John Brockman

John Brockman

John Brockman was born on February 16th, 1941 and is currently 85 years old. John Brockman was born in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

John Brockman is a literary agent and author that specializes in scientific literature. He established the Edge foundation, this organization that brings together leading edge thinkers across this broad range of technical and scientific fields.

John introduced the third culture, made up of those scientists and other thinkers in the empirical world who, through their expository writing and work, take the place of the traditional intellectual in rendering visible the deeper meanings of our lives, redefining what and who we are.

As he worked as a banker at the time, he had a chance meeting in Central Park where he met Jonas Mekas, an avant garde filmmaker. It lead to his involvement in the arts, which led to him managing performances and film programs.

John had a notable connection to Andy Warhol in the 1960s. He was part of the New York art scene, engaging with various avant garde and underground cinema activities and he was part of the circle which Andy frequented, which included other musicians like Bob Dylan and artists.

John’s involvement in the art scene included him managing the Film-Makers’ Cinematheque, this hub for underground cinema, where he worked with various artists, which includes Andy.

This connection is further evidenced by pictures of John with Andy, which he often shares with profile writers. His immersion in the arts would eventually lead him to bridge the gap between the arts and sciences, and became a key figure in promoting intellectual and scientific discourse.

John led a scientific salon for 20 years, asking this annual question to a host of renowned scientists and publishing the answers in book form, which he decided to symbolically shut down in 2018.

Third Culture: Beyond the Scientific Revolution brings to life John’s thesis that science is emerging as the intellectual center of our society in such a vivid way. It weaves together the voices of some of today’s most influential scientific figures, including: Richard Dawkins and Stephen Jay Gould on the implications of evolution. Murray Gell-Mann and Stuart Kauffman on the new sciences of complexities. Marvin Minsky, Steven Pinker, Daniel C. Dennett, and Roger Penrose on how the mind works.

CP Snow’s famous essay about the polarization of the “two cultures”, scientists on the one hand and intellectuals on the other. Even though he’d hoped for a “third culture” emerging which would bridge this gap, it’s just recently that science has changed the intellectual landscape.

This book is an honest picture of science in action. It’s challenging, stimulating, and riveting all at once.

Related Authors

Fans of John Brockman also enjoy these authors:

1. Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid's Tale Series.
2. Blake Crouch, author of: Dark Matter.
3. Neil Gaiman, author of the American Gods Series.
4. Stephen King, author of The Dark Tower Series.
5. J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter Series.

John Brockman: F.A.Q