Theodore Gray
{{short description|American science author}}
{{About||the New Zealand psychiatrist and mental health administrator|Theodore Gray (psychiatrist)|the baseball player|Chappie Gray}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name = Theodore Gray
| image = Theodore Gray.jpg
| image_size = 200px
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1964|11|18}}
| birth_place = Urbana, Illinois, United States
| death_date =
| death_place =
| residence =
| nationality = American
| field = Mathematics, chemistry, computing, publishing
| work_institution = Wolfram Research, Touch Press
| alma_mater = University of Illinois
| doctoral advisor =
| doctoral_students =
| known_for = Co-founder of Wolfram Research
prominent science author
co-founder of Touch Press
| prizes =
| religion =
| footnotes =
}}
Theodore W. "Theo" Gray is a co-founder of Wolfram Research, science author, and co-founder of app developer Touch Press.
Education
Theodore Gray was educated at the University of Illinois Laboratory High School. He would later graduate with a B.S. in chemistry from University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in 1986.
{{cite web
| title= Biography of Theodore Gray
| website= Theodore Gray
| url=http://theodoregray.com/bio.html
| accessdate= 15 August 2013
}}{{self-published inline|date=March 2015}}
{{cite news
| last= Lovdahl
| first= Andrew
| title= The biggest table ... period
| publisher= The Gargoyle
| date= 2006-12-12
| url= http://www.uni.illinois.edu/og/features/2006/12/biggest-table-period
| accessdate= August 14, 2013
| url-status= dead
| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20140221223236/http://www.uni.illinois.edu/og/features/2006/12/biggest-table-period
| archivedate= February 21, 2014
}}
Career
In 1987, Gray left a PhD program in theoretical chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley to work with Stephen Wolfram. In that same year, he co-founded Wolfram Research.{{cite news | url=http://blog.stephenwolfram.com/2010/12/touch-press-the-second-book/ | title=Touch Press: The Second Book | accessdate=August 14, 2013 | author=Wolfram, Stephen | date=2010-12-24 | publisher=Stephen Wolfram Blog}} His initial work for the company involved creating the influential notebook user interface for Mathematica.{{cite web |last1=Somers |first1=James |title=The Scientific Paper Is Obsolete |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/04/the-scientific-paper-is-obsolete/556676/ |website=The Atlantic |date=5 April 2018 |access-date=7 July 2023}}{{cite news | url=http://en.community.dell.com/dell-blogs/enterprise/b/inside-enterprise-it/archive/2009/05/22/interview-of-wolfram-research-co-founder-theodore-theo-gray.aspx | title=Interview of Wolfram Research Co-Founder Theodore (Theo) Gray | accessdate=August 14, 2013 | author=Lehrer, Brian | date=2009-05-22 | publisher=Dell}} Gray would eventually leave Wolfram Research to become a writer and publisher full-time.{{cite news | url=http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2013-02-10/getting-personal-theodore-gray.html| title=Getting Personal: Theodore Gray | accessdate=August 15, 2013 | author=Merli, Melissa | date=2013-02-10 | publisher=The News Gazette}}
After amassing thousands of samples of elements, he assembled them into a four-legged physical table representing the periodic table. The finished table was awarded the 2011 ACS Grady Stack Award for Interpreting Chemistry for the Public, as well as the 2002 Ig Nobel Award for Chemistry.{{cite news | url=http://design.org/blog/periodic-table-table-theodore-gray | title=The Periodic Table Table by Theodore Gray | accessdate=August 16, 2013 | author=Andrews, Ward | date=2012-03-05 | publisher=Design.org | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921061104/http://design.org/blog/periodic-table-table-theodore-gray | archive-date=September 21, 2013 | url-status=dead | df=mdy-all }}{{cite web |url=http://www.improbable.com/ig/winners/#ig2002 |title=The 2002 Ig Nobel Prize Winners |website= Improbable.com|date=August 2006 |publisher= Improbable Research |accessdate=16 August 2013}} Gray's love of the periodic table would lead him to team up with photographer Nick Mann in creating The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe and Elements Vault.{{cite news | url=http://www.toledofreepress.com/tag/theodore-gray/ | title=Author of 'Mad Science' releases book on the elements | accessdate=August 14, 2013 | author=Nicholes, Will | date=2011-03-16 | publisher=The Toledo Blade}}
For many years, Gray wrote a regular column for Popular Science entitled "Gray Matter".[http://www.popsci.com/category/tags/theodore-gray Gray Matter, Popular Science]. The column was a finalist for a National Magazine Award for Best Column in 2010.{{cite web |url=http://www.magazine.org/asme/national-magazine-awards/winners-finalists|title=Winners & Finalists |website= Magazine.org|publisher= American Society of Magazine Editors |accessdate=16 August 2013}} In 2009, a collection of articles by Gray was published under the title Mad Science: Experiments You Can Do at Home—But Probably Shouldn't.{{cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/science/cheating-at-science-fairs-mad-science-by-theodore-gray/2011/05/09/AFztKC5G_story.html | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130822165013/http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2011-05-16/national/35233218_1_science-fairs-intel-international-science-fair-entry | url-status=live | archive-date=2013-08-22 | title=Cheating at science fairs; 'Mad Science' by Theodore Gray | access-date=August 16, 2013 | author=Saslow, Rachel | date=2011-05-16 | newspaper=The Washington Post}}{{cite news
| url = http://www.toledofreepress.com/2011/03/16/author-of-mad-science-releases-book-on-the-elements/
| title = Author of 'Mad Science' releases book on the elements
| first = Will
| last = Nicholes
| work = Toledo Free Press
| date = March 16, 2011
| accessdate = May 1, 2011 }} A sequel to the book, Mad Science 2: Experiments You Can Do At Home, But STILL Probably Shouldn't was published in 2013.{{cite news | url=http://www.gizmodo.in/news/How-to-Turn-Burning-Gas-Into-a-Lamp-Without-Blowing-Yourself-Up/articleshow/20353808.cms | title=How to Turn Burning Gas Into a Lamp Without Blowing Yourself Up | accessdate=August 22, 2013 | author=Feinberg, Ashley | date=2013-05-30 | publisher=Gizmodo}}
In 2010, Gray founded Touch Press together with Max Whitby, John Cromie and Stephen Wolfram shortly after the announcement of the launch of the iPad.{{cite news | url=http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/digital/content-and-e-books/article/48187-touchpress-theodore-gray-tests-his-mettle-in-the-app-world.html | title=TouchPress: Theodore Gray Tests His Mettle in the App World | accessdate=August 12, 2013 | author=Roush, Wade | date=2011-07-29 | publisher=Publishers Weekly}}{{cite news | url=http://blog.stephenwolfram.com/2010/12/touch-press-the-second-book/| title=Touch Press: The Second Book | accessdate=August 12, 2013 | author=Wolfram, Stephen | date=2010-12-24 | publisher=Stephen Wolfram Blog}} The company was created to develop innovative educational apps using the technology of the iPad to its full potential. The first published app was "The Elements,"{{cite news | url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2010/04/the-curious-tale-of-the-wooden-table-that-became-an-ipad-book.html | title=The curious tale of the wooden table that became an iPad book | accessdate=August 12, 2013 | author=Pham, Alex | date=2010-04-27 | work=The Los Angeles Times}} and in 2014 Gray released "Molecules", which allows users to touch and discover the basic building blocks of the world.{{cite magazine|last1=Stockton|first1=Nick|title=Explore the Building Blocks of Everything From Poison to Soap|url=https://www.wired.com/2014/10/molecules-book/|accessdate=17 December 2014|magazine=Wired|date=20 October 2014}} Of Touch Press's "Disney Animated," which was named the best iPad app of 2013 worldwide by Apple, iTunes's App Editor noted, "We’re absolutely spellbound".{{cite web |url=https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/disney-animated/id632312737?mt=8 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130904194757/https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/disney-animated/id632312737?mt=8 |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 4, 2013 |title=Disney Animated By Disney |website= iTunes |publisher= Apple |accessdate=22 August 2013}} The app won a BAFTA award in 2014.{{Cite web|url=https://dpep.disney.com/disney-animated-wins-childrens-bafta-award/|title=Disney Animated Wins Children's BAFTA Award|last=|first=|date=2014-12-03|website=Disney|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-06}}
Gray also co-founded Pale Gray Labs with Nina Paley.
Gray has developed a range of acrylic model kits, which he named "Mechanical GIFs" (as a nod to animated drawings on the internet), to show "how common and uncommon machines, mechanisms, gadgets, and devices work".[https://mechanicalgifs.com/ Mechanical Gifs]
In July 2018, Gray was invited to Beijing on behalf of The Newton Project by its founder, Jizhe Xu, to serve as a consulting advisor.{{cite news | url=https://medium.com/@newtonproject/newton-weekly-report-2018-07-23-2018-07-29-1df5935c1b7f/| title=Newton weekly report | accessdate=November 10, 2018 | author=Fimo | date=2018-07-30 | publisher=Medium}}
Throughout his career, Gray has been an advocate for a broader engagement between the scientific community and the public at large.{{cite news | url=http://bookboxdaily.scholastic.com/2011/09/22/the-elements-a-qa-with-theodore-gray/| title=The Elements: A Q&A with Theodore Gray | accessdate=August 14, 2013 | author=Ingerson, Trevor | date=2011-09-22 | publisher=Scholastic}}{{cite news | url=http://www.wnyc.org/shows/bl/2010/apr/23/elemental/ | title=Elemental Design | accessdate=August 14, 2013 | author=Lehrer, Brian | date=2010-04-23 | publisher=WNYC}}
Works
- How Things Work: The Inner Life of Everyday Machines, Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, 2019, 256pp. {{ISBN|978-0316445436}}
- Reactions: An Illustrated Exploration of Elements, Molecules, and Change in the Universe, Black Dog & Leventhal, 2017, 240pp. {{ISBN|978-0316391221}}
- Molecules: The Elements and the Architecture of Everything, Black Dog & Leventhal, 2014, 240pp. {{ISBN|1-57912-971-4}}
- Theodore Gray's Elements Vault: Treasures of the Periodic Table with Removable Archival Documents and Real Element Samples—Including Pure Gold! Black Dog & Leventhal, 2011, 128pp. {{ISBN|1-57912-880-7}}
- (with photographer Nick Mann) The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe, Black Dog & Leventhal, 2009, 240pp. {{ISBN|1-57912-814-9}}
- Theo Gray's Mad Science: Experiments You Can Do At Home—But Probably Shouldn't, Black Dog & Leventhal, 2009, 240pp. {{ISBN|1-57912-791-6}}
- (with Jerry Glynn) The Beginner's Guide to Mathematica Version 3, Cambridge University Press, 1997, 355pp. ISBN 0521622026
- Theo Gray's Mad Science 2: Experiments You Can Do At Home, But STILL Probably Shouldn't, Black Dog & Leventhal, 2013, 240pp. {{ISBN|1-57912-932-3}}
See also
References
External links
{{wikiquote}}
- {{official}}
- "Theodore Gray: Element enthusiast talks about making a periodic table for the 21st century" by Bethany Halford. C&EN, 26 November 2007, page 50.
- [http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2003/11/27/periodic_table_display_makes_the_elements_more_than_elemental/ Periodic Table display makes the elements more than elemental] by Greg Kline, The News-Gazette, November 27, 2003.
- [http://theodoregray.com/PeriodicTable/Interviews/ScienceFriday/2002-07-19.mp3 Science Friday interview with Theodore Gray], July 2002.
- [http://theodoregray.com/AppleKeynotes/TheoGrayWWDC2005.mov Steve Jobs's Apple Keynote Speech], Theodore Gray appearance, 2005.
{{Wolfram Research}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Theodore}}
Category:Wolfram Research people
Category:American magazine writers
Category:University Laboratory High School (Urbana, Illinois) alumni