RIP Patrick Stewart (1940–2026)

This has been a rough week for Star Trek fans. Just a few days after we lost Walter Koenig (who played Pavel Chekov in The Original Series), now comes the news that Sir Patrick Stewart has died. (Here is his Wikipedia entry.) He, of course, played Captain Jean-Luc Picard on The Next Generation, Professor X in the X-Men movies, and many other things. Back when I was living in Oxford, I also had the chance to see him on the stage in Waiting for Godot (and he was amazing in it).

Milwaukee Brewers Win 2026 World Series

Congratulations to the Milwaukee Brewers on winning the World Series for the first time in franchise history.

What Happens in Oxford Stays in Oxford (yet again)

I am heading to Oxford for a few days to visit my old stomping grounds!

Dodgers Head to the National League Championship Series!

The Dodgers just finished off the Braves (by 3 games to 1) to win their National League Division Series, and they are now heading to the National League Championship Series to face the Milwaukee Brewers. Go Dodgers!

2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (for Optogenetics)

The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel "for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics." There have been many discussions over the years that optogenetics pioneers would eventually get a Nobel Prize, and this year is the year.

"Data Ethics and Mathematicians"

Here is a new short article called "Data Ethics and Mathematicians"

(I wrote it for SIAM News only about 3.5 years after I promised them that I would write this article. 🤷🏻‍♂️)

Dodgers Win the National League West!

For the 13th time in the last 14 seasons, the Dodgers have won the National League West. This is also our 14th consecutive year in the postseason.

An American Mathematician (and Physicist) in Stockholm

Tomorrow I will be flying directly from WorldCon to Stockholm for my next adventure on the faculty of Nordita (the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics) and the Department of Mathematics at Stockholm University. In the latter, my title is Professor in Complex Systems.

I hardly ever write long blog posts these days, but the title of this post is an homage to my post from when I moved to Oxford in 2007.

A new adventure awaits!