Hiranya Peiris | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Peiris in 2016 | |
| Born | Hiranya Vajramani Peiris (1974-04-29)April 29, 1974 (age 51) |
| Alma mater | University of Cambridge (BA) Princeton University (PhD) |
| Awards |
|
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Physics |
| Institutions | University College London Stockholm University University of Chicago University of Cambridge |
| Thesis | First year Wilkinson microwave anisotropy probe results : cosmological parameters and implications for inflation (2003) |
| Doctoral advisor | David Spergel[1] |
| Website | https://www.ast.cam.ac.uk/people/Hiranya.Peiris |
Hiranya Vajramani Peiris is a Britishastrophysicist at the University of Cambridge, where she holds the Professorship of Astrophysics (1909).[2] She is best known for her work on thecosmic microwave background radiation, and interdisciplinary links between cosmology and high-energy physics.[3] She was one of 27 scientists who received theBreakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics in 2018 for their "detailed maps of the early universe".[4]
Peiris was born inSri Lanka.[5] She completed theNatural Sciences Tripos atUniversity of Cambridge in 1998,[6] as an undergraduate student ofNew Hall, Cambridge.[7][8] She earned aPhD atPrinceton University from the department of astrophysical Sciences with advisorDavid Spergel, where she first worked on theWilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP).[1][9][10]
After her PhD, she went on to work at the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics at theUniversity of Chicago as a Hubble fellow.[9] Having held several competitivepostdoctoral fellowships,[11] in 2007 Peiris returned to the University of Cambridge as aScience and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) advancedfellow and was awarded a juniorresearch fellowship atKing's College, Cambridge in 2008. In 2009, Peiris won aLeverhulme Trust award for cosmology and secured a faculty position at University College London.[12]
She is currently Professor of Astrophysics (1909) at the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge.[13] She was previously the Director of the Oskar Klein Centre for Cosmoparticle Physics atStockholm University,[14] and a Professor of Astrophysics atUniversity College London.[15]
In 2012, the WMAP team (including Peiris) won theGruber Cosmology Prize for their "exquisite measurements of anisotropies in the relic radiation from the Big Bang—the Cosmic Microwave Background".[16] WMAP's results oncosmic inflation, which Peiris contributed to, were described byStephen Hawking as "the most exciting development in physics during his career".[17]
She was skeptical about the 2014 announcement of the discovery ofprimordialgravitational waves in the cosmic microwave background:"If they announce gravitational waves on Monday then I will need a great deal of convincing. But if they do have a robust detection ... Jesus wow! I'll be taking next week off."[18] Her skepticism proved well-founded: on 30 January 2015, a joint analysis ofBICEP2 andPlanck data was published and theEuropean Space Agency announced that the signal can be entirely attributed todust in theMilky Way,[19] though (non-primordial) gravitational waves have since been detected by different experiments.
In 2018, Peiris was awarded theHoyle Medal and Prize of the UK Institute of Physics for "her leading contributions to understanding the origin and evolution of cosmic structure."[20]
In 2020 Peiris was awarded theGöran Gustafsson Prize in physics by the Göran Gustafsson Foundation and theRoyal Swedish Academy of Sciences "for her innovative research on the dynamics of the early universe, which links cosmological observations to basic physics".[21] She was also elected as a member of STFC Council, the senior strategic advisory body of the research council that funds particle physics and astronomy in the United Kingdom.[3]
In 2021, Peiris was awarded theMax Born Medal and Prize by theGerman Physical Society and theEddington Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society in recognition of her contributions to cosmology.[22][23]
Peiris was elected as a Foreign Member in the Physics Class of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (KVA) in May 2022.[24] In 2023, Peiris was appointed Professor of Astrophysics (1909) at the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge.[13]
Alongside academic talks, Peiris gives public lectures about cosmology.[25][26] She has written articles and given interviews for both radio and print media.[27] She has appeared on podcasts, television programs and the national news.[28] In 2013 she gave a talk at TEDxCERN, "Multiplying Dimensions".[29] That year she was selected as one of Astronomy's top ten rising stars byAstronomy Magazine.[30]
In 2014, thepseudonymously-written Ephraim Hardcastle diary column in theDaily Mail claimed that Peiris (along withMaggie Aderin-Pocock) had been selected to discuss results from theBackground Imaging of Cosmic Extragalactic Polarization 2 (BICEP-2) experiment onBBCNewsnight because of her gender and ethnicity. These comments were condemned bymainstream media, theRoyal Astronomical Society and Peiris' employer, University College London,[31][32] and theDaily Mail and its column backed down within days.[31][32] Peiris offered a rebuttal, "Groundbreaking science is blind to prejudice" inTimes Higher Education.[33]
In 2017, Peiris collaborated with artist Penelope Rose Cowley to create artwork entitled "Cosmoparticle".[34] In 2018 Peiris contributed to an artwork by artistGoshka Macuga, which was exhibited at a 2019 exhibition held at theBildmuseet, Sweden, featuring works by 14 international artists inspired by particle physics.[35][36]
Peiris was a member of the 27-person team awarded the 2018Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics.[37] The US $3 million award was given for the detailed maps of the early universe generated fromWMAP.[38]WMAP is aNASA explorer mission that was launched in 2001, which has transformed modern cosmology.[39] Other prizes include:
A Mail spokesman said the paper fully accepted that the women were highly qualified in their field and that that was the reason they were chosen for interview. Yesterday's Ephraim Hardcastle column stated: "I accept without questions that both ladies are highly qualified."
A Mail spokesman made it clear that the paper fully accepts that the women were highly qualified in their field and that was the reason they were chosen for interview. The Mail is in contact with Professor Price.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| People | |
| Other | |