{"id":6405,"date":"2016-01-15T14:50:00","date_gmt":"2016-01-15T22:50:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/a-physicist-gets-graphic-about-the-nature-of-the-universe\/"},"modified":"2024-12-17T22:18:22","modified_gmt":"2024-12-18T06:18:22","slug":"a-physicist-gets-graphic-about-the-nature-of-the-universe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/a-physicist-gets-graphic-about-the-nature-of-the-universe\/","title":{"rendered":"A physicist gets graphic about the nature of the universe"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2023\/04\/story-2250-690x432.jpg\"\n                    data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  alt=\"A physicist gets graphic about the nature of the universe\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  Clifford Johnson, professor of physics and astronomy, is using graphic novel storytelling to explain the nature of the universe. The process, shown above, begins with rough work as depicted in blue on the bottom and develops into a detailed finished sequence as shown on top. Image courtesy of Clifford Johnson.\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=faculty\">Faculty<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>A physicist gets graphic about the nature of the universe<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  Ever wonder how the universe came into being? Or, what exactly a black hole is? With a graphic book that will tackle these questions and more, Clifford Johnson of physics and astronomy at USC Dornsife reminds us that science is not just for scientists.\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Michelle Boston<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">January 15, 2016<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span 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   \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <p>Clifford Johnson is a champion of making the sciences accessible to all.<\/p>\n<p>When he\u2019s not teaching at USC or working on his research, the USC Dornsife professor of physics and astronomy lectures, <a href=\"http:\/\/asymptotia.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">blogs<\/a> and even advises filmmakers on their presentation of scientific concepts. He\u2019s provided his expertise on episodes of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.pbs.org\/wgbh\/nova\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Nova<\/em><\/a>, <em>The Universe<\/em>, <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/fxmo5Rp1wXI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>FailLab<\/em><\/a>, the upcoming season of Marvel\u2019s <em>Agent Carter<\/em>, and even <em>Screen Junkies<\/em>, where he has evaluated the physics of <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/0fWuP12dpdc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Interstellar<\/em><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/2123\/phantastic-physics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Fantastic Four<\/em><\/a>. He also created the <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/1322\/altruism-wins-out\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">USC Science Film Competition<\/a> in which interdisciplinary teams of students \u2014 including scientists, journalists and artists \u2014 create videos that explain a scientific idea for a non-expert audience.<\/p>\n<p>His latest project is a mashup of physics and pop culture, which he hopes will engage a general audience. Johnson is penning a book that explores contemporary science using graphic novel storytelling \u2014 comic-book style images that convey a narrative \u2014 which he\u2019s not only writing but drawing himself. <em>Dialogues on the Nature of the Universe: A Graphic Book<\/em> is slated for 2017 publication by World Scientific.<\/p>\n<p>Johnson took a break from his busy schedule to discuss the project and the motivation behind it.<\/p>\n<h2>Michelle Boston: Tell us about your interest in bringing science to mainstream audiences.<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Clifford Johnson:<\/strong>It\u2019s part of what I consider my work beyond teaching physics the traditional way in the classroom or what I share with the world through my research.<\/p>\n<figure style=\"width: 225px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/migration-uploads\/Johnson2-2250.jpg\" alt=\"Photo of Clifford Johnson\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Clifford Johnson, professor of physics and astronomy at USC Dornsife. (Photo by\u00a0Peter Zhaoyu Zhou.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Science is part of this wonderful network of culture that we have as human beings. For one reason or another, it kind of got pushed off to the side in people\u2019s minds as something that a very narrow group of people understand or partake in. I\u2019m trying to put science back into the culture where it belongs.<\/p>\n<h2>MB: Why did you decide on a graphic book as the format for your project?<\/h2>\n<p><strong>CJ:<\/strong> The graphic book is really an attempt to do something different in the sphere of popular science books, which tend to be \u2014 at least in my field \u2014 a very particular kind of thing that has a very particular audience that is predisposed to read a science book. I really wanted to broaden that audience and the ways in which we communicate science at the popular level.<\/p>\n<p>I was also thinking about how scientists in my field present ideas to the general public. We tend to clean them up, leaving out the visual elements of our process. That\u2019s not how we think about things. We will scribble on a page, use diagrams, figures, equations, etc.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s hugely important to talk about the way, as scientists, we come up with our ideas. That doesn\u2019t come up much in popular-level books about science. It\u2019s like someone just wrote a rulebook and here are the rules, but science isn\u2019t about that. It\u2019s this wonderful process by which you discover truth about the universe. So I talk a little bit about the process in the book, as well.<\/p>\n<h2>MB: In the book you present scientific concepts as a series of dialogues between pairs of people. What influenced that decision?<\/h2>\n<p><strong>CJ:<\/strong> There is a long history of dialogues used to educate. For instance, Galileo wrote dialogues as a way of illuminating ideas in the public sphere. His discoveries and thoughts about how the solar system worked were in that format and they were the popular books of their day, at least for the people who could read. It was a great way of communicating ideas.<\/p>\n<p>With the conversational aspect, I wanted to bring out the beats of the conversation around an idea \u2014 including some of the wrong turns, the dead ends. I feel that makes learning about science more accessible to people because it\u2019s an ordinary human exchange as opposed to this beautiful symphony that came out of the heavens, or from some expert in an ivory tower.<\/p>\n<h2>MB: How did you select which scientific concepts you will explore in the book?<\/h2>\n<p><strong>CJ:<\/strong> There are a number of topics in science that people are just interested in again and again \u2014 how the universe began, or how time works. What is a black hole? Exactly what do we learn from relativity about how the universe works? What\u2019s the science behind the idea of the multiverse? Those are some of the hardcore scientific questions that I\u2019ll look at in the book. But I\u2019ll touch on others too, and in some cases intertwine them with familiar things from everyday life.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/migration-uploads\/JohnsonGraphic_001-2250.jpg\" alt=\"Illustration from physics graphic novel\" width=\"502\" height=\"270\" \/><\/p>\n<p>A collection of partial visuals to accompany a conversation about ideas that aim to weave together the fabric of space-time, and everything in it. Image courtesy of Clifford Johnson.<\/p>\n<h2>MB: You\u2019ve decided to create the artwork for the graphic book yourself. How did you go about preparing for such a large undertaking?<\/h2>\n<p><strong>CJ: <\/strong>I\u2019ve always scribbled and sketched over the years, like many people. But there\u2019s a world of difference in doing that and producing a 300-page book with dozens of interconnected drawings per page. In order to tell a cohesive narrative I needed to be able to consistently do those kinds of drawings. I put in a lot of time practicing. I\u2019ve found the best way to learn to draw is just to draw.<\/p>\n<p>When you start sketching you realize the entire world is full of opportunities to sketch things, and you actually see the world differently. You look at how everyday things are really put together, and how they connect to each other. At first it\u2019s daunting, but it\u2019s also kind of wonderful. There\u2019s a metaphor here between learning to draw and many people\u2019s approach to science. They say, \u201cIt\u2019s not my talent and therefore I cannot do it,\u201d and they never try. That\u2019s a huge mistake and a missed opportunity.<\/p>\n<h2>MB: Has this project in any way influenced how you present information to students?<\/h2>\n<p><strong>CJ:<\/strong> I think people who know me and my style of approaching physics would probably say that it makes sense I\u2019m creating a book like this. At USC, I teach at all levels, so I\u2019ll teach freshmen one semester, upper division undergraduates in another, and sometimes special topics graduate classes. Being hands-on with visualization is something I try to bring to all those classes. I think it\u2019s fun and important to me to keep finding different ways of explaining things to different levels of audiences, including people who just want to learn about the science but don\u2019t necessarily want to become a professional scientist. I love doing that. I also love training the next generation of scientists.<\/p>\n<p><em>Follow the progress of <\/em>Dialogues on the Nature of the Universe: A Graphic Book<em> on Johnson\u2019s blog <\/em><a href=\"http:\/\/asymptotia.com\/the-project\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Asymptotia<\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n  \n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-related-stories \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-related-stories\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n    \n                  <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/moon-landing-50th-anniversary-inspires-faculty\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >50 years after the first moon landing, USC Dornsife scholars and artists reflect<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/black-panther-breaks-ground-with-science-role-models\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >\u2018Black Panther\u2019 and its science role models inspire more than just movie awards<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/five-secrets-from-clifford-johnsons-new-graphic-book-on-the-science-of-the-universe\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >Five secrets from Clifford Johnson\u2019s new graphic book on the science of the universe<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n            <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ever wonder how the universe came into being? Or, what exactly a black hole is? With a graphic book that will tackle these questions and more, Clifford Johnson of physics and astronomy at USC Dornsife reminds us that science is not just for scientists.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":52,"featured_media":6408,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[432,907,216],"class_list":["post-6405","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-faculty","tag-clifford-johnson","tag-graphic-novel","tag-physics-and-astronomy"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>A physicist gets graphic about the nature of the universe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ever wonder how the universe came into being? Or, what exactly a black hole is? 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