Dr. Stephen Webb
Stephen Webb, Ph.D. is a Physicist and Author of numerous popular science and math books and academic publications. He is a TED speaker, has appeared as a guest on several radio shows and podcasts, and has contributed to the occasional TV program.
Stephen has a passion for learning why the world is the way it is and asking whether it could be any different. His passion came from reading science fiction — Asimov, Heinlein, and Clarke in particular — and led him to study particle physics.
Stephen earned his Ph.D. in Theoretical Particle Physics from The University of Manchester in 1988, focusing on Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD). He earned his Bachelor’s Degree of Science in Physics from the University of Bristol in 1984.
Isaac Asimov’s story The Fun They Had, about computerized homeschooling, prompted him to consider how digital technology might deepen students’ learning, which in turn led to posts in a variety of UK universities.
He worked at the University of Cardiff in the Physics Department 1993–1995, in the School of Maths & Statistics at the University of Sheffield 1995–1998, in the Department of Mathematical Sciences at the University of Loughborough 1998–99, in the School of Information Sciences at the Northumbria University from 1999 to 2000, and at The Open University as Developer of Mathematics Distance Learning Courses 2000–2006.
Stephen’s realization that people find STEM subjects “hard” sparked his interest in how people learn. His enthusiasm for all things tech made it natural for him to venture into the realm of how technology can enhance our learning capabilities.
He became the Head of Technology Enhanced Learning at the University of Portsmouth between 2006 and 2023 where he led a talented team that supported, developed, and investigated learning technologies.
He was elected Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in 2013 and was Project Lead for the UK Advance HE Collaborative Award in Teaching Excellence (CATE 2022).
Since he left the University of Portsmouth, Stephen has been interested in generative technology, as it has the potential to shape truly personalized learning on a mass scale. He has been exploring ChatGPT plugins and other LLM to learn how the technology could help with learning.
He is currently also focused on writing. Stephen is the author of an undergraduate textbook on distance determination in astronomy as well as several general and popular science books. He is also the author of several popular science books in which he enjoys communicating topics such as physics and cosmology to a broader audience than he could reach in a traditional classroom setting.
His first book was about the story of how astronomers learned how big the universe is, Measuring the Universe: The Cosmological Distance Ladder published in 1999. It starts with how the ancient Greeks measured the size of our planet; it describes how astronomers determined the scale of the solar system and used that knowledge to get the distance to nearby stars; how that knowledge lets us understand the scale of our galaxy; and — step by step — how we determine distances on the largest scales in the universe.
Stephen’s passion for reading the pages of science fiction magazines introduced him to the Fermi Paradox. This kindled a lifelong fascination with the problem of why we see no signs of extraterrestrial intelligence and led to his most popular award-winning book If the Universe is Teeming with Aliens … Where is Everybody? 50 Solutions to the Fermi Paradox and the Problem of Extraterrestrial Life, published in 2002. The 2nd edition of Where is Everybody? from 2015 has a further 25 approaches to Fermi’s question and contains a foreword by our Martin Rees.
Choice magazine selected Where is Everybody? as Outstanding Academic Title 2015 for excellence in scholarship and presentation, the significance of its contribution to the field, and its treatment of the subject.
His latest book, published in March 2023, is Around the World in 80 Ways, and contains 80 world maps and choropleths (thematic maps that use color to illustrate some variable of interest), with each map accompanied by a short essay.
His other notable works are:
- All the Wonder that Would Be: Exploring Past Notions of the Future, where he compares the assumptions about how the future would turn out with reality in ten science fictional themes;
- New Light Through Old Windows: Exploring Contemporary Science Through 12 Classic Science Fiction Tales, an anthology of classic science fiction tales; each tale appears alongside a commentary detailing the latest scientific thinking relating to the story’s theme;
- Out of this World: Colliding Universes, Branes, Strings, and Other Wild Ideas of Modern Physics;
- New Eyes on the Universe: Twelve Cosmic Mysteries and the Tools We Need to Solve Them.
Stephen’s Clash of Symbols stands out from his usual. It gives the stories behind 100 characters, signs, and symbols. This book answers questions like: “Who chose π to represent the ratio of a circle’s diameter to its circumference?” or “What’s the reasoning behind having a ⌘ key on my computer keyboard?”
Stephen was elected a Member of the Institute of Physics in 1989. He is a Member of the UK SETI Research Network and he serves on the international editorial board of Springer’s “Science & Fiction” book series and is advising on the nascent “Science & Art” series.
Read Stephen Webb: Don’t be surprised if we find a silent universe, Stephen Webb: Are We Alone in the Universe? The Fermi Paradox and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence.
His 2018 TED Talk Where are all the aliens? has been viewed 4.7 million times. Also, watch WAS September 2022 – Dr. Stephen Webb – Where Are All the Aliens?
Listen to Rationally Speaking #203 – Stephen Webb on “Where is Everybody?
Read Part One, Part Two, and Part Three of the Ars Technica interview with Stephen.
Visit his Homepage, LinkedIn profile, TED profile, and GoodReads profile. Follow him on Twitter and his TED Speaker Page. Follow his writing, his other publications, and his other work.
