Nobel Laureate Visits Lamplighter
If you ask your 10-year-old what she did in school, and she says “chat with a Nobel Laureate,” you might want to put a check on her imagination. Unless of course, she goes to Lamplighter, where that statement is totally legit.
Frank Wilczek, the Herman Feshbach professor of physics at MIT was in Dallas to present at the Lightner-Sams Lecture at SMU in late April and made a pit stop at Lamplighter to answer student’s questions, chat about the universe, and admire the school’s “formidable” roosters. For the press release on the momentous occasion, go to the jump.
Nobel Prize Winner Frank Wilczek Visits Lamplighter
DALLAS, May 11-Frank Wilczek, Nobel Laureate, visited fourth grade students at the Lamplighter School on Thursday, April 28. The Herman Feshbach professor of physics at MIT was in Dallas to present at the Lightner-Sams Lecture at SMU.
Wilczek has received many prizes for his work in physics, including the Nobel Prize of 2004 for work he did as a graduate student at Princeton University, when he was only 21 years old. Wilczek is known for a discovery within the world of quarks. This discovery brings physics one step closer to fulfilling a unified theory comprising gravity.
“I have never seen a school designed like Lamplighter,” said Wilczek. “It is beautiful and functional. I can’t believe you have a farm with animals. These roosters look quite formidable!”
After visiting teacher John Breitfeller’s science class, Wilczek said he was impressed by the thoughtfulness of the students’ questions including one who asked if he always wanted to be a scientist. “Yes, since my childhood I was fascinated with the way things worked, and I never really ever thought about other careers,” Wilczek replied. “I’ve always been drawn by mysteries and puzzles, and science is a very big mystery story.”
Later, the children were intrigued with Professor Wilczek’s story about living in Albert Einstein’s house when he was at the Institute for Advanced Studies at Princeton. Much of Dr. Einstein’s furniture and artifacts remained in the house.
About Lamplighter
The Lamplighter School was founded in 1953 in a farmhouse on Churchill Way. Today’s educational compound on twelve acres in north Dallas has an enrollment of nearly 450 pre-K through fourth grade students. It is made up of thirty classrooms, a fine arts complex, a media center, a premier early childhood health and fitness facility, a greenhouse, and a barn. Lamplighter remains committed to its founding educational mission, while it develops new ways to light the lamps of its students.
