25 poems on light and love, from the hearts of scientists
Love, like light, is fleeting and ephemeral—and yet is an inescapable constant of the universe.
Who would understand this truth more than scientists themselves?
The University of the Philippines - Diliman’s Photonics Research Lab is holding a poetry contest and the entries are all about light and love.
Physicist Dr. Nathaniel Hermosa organized the poetry contest to promote the International Year of Light. He explained that he wanted to encourage the younger scientists to go beyond their comfort zones and practice being creative. “Scientists need to be creative to tackle open problems,” he said. “We are just starting with poetry.”
The United Nations General Assembly declared 2015 as the Year of Light to raise awareness about how light and light-based technologies can help sustainable development and provide alternate solutions to global challenges.
Dr. Hermosa said one of the poems he likes is “Ang Mensahe ni E kay B.”
“E in physics usually denotes Electric field while B is Magnetic field. Light is an electromagnetic wave which means it is a combination of a changing electric field and a changing magnetic field in time. They are intertwined and they go in time and space together but the clincher is that they do not lie on the same plane. They are always perpendicular. They cannot be physically together. There is a lot of HUGOT there: I am with you but I cannot be there with you.”
When asked if they would be holding another similar contest in the future, Dr. Hermosa replied that if they would it might not involve poetry anymore, but another way to help develop creativity in their lab members.
You can also view all the poems here and you can vote here for your favorites. — TJD, GMA News