Martin Rees

Described as "one of the most distinguished theoretical physicists of our time," IAS Trustee Emeritus Martin Rees has been announced as the winner of the 2024 Wolf Prize in Physics. Also recognized with a 2024 Wolf Prize in Mathematics was Noga Alon, a frequent Visiting Professor in the School of Mathematics. 

IAS Trustee Sir Martin Rees spoke with Scientific American to discuss threats to Earth and humanity, challenges facing the scientific community, Martian communities and utopian societies, and more.

Albert Einstein said that the “most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible.” He was right to be astonished. Human brains evolved to be adaptable, but our underlying neural architecture has barely changed since our...

For as long as modern science has existed, scientists have attempted to answer such unanswerable questions by trying to either reconcile science and religion, like Galileo did in defending his theories against the Inquisition and Ada Lovelace did in...

It's not only about sharing the products of science, but also the values of science—thinking longterm, thinking about both facts and the uncertainties, thinking in terms of reason. . . . If you think about the Space Race, it was wonderful to put a...

Robbert Dijkgraaf, Director and Leon Levy Professor, narrates The Mind of the Universe, a ten-part television series that explores the work of thirty scientists. The program features Institute scholars including Juan Maldacena, Carl P. Feinberg...

Humans are probably not the greatest intelligences in the universe. Earth is a relatively young planet and the oldest civilizations could be billions of years older than us. But even on Earth, Homo sapiens may not be the most intelligent species for...