Amanda Wensley Peet

This information is accurate as of the fellowship year indicated for each fellow.

Amanda Wensley Peet, an assistant professor of physics and mathematics at the University of Toronto, studies the field of string theory, which aims to explain the fundamental structure of matter and interactions from the subatomic to the cosmological realm. String theory provides a united framework by positing that the fundamental building blocks of nature are tiny, vibrating strings that interact with one another by smoothly joining and splitting.

Peet’s interests are in applying string theory to understanding the quantum nature of the gravitational interaction in the most extreme physical circumstances imaginable: deep in the interior of black holes and at the fiery birth of the universe. In her recent work, she has concentrated on string theoretic mechanisms for resolution of black hole singularities. During her time at Radcliffe, she will study these matters further and form part of a cluster of scholars working on questions that are emerging from recent attempts to connect string theory with early universe cosmology.

Peet’s awards include a research fellowship from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, a scholar fellowship in the Cosmology and Gravity Program of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, and an Ontario Premier’s Research Excellence Award. The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada also supports her research. She earned a PhD in physics at Stanford University after earning her BSc in New Zealand.

(Fall term)