Photos from lecture

Dr. Michio Kaku, American theoretical physicist, presented a lecture at National University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy on May 27. The university’s Assembly Hall at the Culture and Art Center was filled to its 900 capacity.  Other assembly halls and facilities at the university’s campus were also filled with viewers who watched the lecture on television monitors, and filled social media sites with comments and photographs of the event.

Dr. Michio Kaku, the Henry Semat Professor of Theoretical Physics at the City College of New York, visionary, best-selling author, popularizer of science, and the face of a number of TV programs on Discovery, BBC and Science Channel, visited Ukraine for the first time. He is the author of numerous books on physics and related topics, including two New York Times Best Sellers, Physics of the Impossible (2008),  and Physics of the Future (2011).

The lecture was presented at Kyiv Mohyla Academy in the framework of the Public Lectures of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.  It was attended by students and winners of the scholarship programs of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation. During his lecture titled “Physics of the Future”, Dr. Kaku captured the audience with his vision of coming developments in all aspects of life.Victor Pinchuk attended the lecture and accompanied the speaker.

Dr. Michio Kaku was a special guest of the 6th "Zavtra.UA" Youth Forum, “From Idea to Action”, which took place in Kyiv on May 25-27. The renowned scientist met with the winners of the Zavtra.UA nationwide scholarship program of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation and participated in the Forum Award Ceremony on Monday, May 27.

Dr. Michio Kaku, co-creator of the string field theory, shared his vision on the possibilities of future technological revolutionary developments that will change lives and alter the course of civilization itself. Each of his books, publications, or speeches is meant to explain complex scientific theories and laws of the universe in a simple but fascinating language.

Dr. Kaku’s biography served as an inspiration for the audience.  He was born in San Jose, California to Japanese immigrant parents. His grandfather came to the United States to take part in the clean-up operation after the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. His father was born in California but was educated in Japan and spoke little English. Both his parents were put in the Tule Lake War Relocation Center, where they met and where his brother was born.

In high school he assembled a particle accelerator in his parents' garage for a science fair project. At the National Science Fair in Albuquerque, New Mexico, he attracted the attention of physicist Edward Teller, who took Kaku as a protégé, awarding him the Hertz Engineering Scholarship. Kaku graduated summa cum laude at Harvard University in 1968 and was first in his physics class. He attended the Berkeley Radiation Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley and received a Ph.D. in 1972, and in 1972 he held a lectureship at Princeton University.

During the Vietnam War, Kaku completed his U.S. Army basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia and Advanced Infantry Training at Fort Lewis, Washington. However, the Vietnam War ended before he was deployed as an infantryman.

Note: Sources for this report include:pinchukfund.org, ukma.edu.ua, and Wikipedia.