George Ellis
Senior Scholar and Professor Emeritus at University of Cape Town
Schools
- University of Cape Town
Links
Biography
University of Cape Town
Research interests:
- General relativity; cosmology; science policy; top down causation, and its relation to brain functioning
Degrees:
- B.Sc.(Hons) (Cape Town), B.Com.(Hons) (Cape Town);
- Ph.D. (Cantab).
Past Positions:
- Lecturer, DAMTP (Cambridge)
- Professor of Cosmic Physics, SISSA (Trieste)
- Visiting Professor: Texas University, University of Chicago, Hamburg University, Boston University, University of Alberta, London University.
- Visiting Fellow Commoner, Trinity College, Cambridge from April to September, 2013
- Visiting Professor Physics Department, Oxford University 2016-2018
- Visiting Professor of Complex Systems, Said School of Business, Oxford 2019-2021
Honours/Positions:
- National Research Foundation (NRF) A-rating.
- Fellow and Past President of the Royal Society of South Africa (RSSA).
- Founder Member and past Member of Council of Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf).
- Past President of the International Society for General Relativity and Gravitation.
- Fellow of the University of Cape Town.
- Honorary Degrees: Haverford College, Natal University, London University (Queen Mary).
- Herschel Medal (RSSA), Achievement Award (Claude Harris Leon Foundation),
- Gold Medal: South African Association for the Advancement of Science (S2A3),
- Gold Medal (S A Mathematical Society).
- Member of the drafting team of the DACST Green Paper on Science and Technology after President Mandela’s election, which lead to the White Paper.
- Past Member of the InterAcademy Council (Amsterdam), (2001-2005).
- Joint Editor in Chief of the International Journal of General Relativity and Gravitation (2006 -2011). Please see here a nice paper on reviewing.
- Star of South Africa Medal presented by President Nelson Mandela (1999).
- 2004 Templeton Prize winner (presented by Prince Philip at Buckingham Palace).
- Fellow of the Third World Academy of Science (TWAS), 2004.
- NSTF 2004 award for an individual contribution to Science and Technology over a lifetime.
- Academy of Science of South Africa Science-for-Society gold medal (2005).
- Order of Mapungubwe (Silver) conferred by President Thabo Mbeki (2006).
- FRS (Fellow of the Royal Society, London): inducted July 2007.
- Honorary Fellow, Royal Society of South Africa (2008)
- Honorary Degree, University of Cape Town (December, 2009) [citation]
- South African Institute of Physics De Beers Gold Medal (September 2010)
- Civic honours awarded by the City of Cape Town (2011)
- Awarded Fellowship of SA Institute of Physics (2012).
- Awarded Fellowship of the International Society on General Relativity and Gravitation at GR20 (2013). Citation . "For his contributions to the theory of the large-scale structure of spacetime and to relativistic cosmology, and for service to the Society."
- Honorary degree, University Paris Sorbonne and University Pierre et Marie Curie (2016)
- Honorary Degree Rhodes University, April 2019
- Lemaître Prize of the University of Louvain, May 2019
Teaching and research interests:
- General Relativity theory and its application to the study of the large-scale structure of the universe (cosmology).
- The history and philosophy of cosmology.
- Complex systems and emergence of complexity.
- The human brain and behaviour.
- Science policy, developmental issues.
- Science and mathematics education.
- The relation of science to religion.
Videos
George F. R. Ellis - Multiverse: Where Do We Go from Here?
George Ellis - What Does an Expanding Universe Mean?
How quantum physics debunks determinism | George Ellis
Understanding Consciousness | Rupert Sheldrake, George Ellis, Amie Thomasson
George F. R. Ellis - What are the Ultimate Questions of All Reality?
George F. R. Ellis - What are Possible Worlds?
George Ellis, What are the limits of scientific explanation? - an interview
George Ellis - Are There Multiple Universes?
George F. R. Ellis - What Exists?
On the Nature of Causality in Complex Systems, George F.R. Ellis
George F.R. Ellis, On the Nature of Cosmology Today (2012 Copernicus Center Lecture)
George F. R. Ellis - Philosophy of Cosmology
George F. R. Ellis - What Is Strong Emergence?
George Ellis - Why is There Anything at All? (Part 3)
What Exists is Not Only Physical | George Ellis
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