S18, Ep9 Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock: one of Britain's foremost space scientists on belonging and the meaning of life
Oct 25, 2023
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Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, one of Britain's foremost space scientists, talks about stars, her passion for physics, chaos and creativity, her lifelong ambition of going into space, the joys and challenges of parenthood, and exploring telescopes and pursuing passion.
Failures and dead ends are crucial for progress in science
Chaos fuels creativity and playfulness, leading to success in a career
Deep dives
The Joy of Exploring Space
Dr. Maggie Aderin-Pocock, a space scientist, shares her deep passion for space exploration. She explains the process of star formation, fusion, and the immense energy that stars emit. She also highlights the importance of failure in science, emphasizing that failures and dead ends are crucial for progress. Dr. Aderin-Pocock speaks about the boundless mysteries of the universe and the excitement of being part of the scientific community that seeks to uncover and understand these mysteries. She envisions a heaven-like state where people can join the universal mind and have access to unlimited knowledge.
The Beauty of Chaos and Being Late
Dr. Aderin-Pocock shares her tendency for chaos and lateness, attributing it to her optimistic nature and constant desire to achieve more. She embraces chaos as a source of creativity and playfulness in her life. While acknowledging the challenges it brings, she finds that chaos fuels her ideas and the pursuit of multiple interests. Despite her tendency towards chaos, Dr. Aderin-Pocock has found success in her career as a space scientist and science communicator.
Motherhood and a Late Start
Dr. Aderin-Pocock reflects on her experience of becoming a mother in her 40s. She discusses the challenges she faced in trying to conceive and the gratitude she feels for having her daughter. She made the decision to prioritize motherhood and adjust her career, which led to her daughter accompanying her on work travels during her early years. She embraces the joy and miracle of motherhood, cherishing the close bond she has with her daughter.
Maggie Aderin Pocock MBE is a space scientist, educator and broadcaster - and quite possibly the first How To Fail guest who has her own Barbie doll. Fascinated with space from an early age, she even built her own telescope as a teenager. Nowadays, she's the co-presenter of the long-running TV programme The Sky at Night, as well as being Chancellor of the University of Leicester and the first Black woman ever to win a gold medal in the Physics News Award.
Her achievements are all the more admirable when you consider her upbringing: the child of divorced parents who found herself at the centre of a difficult custody battle, she changed schools 13 times in 14 years and struggled with lessons because of undiagnosed dyslexia. From an early age, she found refuge in the night sky, viewed from the rooftop of her council flat.
She joins me to talk about her extraordinary life, as well as her failures in tidiness and punctuality - and what being a mother in her 40s has taught her. Plus: how difficult is it really to build a telescope?
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The Art of Stargazing by Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, is published on 2nd Novemer and is available to order here.