Award-winning physicist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein will visit St. Louis on April 24 to discuss her book, “The Edge of Space-Time,” but the conversation is expected to go far beyond physics.
Prescod-Weinstein, who studies dark matter and the early universe, is also part of a much smaller group: Black Jewish scientists working at the highest levels of theoretical physics. That perspective shapes how she talks about the universe — and who gets to understand it.
Most of us don’t spend a lot of time thinking about space-time.
But we do spend a lot of time asking big questions.
Who are we? Where do we come from? What kind of world are we building?
That’s part of what makes this upcoming event more relevant than it might first appear.
More than science
Prescod-Weinstein studies dark matter, black holes and the earliest moments of the universe.
But she also focuses on who gets to participate in those conversations — and who has historically been left out.
Her work connects scientific discovery with questions of identity, belonging and access, bringing a perspective shaped in part by her Jewish background.
Science and Jewish identity
For Prescod-Weinstein, science and Jewish identity are not separate tracks.
“I don’t think that I separate my thinking as a Jew from my thinking as a scientist,” she has said, describing both as ways of trying to understand the world.
That approach may feel familiar to Jewish audiences used to wrestling with big questions — not just about belief, but about meaning and responsibility.
What “the edge” means
Her book explores the boundaries of what is known about the universe.
But the idea of “the edge” also applies to people — particularly those who have not always been included in scientific spaces.
It’s about what changes when new voices help shape the questions.
A conversation for everyone
Despite the subject matter, the event is not expected to feel like a technical lecture.
Prescod-Weinstein has built a reputation for making complex ideas accessible by connecting them to everyday curiosity rather than simplifying them away.
She argues that interest in the universe belongs to everyone, not just scientists.
Why it matters now
At a time when trust in science and institutions is under strain, her message carries added urgency.
“My goal right now,” she said in a recent talk, “for the next generation [is] to have a world at all.”
It’s a statement that moves the conversation from space-time to something closer to home.
Event details
What: Theoretical Physicist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein Explains “The Edge of Space Time”
When: Friday, April 24 at 7 p.m.
Where: Clark Family Branch of the St. Louis County Library, 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd.
More Info: Books will be available for purchase and signing.
