Wednesday 21 March 2018
Robbert Dijkgraaf
The usefulness of useless knowledge
Robbert is Director and Leon Levy Professor of the Institute for Advanced Study, one of the world’s leading centers for curiosity-driven basic research in the sciences and humanities.
Past President of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and Past Co-Chair of the InterAcademy Council, he is a mathematical physicist who has made important contributions to string theory and the advancement of science education. He is a recipient of the Spinoza Prize, the highest scientific award in the Netherlands, and is a Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion.
A member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society, Dijkgraaf is most recently coauthor with Abraham Flexner of The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge.
