Lecture Background

Sheldon Glashow discusses how science evolves through both chance and design. While some scientists pursue carefully planned research with well-defined goals, others are more open minded, first exploring nature and then thinking about what it has shown them.

Beihang University of Aeronautics and Astronautics was founded in 1952 from the merger of nine disparate universities’ aeronautical departments. Situated in the centre of Beijing’s Zhongguancun Science Park, BUAA is China's first university of aeronautical and astronautical engineering. With 26 different schools and departments, its student body exceeds 23,000 undergraduate and graduate students.

Beijing is the capital of the People’s Republic of China, and is the second largest city in the country, with more than 17 million inhabitants. Situated at the northern tip of the North China Plain, the Great Wall of China stretches across the northern part of city’s muncipality.