Behind the Book: Carolyn Campbell
- Public Event
Step onto the hallowed grounds of Paris's Père-Lachaise Cemetery and commune with some of the great scientific minds of the 18th and early 19th centuries buried there.
Author and photographer Carolyn Campbell, whose book City of Immortals: Père-Lachaise Cemetery, Paris celebrates the novelty and eccentricity of the famous resting place, engages Caltech history professor Jed Buchwald in a spirited discussion as he takes on the persona of three scientists: astronomer Jérôme Lalande; mathematician, physicist, and historian Joseph Fourier; and decipherer of Egyptian hieroglyphics Jean-François Champollion.
Together, Campbell and Buchwald bring to life these luminaries and uncover the controversies surrounding their provocative debates about science, politics, and religion; Napoleon's pivotal role in their cultural and intellectual adventures; and the significance of their discoveries that unfolded against the background of the French Revolution and the Restoration.