As predicted last year, rock star physicist and exmo Kip Thorne has won the Nobel prize for his work on gravitational waves.

http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,1768175

The Salt Lake Tribune has coverage stressing his Utah heritage and Mormon roots.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/education/2017/10/03/utah-born-kip-thorne-wins-the-nobel-prize-for-physics-for-his-role-in-detecting-gravitational-waves/

WTG, Kip.
I had the pleasure of meeting him years ago at CalTech -- didn't know he was an exmo then.
A well-deserved honor.

I think this answers the question Russell Ballard asked in General Conference 2016, to those who have left, or are leaving, the church, "Where will you go?" as if there is nothing after leaving the church.

Well this is where you go when you leave the church, straight to Stockholm, Sweden to pick up your Nobel Prize for Physics.

+a lot

That's an awesome observation!

Oh, please tell me the pun was on purpose!

I met him once in my very early 20’s. His mother was a regular at a restaurant I was a manager at in Logan. She was my favorite regular. I had no idea exactly “WHO” he was. He was shy, and very polite. Just like his mum. The LIGO project proved gravitational waves by detecting ripples in space-time. Physics, it seems, is in a new renessaince.

HH =)

"Ghawd has fewer and fewer places to hide, because science is deftly removing, one by one, all his hiding places. Without those shadowy niches, it will finally be acknowledged that he was just as shadowy."
- - Judic West, upon winning the 7th grade science fair at Cavendish School for Mensas & Mensos

At the rate they are removing His hiding places He is soon going to be nothing but a Holy Ghost.

Thanks for the quote--hadn't heard it. Love it.

You hadn't heard it? Where do you live?? In a house, on a street, in a city or town?


Edit to add: my day is made!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/03/2017 11:06AM by elderolddog.

Haha upon winning a seventh grade science fair that's classic especially if it's true.

Every quote I give that is attributed to Judic West is 100% words! And you can take that to the bank!!

Hahaha maybe i should check out this judic west guy.

At the beginning of high school, I was hauled out of class and given a long, grueling IQ test. When it was over, I asked the tester how I did. He said My IQ was 149.

I asked, "Is that good?" He said that it was higher than "most people." He also warned me not to share this info, because "People don't like girls who are smarter than they are."

For years, I guarded my secret with something approaching shame. It wasn't MY fault that I was that bright. He recommended that I be placed in Honors classes. I fought my parents like a rabid badger, because none of my friends were in Honors classes, and I didn't want to be regarded as a geek or a "brain," as they used to say back then. It was widely regarded as a sort of character flaw, like chronic body odor. At least, with body odor, you can do something about it. (I won that battle, BTW.)

An over-endowment of intelligence, well, you just do your best not to let it show too much. Until you get to university. Then, it's OK to feel like a racehorse, just waiting for the gates to clang open, because by then, it's OK to let go with all you've got, because you're in the right field for it. God, THOSE were glorious years!!

Colliding black hoes shouldn't walk while texting.

Judic West wishes he'd said that..., especially if you really did mean Black street walkers...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/03/2017 11:16AM by elderolddog.

I think he did babylon usually doesn't make that kind of mistake.

LIGO was the real prize. It's amazing that he was able to make that happen. I'm sure it was years of hard work. At least he's still alive to receive his "we no longer think you're crazy" prize.

I did not know Kip was exmo. He had a presence at the U when I was doing physics. One of his doc students kept in touch, would invite him to ski and give colloquia presentations.

Congrats to Kip, it is frankly overdue.

Thorne went to the same elementary school in Logan as Merlin Olsen and my mother. At Princeton, he worked with Wheeler along with Kent Harrison, who went on to be my father's doctoral advisor at BYU.

For those interested in understanding the substance behind his Nobel prize, Thorne's book, "Black Holes & Time Warps" remains a classic; truly a wonderful book. Even though published in 1994, it still provides a reasonably accessible background for general relativity, black holes, and gravitational waves. It also contains interesting anecdotes and insights about science and scientists generally. You can get a used copy for about $6 plus $4 shipping. I have read my copy at least three times, and still find myself referring to it on occasion.

https://www.amazon.com/Black-Holes-Time-Warps-Commonwealth/dp/0393312763/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1507069276&sr=1-1&keywords=black+holes+and+time+warps+kip+thorne

Thanks for letting us know about this :)

From the Salt Lake Tribune:

"Descendants of Mormon pioneers, his family became disillusioned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and left the faith."

Definition of disillusioned: disappointed and unhappy because of discovering the TRUTH about something or someone that you liked or respected.

Any comments, brethren?

It sounds like his leaving didn't begin with him.

Good for him that someone who is a former now ex-Mo can lay claim to a Nobel Prize in something. He is the second ex-Mormon to win one. The other was in chemistry..

Both found their way out of the labyrinth to save their souls.

It's a trend I hope continues to catch on. :)

Jews, like Mormons, make up less than 1% of the world's population. Yet have managed to take home 23% of Nobels since its inception.

If you don'count ex-Mormons as Mormons for Nobel, there are no Mormons who have won it to date.

The more intelligent the Mormon the more likely that person will become an ex-Mormon and go on to win the Nobel (in something.) ;-)

The very idea of someone earning a Nobel prize who has "lost the Spirit" is an inconceivable notion for me to consider in the glorious blessed peculiar mindset in which I have put myself into thanks to the most amazing Gospel. The super amazing Spiritual Giant and Prophet-Seer-Revelator Uchtdorf has told us to Doubt our Doubts so I've put up the boundaries tall on this matter. Oh how blessed it is to have this most truthful, honest, and transparent Church of ours that helps us all be as open-minded as possible to what the Brethren would consider to be the important truths we need to focus on. For example, they have taught us to obey them so this sure does keep us very busy doing many important focused thinking assignments (such as cleaning the chapel toilets) and forking out big money so they can have more authority and dominion over all of us & plenty of financial means to be surrounded by luxurious resources in order that they themselves can be more in tune with the Spirit than they would if they couldn't live so luxuriously.