Zee JLF | Science may be less fun, but its challenging: Lisa Randall

Lisa Randall has been called the "superstar scientist", a professor of theoretical physics at Harvard University who has not just done some path-breaking work in science but is something of a celebrity too who writes books that make it to bestseller lists and jetsets across the world giving talks. One such talk, on her recently published book "Dark Matter and the Universe: The Astonishing Interconnectedness of the Universe", Randal delivered at the Charbagh lawns on the opening 2018 ZeeJLF in which she tried to elucidate the intricacies of 'dark matter', 'dark energy', 'Oort cloud' and other such esoteric phenomena. Edited excerpts from an interview Randall gave to Gargi Gupta after the session

How hard is it to explain the complexities of dark matter, to an audience that has no idea about your field?

I have been doing it for 10 years now! When I wrote my first book (my quandary was), how do you even describe what the questions are to people who don't know what the basic elements are? I was trying to explain something called the hierarchy problem. Just to get to the point where you can say what it was before explaining required quite a bit of background. On the other hand, I like challenges and it is a bit of a puzzle trying to work out how to put together these pieces. Also metaphors, especially if you find ones that work, really help you explain things.

Have you been asked questions that have foxed you? Or funny ones?

There was once a little kid who told me that he'd been thinking all his life about how dark matter, and black holes, and gravity can explain alien life form. I look at him and said, you haven't actually been thinking of that all your life!

Why do you see so few women in the higher academia in science?

It would be naïve to say that there are no differences. But in society there are always differences, but if you focus too much on them it can get in the way. There are also implicit or explicit discrimination. The assumptions that people make are not the same about men and women; women have to prove themselves a little more. I like to think it makes you do a better job sometimes.

As to why women don't take up science, it's a challenging field. It's a rare thing to do for anybody to do. And less fun in some ways too. But one of the reasons I wrote this book is because I felt it was more important to have more women out there doing this. Everyone thinks it's just guys.

You were one of the scientists who worked on Christopher Nolan's film Interstellar. What was it like?

I wasn't a part of the film, I was just at one early meeting where they were trying to see what sciences could go with it. Up to that point they had thought that there would be much more of the kind of science I was working on. 
They didn't want any science that contradicted the laws of physics. But I think there's a new movie in the works that will use more of these ideas.

You love rock-climbing, go surfing – how do you reconcile the adventurous, outdoorsy person with the serious professor persona?

I do like to rock-cimb but I have not been out that much this year. But I go to the rockclimbing gym a lot. It was something I discovered a little late in life – how much I like the outdoors. Rock-climbing is a bit of problem solving - trying to work out the best routes. It really focusses your attention, and is physically rewarding.