Philip Calcott

A physicist's search for God, mind, and meaning

An Astronomer in the Bushveld

Philip Calcott studied Physics at Oxford and Sheffield Universities and worked for 13 years as a research scientist. After being dragged laughing and smiling by his wife to South Africa, he now focuses on public communication on matters of science, with a particular fascination with performing public Astronomy shows. He lives with his wife and a distinctly empty-feeling nest under the stunning dark skies of the Waterberg.

Philip is “equally obsessed with astronomy and aardvarks.” Philip has participated in public debates about matters of science and faith, and has held over 1000 public astronomy shows to audiences of vastly different sizes.

He is one of the great Lindt-fuelled minds of the Waterberg, famed for his many bath-induced comas from which many of his eccentric and most philosophical ideas stem. It is always dangerous to corner such a physicist in the Bushveld as it leaves him no choice but to develop a passion for it. All the critters that crawl, dig or buzz are subjected to mad schemes of fascinated analysing and investigation. Such passion has also been turned towards the greater questions of life and powerful insights into the marriage of science and faith and consciousness. Take but a short walk beneath the stars or the setting African sun and he reveals to you the solutions to all the worlds problems. His greatest joy and accomplishment, however, is the steady, loving guidance he offers to his children (or dinkets) for which they are grateful and proud.