2008 Woodie Awards
Psysics for Science Phobes
Haley Edwards
Issue date: 3/26/07 Section: Life & Times
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That is right. This Seattle Pacific University alumna has become, rather by accident, a nationally recognized science
writer and an invaluable liaison between hardcore physics scholars and the average Joan.
In both her long-running physics blog, "Cocktail Party Physics," and her first book, "Black Bodies and Quantum
Cats: Tales from the Annals of Physics," Ouellette uses pop-culture metaphors to explain complex topics in modern physics _
astro- and otherwise. She references Magneto of Marvel Comics to explain magnetism, Fabio
to explain the physics of roller coasters and Tarot cards to illustrate the dynamic probabilities of our physical universe.
Her new book, "The Physics of the Buffyverse" (Penguin, $15), follows the same formula. Only this time, Ouellette employs a
rather more offbeat metaphor: The popular TV series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and its spinoff, "Angel."
At first glance, it's a pretty tough sell. Especially considering that the plot lines of both "Buffy" and "Angel" hinge on the idea that vampires and demons regularly
bubble up from the underworld and must be rebuffed by a ragtag clan of high-school hotties who, when they're not battling
evil, are like totally worried about prom. Not exactly fertile ground for the staunch realism of modern science, right?
But against all odds, Ouellette pulls it off.
In one particularly enticing chapter, Ouellette recounts the time that Buffy, our starring demon-slinging blonde, crosses into another universe to relate the potentiality of a tear in the time/space fabric. While I
wouldn't recommend bringing up references to special relativity in "Buffy" episodes on a first date, the book is a great way to
commune with your inner nerd.
As an English major and one-time physics-phobe herself, Ouellette writes in a style that is both charmingly accessible and
non-condescending.
"Not knowing the basics of physics doesn't make you stupid," Ouellette explains. "I know
lots of very educated people with advanced degrees, who speak many languages, and they don't even know what Schrodinger's cat is."
Uh, whose cat?
Exactly.
But by not assuming any prerequisite knowledge of her readers, Ouellette's work is evidently infuriating to some people
within the scientifi c community.
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