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Nash and Hawking Wow Beijing's Science Buffs

Chinese science enthusiasts have again enjoyed addresses by American John F. Nash, one of the most brilliant mathematicians of his generation, and physicist Stephen Hawking, wheelchair-bound author of A Brief History of Time.

More than 2,000 people crowded into the Beijing International Conference Center to hear a 90-minute speech from the legendary British master of physics and cosmography. They listened attentively and thought hard, some leaning forward, some frowning and others holding their chins and cheeks, but terms like "eleven-dimensional" and "Ekpyrotic Universe" were just too sophisticated for most to understand.

A few days later, a further 2,000 people listened to Nash, the real-life hero of the Oscar-winning film A Beautiful Mind, while many others were unable to gain entry. Scholars, students, government staff and many white-collar workers were fascinated by the movie based on Nash and his family, as well as his publication of the Nash Equilibrium.