Hedy Lamarr was once regarded as the most beautiful woman in Hollywood. Through the 1930s ’40s, and ’50s, she starred in some of Hollywood’s biggest hits. She was also a part-time rocket scientist. In fact, we have her to thank for some of the technology used in cellphones and the Internet.
In 1940, Ms. Lamarr and avant-garde music composer George Antheil devised and patented a communications system based on “frequency hopping” for use in radio-guided torpedoes. Their invention was inspired by player piano rolls — spools of paper with holes that “told” automatic pianos which notes to play. Frequency hopping is now used in much of our wireless communications technology.
Because the invention was long classified as top secret, her contribution wasn’t recognized for years, and many people were surprised to learn that a glamorous star could also have a brilliant scientific mind.
Why should we be surprised? Are you surprised to learn that, during high school, Oscar winner Natalie Portman was a semifinalist in the Intel Science Talent Search for her investigation into an environmentally friendly way to convert waste into energy and that she went on to study neuroscience and the evolution of the mind at Harvard?
This isn’t about overachieving stars. Rather, it’s a way of pointing out that science isn’t just for geeky nerds — and it isn’t just for guys. But it also says something about Western society’s obsession with celebrity and its lack of interest in science. We pay far more attention to these people for their movie roles and stardom than for their intellectual accomplishments.
The lesson we should take from people like Ms. Portman is that it’s fine to be entertained and to entertain, but that shouldn’t preclude us from taking an interest in the world around us and in the science that shapes so much of our place in that world.
We can’t all be scientists, just as we can’t all be movie stars, but we can take the time to learn more about science and its application in understanding and solving some of the challenges we face. I’ve only had one small role in a short fictional film, and I can tell you, it’s tedious work. I’d much rather be a scientist. But I’m glad there are movie stars who are interested in science. With so many poor role models in the movie business and in politics, it’s refreshing to see some who are setting good examples.
Post City Magazines’ environmental columnist, David Suzuki, is the host of the CBC’s The Nature of Things. David is also the author of more than 30 books on ecology.