Astrophysicist brings scientific expertise to Wilson School

Astrophysics and Wilson School professor Christopher Chyba said he sees little apparent connection between his two fields of specialty, but recognizes an abstract, underlying similarity that bridges the two.

"Both speak to the human future, and both [are] about having a future worthy of human civilization," Chyba said.

Chyba joined the University this fall as the new co-director of the Program on Science and Global Security — a program in the Wilson School that studies the scientific and technological components of international security issues — with a focus on nuclear and biological weapons.

Next semester, he will teach two courses: an introduction to astronomy and a policy course on the North Korean nuclear weapons program and the U.S. response.

Until this summer, Chyba worked in Stanford's Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences and its Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC), of which he was co-director. He will remain an affiliate of CISAC, involved in such agendas as the Five Nations Project, which brings together participants from Russia, China, India, Pakistan and the United States to discuss nuclear weapons issues.

Chyba first became interested in astronomy at Cambridge University, where he was studying mathematics and science on a Marshall scholarship. He soon joined the renowned Carl Sagan at Cornell to study astrobiology and earned a doctorate in astronomy.

Though he minored in political science in college, it was a White House fellowship in 1993 that "injected" Chyba into Washington politics, he said. Chyba served on the National Security Council staff from 1993 to 1994, and then in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy the following year.

"It was an educational experience," Chyba said. "It taught me how to be effective bureaucratically, how to chair a meeting and to make sure there was a useful product at the end of the meeting."

Though most of Chyba's research is closely tied to terrorism issues raised by 9/11, he and others in his field have long argued for improvements in national disease surveillance to more effectively respond to infectious diseases. What 9/11 changed were "perceptions," said Chyba, as well as the scope of attention and the availability of funds.

Astrophysics professor Jeremy Goodman said Chyba's expertise in topics like solar system bodies strengthens the department.

"Most of us are interested in extragalactic systems, in cosmetology outside of the solar system," Goodman said. "Chris is very interested in what goes on inside the solar system and the possibility for life there, and he sort of seals the gap."

Goodman also praised Chyba's role as a knowledgeable liaison between the world of science and that of bureaucracy and politics.

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"He may raise our consciousness a bit about the relationship between science and government, which is particularly important to be aware of now with budgetary problems and culture clashes," Goodman said. "He'll definitely bring insight into that."

Given a current lack of solid scientific expertise in the nation's offices, Chyba said, there is a need for scientists in governmental procedures.

"Washington's nearly bereft of good scientific and technological expertise — it's been weakening since the Kennedy administration," Chyba said. "I think it's important for astronomers, biologists, physicists, engineers, scientists to play a role in policy making."

Chyba said he hopes to more fully integrate the Program on Science and Global Security with other international security work at the Wilson School.

"One of the things I thought was a great strength at CISAC was the seamless integration of the social and political sciences with the physical and biological sciences," Chyba said. "We want to build that kind of relationship here."