David CorfieldDavid CorfieldDavid Corfield is a philosopher specializing in mathematics and psychology. He is the author of Towards a Philosophy of Real Mathematics , in which he argues that the philosophical implications of mathematics did not stop with Kurt Gödel's incompleteness theorems...
, and physicist Urs Schreiber, hosted at The University of Texas at AustinUniversity of Texas at AustinThe University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
's official website - nLab, a wiki-lab for collaborative original research in mathematics, physics, and philosophy; see also nLabNLabnLab is a wiki-lab of a novel kind, for collaborative work on mathematics, physics, and philosophy, including original research, with a focus on category theory. The nLab espouses the n-point of view : that category theory and higher category theory provide a useful unifying viewpoint for...
- "Should I be thinking about quantum gravity?", essay by Baez at The World Question Center. Online HTML versions at Baez's site or see lanl.arXiv.org copy