A change of career (or a return to the source)
A Doctoral Thesis "
Radial Velocities in the Zodiacal Dust Cloud" is being submitted to the supervisors at Imperial College in London. The petitioner is someone named Brian May.
You may know him from his other career - the lead guitarist for the band Queen...
From
Space.com/AP:
Rocker Sees Real Stars: Queen's Guitarist to Become Astrophysicist
Brian May is completing his doctorate in astrophysics, more than 30 years after he abandoned his studies to form the rock group Queen.
The 60-year-old guitarist and songwriter said he plans to submit his thesis, "Radial Velocities in the Zodiacal Dust Cloud," to supervisors at Imperial College London within the next two weeks.
May was an astrophysics student at Imperial College when Queen, which included Freddie Mercury and Roger Taylor, was formed in 1970. He dropped his doctorate as the glam rock band became successful.
Queen were one of Britain's biggest music groups in the 1970s, with hits including "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "We Will Rock You."
After Mercury's death in 1991, May recorded several solo albums, including 1998's "Another World." But his interest in astronomy continued, and he co-wrote "Bang! The Complete History of the Universe," which was published last year.
He was due to finish carrying out astronomical observations at an observatory on the island of La Palma, in Spain's Canary Islands, on Tuesday, the observatory said.
May told the British Broadcasting Corp. that he had always wanted to complete his degree.
"It was unfinished business," he said. "I didn't want an honorary Ph.D. I wanted the real thing that I worked for."
Good on him -- nice to see him finish with something he was in love with at the start.
I majored in Physical Oceanography and Marine Biology at Boston University and dropped out when I got a job at the local Aquarium. My interests have diverged a lot and although I love boats and oceanic hardware, I don't have the desire to get a doctorate. Still, I wonder what it would have been like had I stayed on.
If you are interested in Oceanography and have not seen the movie: "
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou", you really need to. It is a loving portrayal of a Jacques Cousteau figure played by Bill Murray. Although set in 'current times', it really captures the feel of Oceanography back in the 60's and the set for the ship is a dead replica of Cousteau's first Calypso, right down to the labs and the equipment. Wonderful dry humor.
Posted by DaveH at August 2, 2007 10:11 PM