The Universe In Verse 2019

On Tuesday evening I treated myself to an evening of poetry by watching the livestream of The Universe in Verse 2019.  This is the third year for this event, and all three programs  of  poetry, music, and wonderful backstories, most often told by Maria Popova of “Brainpickings (the show’s organizer and host), was a wonderful treat.  The first two years are online, and I hope this year’s edition will be available too.  There is always a theme.  This year the the poems were tied to the 100th anniversary of Sir Arthur Eddington’s eclipse expedition to Africa, which confirmed relativity and made Einstein a celebrity.  I thoroughly enjoyed the two hours plus of wonderful people reading poetry, making music and talking about the connections between science and the arts.  It was  fun to hear On Being’s host Krista Tippett read one of the poems.  The money raised from ticket sales and donations will be put toward building a telescope.  Apparently there have been several failed attempts to build one in NYC going back to the 1800’s.