inspiration of astronomy goes deeper than thatdemonstrate the through this article to hope I But culture. modern throughout woven are ideas and words astronomical cise, they will conclude for themselves that exer music this of end and the By can. film they as titles and names product nomical astro many as with up come to them ask to and groups into small is audience your divide workshop or class a for activities ice-breaker best the of one this, show To films. and poetry plays, tobeer song lyrics, television programmes, from astronomically named chocolate and — culture popular modern in everywhere plesof astronomical influence seem tobe exam and fields other in people creative has Astronomy long been an for inspiration Introduction issue future a of the in appear will astronomy, by inspired music to devoted paper, second A fiction. through and humanities, the poetry plays, in at astronomy inspiration looking astronomical of approaching examples some been examine has I article this In non-scientists humanities. of the on interest influence the its capturing for found have I that tools effective more astronomy, as well as developing activities to help the not public is appreciate astronomical ideas and study developments. ofOne of subject the primary whose students university to astronomy introductory teaching decades four spent have I [email protected] USA Altos, Los College, Foothill Chair of Astronomy Andrew Fraknoi CAPjournal, No. 18, September 2015 18, September No. CAPjournal, drawing by enhanced easily be can talks astronomy public and lectures Classroom languages. other readers of astronomically-themed works in from examples welcome and apologise I which for English, in materials to restricted sign be will are The also examples posted throughout. depth more in topic the explore to used be can that Resources scholars qualified more to classics other and Homer Shakespeare, of astronomy the leaving ones, modern to relatively and cificsuggestions they will be restricted spe few a than more for space enough not is there introduction, ashort such In titles. and names mere Cosmic Fiction, Drama and Poetry to Astronomy: Approaches Interdisciplinary CAPjournal .

1 - - - - - . exploring the role of women at the Harvard Harvard the at women of role Leavitt, the Henrietta ­exploring of work and life the Interdisciplinary, science fiction, science in Keywords nulse — play, — unpublished far so and — recent more Gunderson’s her in published are plays Both Prize. Nobel the receiving Wilson and Penzias to reaction emotional his and Bang, Big the of nings develop Gamow some of the theoretical underpin George helped who Alpher, Ralph Newton, while Isaac young a to came ration play Her others. than straightforward more some ence, sci about plays of number a written has Atlanta, USA, now living from in San Francisco, playwright a Gunderson, Lauren performed. and produced sionally profes been have which of number a — and operas about the lives of plays astronomers of flood small a experienced have we years recent in but unusual, was omer astron an of life the about play popular a twice revised he which life, Galileo’s of period later the about play a In Brecht Bertolt wrote the century twentieth Plays astronomers about admire. theyartists other andwriters,composers, highlighting the influence they have hadon scientificconcepts more approachable by abstract sometimes the makes and ences audi and students amongst familiarity of from these other fields. Itcreates a feeling cinema, science in literature Background Deepen the Mystery the Deepen Leap is about the physicist physicist the about is explores how inspi how explores Silent Sky (2005). 2 . At the time, time, the At . , follows follows , ------of the USA of the on both the East Westformed and Coasts per been has play The disability. hearing her with struggle her and Observatory, Fraknoi in 1992. Credit: Andrew Fraknoi Andrew Credit: 1992. in ­Fraknoi 1. Figure the in role central a play will itself tarium plane the and Newton, Isaac and Rubin to Light Dark called play, The Planetarium. Fiske at the cur premiering rently is Kovacsik William by play new A women against barriers the with struggles her and work, her life, brief concerns cosmologist Beatrice Tinsley, her play Hoar’s Stuart dramatist UK the in formances per seen has which Herschel, Caroline about play a has Nicholas Siobhan wright in Irish and actress drama. play portrayed Other female astronomers have also been Photograph of Vera Rubin with Andrew Andrew with Rubin Vera of Photograph 3 . , involves two actors who play play who actors two involves , Vera Rubin: Bringing the the Bringing Rubin: Vera 4 , while New Zealand Zealand New while , 5 . Bright Star 7 - - - - -

Column Interdisciplinary Approaches to Astronomy: Cosmic Fiction, Drama and Poetry

­performance with audiovisual materials being projected onto the dome6.

Many of the plays exploring the lives of astronomers focus on their relationships with one another. Reading the Mind of God is a play about Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler, by the American playwright Patrick Gabridge, which focuses on their relation- ship at the end of Brahe’s life7. Another astronomical rivalry, that between Edmund Halley and John Flamsteed in England, has been explored by British dramatist Kevin Hood in The Astronomer’s Garden (1991). Figure 2. Cover of the Galileo Galilei opera by Philip Glass. More recent plays have used fictional astronomers to highlight characters who are unworldly, or represent a scien- 2009. Glass is one of the most success- tific perspective. These include Kenneth ful of modern classical composers, with Lonergan’s The Starry Messenger, recently music that crosses over to film scores and performed on Broadway, which features is enjoyed by many who are not fans of an astronomy instructor at the old Hayden classical music. His Kepler is more a med- Planetarium in New York City, USA, on the itation on themes and ideas than a com- eve of its being torn down8. Jamie Pachino’s plete story with a lot of action. Glass, like Splitting Infinity explores interactions Hindemith, points out the contrast between Figure 3. Film poster for the 1944 comedy between a fictional female ­astrophysicist, Kepler’s challenging, complex life and his The ­Heavenly Body. her Christian Scientist postdoc, and a rabbi dreams of order in the sky. An Austrian pro- who has known her since childhood. The duction of this opera is available on DVD play received mixed reviews. from Orange Mountain Music. Glass has in which Hedy Lamarr plays the neglected written a series of operas about noted sci- wife of an astronomer who turns to an The life and work of a somewhat more entists. The series began with the rather astrologer for advice. A 2011 Brazilian film, obscure astronomer, Guillaume Le Gentil, infamous Einstein on the Beach, a medita- Corpos Celestes — rendered in English as an 18th century observer who was espe- tion on Einstein’s life and ideas, now avail- The Sky We Were Born Under — uses the cially unlucky with the locations he chose able in several recorded versions and first protagonist’s profession as an astronomer to measure the transits of Venus, is the performed in 1976. Next was Galileo Galilei, not as a catalyst for romance, but to repre- inspiration for the play, Transit of Venus, which has recently been issued on CD by sent life and loneliness. by the Canadian playwright Maureen Orange Mountain Music label, featuring a Hunter (2007). The play later became an performance at the Portland Opera10. Two portrayals of astrophysicists in recent opera with the same title, with music by cinema take a more straightforward Victor Davies. approach. In Contact Jody Foster plays a A few films with astronomers radio astronomer engaged in a Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) project, Astronomy at the opera In cinema, astronomers have been por- a character based, in part, on Jill Tarter, trayed in a range of roles, from hapless at the SETI Institute. The film is based on Operas about astronomers have also romantic foils to villains or unwitting victims a best-selling book by Carl Sagan (1985), become more common in recent years. whose discoveries lead to the end of the in which he tried to portray what a SETI Paul Hindemith’s 1957 opera, Harmonie world. I will leave the older science fiction success might involve11. In The Theory der Welt, was inspired by some of Kepler’s films to others to catalogue, but can men- of Everything, which won actor Eddie ideas on the similarities between mathe- tion a few examples from other film genres. Redmayne an Oscar for his remarkable matical and musical harmonies, which portrayal of Stephen Hawking, it is the resonated with the composer’s own views In Roxanne, a modern retelling of Cyrano de personal challenges of Hawking’s illness, on harmony theory. It is a complex opera, Bergerac, Daryl Hannah plays an astrono- rather than his scientific work, that takes which contrasts Kepler’s search for laws mer who comes to a small town to look the fore. and harmony in the Universe with the dis- for a comet. In Addicted to Love, Matthew harmony and chaos of human existence, Broderick is an astronomer who follows and especially the times and wars during the woman he is in love with to the city. In Science fiction with good which Kepler lived9. both films, astronomy takes a back seat to astronomy romantic comedy. Astronomy — and long A more modern opera by Philip Glass nights at the telescope — are more central I recommend science fiction stories which about Kepler, titled Kepler, premiered in in the 1944 comedy The Heavenly Body, build on good science in all of my classes

8 CAPjournal, No. 18, September 2015 CAPjournal, No. 18, September 2015

— and Geoff Landis, who both work at Quiet War (2002) series which explores NASA; Mike Brotherton at the University all of the Solar System’s planets during a of Wyoming, USA; and Michael Shara at time of war over the genetic modification the American Museum of Natural History, of organisms. Engineer G. David Nordley among others. has also written some wonderful stories about Solar System exploration, includ- Several other distinguished astronomers ing Crossing Chao Meng Fu (1998), set on have written works of fiction that can be Mercury, and Into the Miranda Rift (1994). worth searching out for their informed For a gripping tale on what it would be take on the science. These include plan- like to be stranded on the Moon, I recom- etary scientist William Hartmann of the mend A Walk in the Sun (1992) by Geoff Planetary Science Institute, USA, who Landis. These are just some of the stories wrote Mars Underground (1977), describ- that could seize the imagination of a young ing the search for life on and under the reader and lead them toward science. You surface of the red planet; nuclear astro- can do your students and audiences a life- physicist Donald Clayton of Clemson long favour by recommending some of the University, USA, whose novel The Joshua stories that celebrate our modern under- Factory (1986) tells a tale of neutrinos; and standing of the Universe18. J. Craig Wheeler, the former President of Figure 4. Fred Hoyle cuts a cake showing the Galaxy the American Astronomical Society, who with a black hole centre at a reception in his honour explored threat of quantum black holes in Poetry and the Universe at the Berkeley astronomy department, USA, in 1970. The Krone Experiment (1986). Credit: Andrew Fraknoi Doing justice to the wealth of astronomi- Among these authors, Benford has per- cal inspiration expressed through poems haps the highest reputation for writing out- is not possible in such a short introduc- and public talks. Over the years, I have put standing fiction. Many of his novels make a tion, but there are some key examples of together a website which organises the point of showing scientists at work in realis- informed astronomical poets whose work stories that I have collected by ­scientific tic laboratory and academic settings, whilst can be used to illustrate outreach work. topic12. One interesting observation from grappling with fictional scientific prob- pulling together this list is that the ­number lems15. Benford’s early novel, Timescape A number of astronomical poets wrote from of stories written by authors who have (1980), features astronomers like Fred an informed perspective. The American advanced degrees in astronomy or ­physics Hoyle, Margaret and Geoffrey Burbidge, poet Robert Frost, for example, was an continues to grow13. and Carl Sagan as characters. His novels amateur astronomer. Poet and ­essayist featuring organic and machine life locked Diane Ackerman received her Masters Perhaps the best-known example from in a life-and-death struggle at the centre and PhD at Cornell University, where she the 1950s and 1960s is the late British of the Galaxy are now classics, and his took astronomy classes from Carl Sagan. ­cosmologist Fred Hoyle. recent short stories have addressed cos- Her 1976 collection, The Planets: A Cosmic mological and SETI issues from interesting Pastoral, shows the influence of her study It is rumoured that Hoyle wrote science viewpoints anchored in current ­scientific of astronomy most directly, although you fiction to get into print those of his ideas ­thinking16. can find other astronomy poems in her col- that the scientific journals were not willing lection, A Jaguar of Sweet Laughter (1993). to indulge. For example, his best known Reynolds established his reputation a novel, The Black Cloud, suggested the generation later than Benford, but is Robinson Jeffers (1887–1962) was a 20th possibility of organic molecules — and life winning many awards for his film noir century poet who celebrated nature and itself — in interstellar clouds years before ­portrayals of our future in space. His novel the coast of his native California. The such molecules were discovered14. His Revelation: Space (2000) is a marvellous poet’s brother was the Lick Observatory novel, October the First is Too Late (1966) place to begin exploring his work and it is astronomer Hamilton Jeffers; as a result, may well be the first fictional working out worth finding an anthology that features his the poet Jeffers was well informed about of the implications of the many-worlds short story, Beyond the Aquila Rift (2005) developments in astronomy and included ­interpretation of quantum mechanics. — rarely has an author succeeded in them in his works. One of his most powerful These works present a strong case for the ­portraying the truly astronomical distances poems, Margrave (1932), contrasts the vast value of fiction as a platform for exploring of the objects we study so movingly17. impersonality of the expanding Universe new scientific concepts. with the horror of a child kidnapping and Some of the most engaging science fiction­ killing here on Earth19. Nowadays a good number of practicing stories are those in which the reader is astronomers and physicists are writing given a realistic picture of what it might Astronomer Rebecca Elson was actively interesting science fiction, among them be like to stand on the surfaces of other writing poetry alongside technical papers Alastair Reynolds in England; Gregory worlds and experience their alien envi- on globular clusters. Some of the poems Benford from the University of California, ronments. Biologist Paul McAuley is one celebrate astronomy, while others mov- USA; Yoji Kondo — pen-name Eric Kotani ­master of such stories, for example in his ingly anticipate the inevitable course of her

Interdisciplinary Approaches to Astronomy: Cosmic Fiction, Drama and Poetry 9 Interdisciplinary Approaches to Astronomy: Cosmic Fiction, Drama and Poetry

Although many of these collections are out her first novel, The Falling Sky (2013). of print, a little research will unveil a number Goldschmidt’s intriguing short stories are of useful websites that list and even give collected under the title The Need for Better the text of astronomical poems20. Regulation of Outer Space (2015) many of which have scientific themes, and some of which include characters like Albert Literature with astronomy: Einstein and Robert Oppenheimer. A sampling

There are two authors in the United Conclusion Kingdom who have been writing bio­ graphies of astronomers with a ­fictional I hope these few examples have provided twist, which may attract the ­general pub- an indication of the wealth of interaction lic to some of the interesting ­history of between astronomy and the humanities our field. Astrophysicist and ­science that exists for your exploration, or for the journalist Stuart Clark, a senior ­editor exploration of the students or audiences for the European Space Agency, has who we, as science communicators, work written a trilogy of such novels, which with. Whether you include them in your includes The Sky’s Dark Labyrinth (2011), PowerPoint slides, or provide a printed on Kepler and Galileo; The Sensorium of resource guide to take home, they should God (2012), on Halley and Newton; and reinforce in the minds of your students or The Day Without Yesterday (2013), on audiences the idea that their appreciation Einstein and Lemaitre. ­Award-winning Irish of astronomy is shared by many creative novelist John Banville wrote Kepler: A Novel people the world over. (1981) and Dr Copernicus (1976), which are directly biographical in nature, and The Newton Letter (1982), which is more of Notes a meditation on the difficulty of capturing Figure 5. Astronomer Rebecca Elson. the life of someone as complex as Newton 1 There is a regular series of international con- Credit: Wikimedia in a narrative. ferences entitled The Inspiration of Astronomical Phenomena: http://www.insap.org/. The novel Theatre of the Stars by N. M. Their proceedings, recently published through the Astronomical Society of the illness — she died of leukaemia at the age Kelby has as its protagonist a female Pacific Conference Series, are a treasure of 39. The poems are collected in the post- astronomer who has discovered an X-ray trove of more scholarly articles and humous volume, A Responsibility to Awe binary system that contains a black hole resources in this field. (2001), part of the Oxford Poets series. and, at the same time, is trying to unwrap 2 Bertolt Brecht’s play Galileo can also be the complex life story of her mother, a found on film directed by Joseph Losey, and I should note that several astronomers physicist and Holocaust survivor. Steve starring Topol as Galileo, available on King share my interest in poetry that is inspired Maran and Alyssa Goodman are among Video. by astronomy, including Canadian-born the astronomers that the author thanks in 3 A brief, humorous excerpt from Silent Sky comet hunter David Levy, who has a degree her acknowledgements. can be found on YouTube at: https://www. in English, and the British discoverer of the youtube.com/watch?v=KiwG6r-9gcw and first pulsars, Jocelyn Bell-Burnell. Both of Another novel in which the author thanks Gunderson describes the astronomy and them have put together anthologies of astronomers for their contribution — in history behind the play in this short video: astronomical poetry, which cover a range this case, Canadian astronomers James https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7XQG- of poetic styles, from old-fashioned odes Hesser and Dennis Crabtree — is Cold Mnxikw. to modern experiments with the power and Dark Matter by Alex Brett (2005). This one 4 Video excerpts of Siobhan Nicholas's play pattern of language. is a mystery whose plot centres on astro- about Caroline Herschel are available at: nomical observations of the effects of dark https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nzf- Maurice Riordan and Jocelyn Bell-Burnell’s matter on the rotation of the Andromeda 1wZNQhY and a brief review in New Scientist collection, Dark Matter: Poems of Space Galaxy. Another astronomical mystery can also be found online: https://www.newscientist.com/article/ (2008), brings older poems together with is laid out in Total Eclipse by Liz Rigbey dn23863-new-play-shines-light-across- a number commissioned specifically for (1966) which takes place at a Californian time-on-women-astronomers/. the book, while David Levy’s Starry Night: ­mountain-top observatory, with a lot of 5 Stuart Hoar’s play Bright Star has now been Astronomers and Poets Read the Sky atmospheric detail; it received mixed retitled The Smallest Universe in the World, (2001) interweaves poems with the story reviews for its plot, however. and the play’s website is at: of the poets and the history of astronomy. http://www.brightstar-theplay.com/. More recently, Pippa Goldschmidt, who A number of others have put together has both a PhD in astronomy and a anthologies of poems related to science. Masters in creative writing, has published

10 CAPjournal, No. 18, September 2015 CAPjournal, No. 18, September 2015

6 More information about William Kovacsik’s 20 Among the collections, you might start with: Jeffers, R. 1932, Margrave in Thurso’s Landing play premiering at the Fiske Planetarium: Brown, Kurt, ed. Verse and Universe: and Other Poems, (New York: Liveright) http://betc.org/fiske-planetarium-boulder­ Poems about Science and Mathematics Landis, G. 1992, A Walk in the Sun in Dozois, ensemble-theatre-company-collaboration. (1998, ­Milkweed) and Heath-Stubbs, John & G., ed. The Year’s Best Science Fiction: Ninth 7 More information on Reading the Mind of Salman, Phillips, eds. Poems of Science Annual Collection, (New York: St. ­Martin’s God by American playwright Patrick (1984, Viking). Good websites to begin with Griffin) include Mario Tessier’s Nox Oculis at: Gabridge: http://www.gabridge.com/full- Levy, D. 2001, Starry Night: Astronomers http://pages.infinit.net/noxoculi/poetry.html length-plays/reading-the-mind-of-god/. and Poets Read the Sky, (Amherst, NY: and Astropoetica (a journal publishing new 8 T h e New York Times review of Starry ­Prometheus) astronomy poems, which has ended its run, ­Messenger can be read at: but has beautiful archives) at: McAuley, P. 2002, The Gardens of Saturn, in http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/24/theater/ http://www.astropoetica.com/. Supermen: Tales of the Posthuman Future, reviews/24starry.html?_r=0 ed. Dozois, G., (New York: St. Martin’s ­Griffin) 9 The first complete recording of Paul Nordley, G. D. 1994, Into the Miranda Rift in ­Hindemith’s play is available from the Wergo Dozois, G., ed. The Year’s Best Science label catalogue for: http://www.wergo.de/ References ­Fiction: Eleventh Annual Collection, shop/en_UK/3/show,132906.html. (New York: St. Martin’s Griffin) 10 Some excerpts from Galileo Galilei showing Ackerman, D. 1976, The Planets: A Cosmic Nordley, G. D. 1998, Crossing Chao Meng Fu key scenes in the opera can be seen on Pastorale, (New York: HarperCollins) in Dozois, G., ed. The Year’s Best Science YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/ Fiction: Fifteenth Annual Collection, watch?v=lhL_C3QqaY8. Ackerman, D. 1993, A Jaguar of Sweet Laughter, (New York: Vintage) (New York: St. Martin’s Griffin) 11 Jill Tarter discusses the novel, the film and Banville, J. 1976, Doctor Copernicus, (New York: Reynolds, A. 2000, Revelation: Space, her relationship to them in this brief video: (London: Gollancz) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-akFL- W. W. Norton) Reynolds, A. 2005, Beyond the Aquila Rift, first FLgAk. Banville, J. 1981, Kepler: A Novel, (London: published in Crowther, P., ed. ­Constellations. 12 Secker & Warburg) For the author's topical guide to science (New York: DAW Books) ­fiction with good astronomy see: Banville, J. 1982, The Newton Letter, (New York: Rigbey, L. 1996, Total Eclipse, (New York: http://www.astrosociety.org/scifi. Warner Books) Pocket Books) 13 A brief list of science fiction authors with sci- Benford, G. 1980, Timescape, (New York: Riordan, M. & Bell-Burnell, J. ed., 2008, ence degrees can be found in Appendix 1 of Simon & Schuster) Dark Matter: Poems of Space, my article on teaching with science fiction: Brett, A. 2005, Cold Dark Matter, (Toronto: (London: Gulbenkian Foundation) http://dx.doi.org/10.3847/AER2002009. Dundurn) Sagan, C. 1985, Contact, (New York: Simon & 14 Jennifer Ouellette discussed The Black Cloud Clark, S. 2011, The Sky’s Dark Labyrinth, Schuster) in a 2014 web post at: (­Edinburgh: Birlinn) http://skullsinthestars.com/2014/08/03/fred- Wheeler, J. C. 1986, The Krone Experiment, Clark, S. 2012, The Sensorium of God, hoyles-the-black-cloud/. (Brentwood, TN: Pressworks) (­Edinburgh: Birlinn) 15 For a slightly eccentric introduction to Clark, S. 2013, The Day Without Yesterday, ­Benford, see: http://www.gregorybenford. (Edinburgh: Birlinn) com/gregory-benford-intro/. Clayton, D. 1986, The Joshua Factory, 16 Some of his stories available on the web (Austin: Texas Monthly Press) include The Final Now: http://www.tor.com/ stories/2010/03/the-final-now and SETI for Elson, R. 2001, A Responsibility to Awe, Profit: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/ (­Manchester: Carcanet Press) v452/n7190/pdf/4521032a.pdf. Goldschmidt, P. 2013, The Falling Sky, 17 To find any published science fiction story (­Glasgow: Freight Books) by title or author, check the Internet Speculative Goldschmidt, P. 2015, The Need for Better Fiction Database at: http://www.isfdb.org. Regulation of Outer Space, (Glasgow: 18 For a list of ten favourite science fiction Freight Books) authors to recommend to students, and Gunderson, L. 2005, Deepen the Mystery: ­Science what stories of theirs to start with, see my and the South Onstage, (­Bloomington, IN: essay at: https://www.researchgate.net/­ iUniverse) Biography publication/261364023_Ten_Science_­ Hartmann, W. 1997, Mars Underground, Fiction_Writers_for_Scientists_and_­ (New York: TOR Books) Science_Enthusiasts. Hood, K. 1991, The Astronomer’s Garden and Andrew Fraknoi is Chair of the ­Astronomy 19 Department at Foothill College near The full text of Margrave can be found at: Beached, (London: Bloomsbury Methuen) http://www.poemhunter.com/best-poems/ San ­Francisco, and was for many years the robinson-jeffers/margrave/. Hoyle, F. 1957, The Black Cloud, (London: Executive Director of the Astronomical ­Society ­William Heinemann) of the Pacific. He co-founded the journal ­Astronomy Education Review, and is the lead Hoyle, F. 1966, October the First is Too Late, author of the Voyages through the ­Universe (London: William Heinemann) series of college textbooks. His first science Hunter, M. 2007, Transit of Venus, 2nd ed. ­fiction story is being published in a Mars (Winnipeg: Scirocco Drama) anthology entitled Building Red later in 2015.

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