Astronomers Are Easygoing, Says Physics Chanteuse

Sing it with me now: Life is a cathode ray...

Well, I can't sing. Hum instead along with Lynda Williams, also known as the Physics Chanteuse, a San Francisco State physics instructor who doubles on the side as a one-woman physics-themed cabaret act.

She's played some of the biggest gigs around: The National Association of Science Writers, the American Geophysical Union, and more. But if you missed her there, check out her Web site, or Sunday's Q&A with the Seattle Times.

A sample here:

Geologists and astronomers tend to be the most loose and easygoing. Women can be tough because they think I'm sexualizing science. ... One of our female faculty saw my show, and her comment was that I wiggle my hips too much. It's like, if you're talking science, you can't wiggle your hips.

Williams is good people, doing good things for science. "We have these global crises facing us that require some level of scientific literacy, and if you don't understand, then you give your power away, and democracy fails," she tells the Times.

I say, sing it louder. That's one song people need to hear.
Let's get physics-al with the chanteuse of science [Seattle Times]

(Image Source: Lynda Williams)