(Avon, CT – April 7, 2026) – Packed rooms. Big questions. A city that never sleeps and never sits still.
Over the past year in Manhattan, Dr. Jay White has been quietly building something special: an audience drawn to science not as abstraction but as a way of seeing, feeling, and making sense of the universe and our place in it.
Talcott Mountain Science Center, Academy, & Research Institute (Talcott) is proud to announce that Dr. White has been named the first Resident Lecturer in Manhattan for Lectures on Tap, the nationally recognized series known for blending big ideas with lively, engaged audiences.
States Lectures on Tap co-founder, Felecia Freely: “Dr. White has become one of the defining voices of Lectures on Tap. He has a rare ability to take something as vast as the universe and make it feel intuitive, human, and playful.”
This appointment as Resident Lecturer in Manhattan follows a run of five consecutive sold-out lectures in Manhattan. In Our Place in the Multiverse, Dr. White explored our shifting sense of location in a cosmos that has steadily displaced us from any privileged center. In Warping Reality: Picasso, Einstein, and Spacetime, he traced parallel revolutions in art and physics that reshaped how we understand reality itself. In Yes, Chef! The Universe is the Kitchen, he turned to the stellar origins of the elements, revealing how the ingredients of life were forged in generations of stars. In Rhythm, Pulse, and Cosmic Groove, he uncovered the deep, often hidden patterns that govern motion, structure, and change across cosmic scales.
Most recently, in his March 16, 2026 lecture, Project Hail Mary: Science Without a Net, sponsored by Amazon MGM Studios and connected with their release of the film, Project Hail Mary, Dr. White brought audiences into a story of survival at the edge of the possible—where science is not simply knowledge but a shared act of problem-solving. Drawing on Andy Weir’s 2021 novel, the lecture traced how curiosity and collaboration become the tools by which humanity endures in an indifferent universe.
“Jay’s talk got everyone genuinely excited to see the film,” remarked Freely. “It added a whole new dimension to the movie-going experience—people weren’t just watching the story, they were thinking more deeply about the science and ideas behind it.”
In his new role as Resident Lecturer, Dr. White will return to Manhattan beginning in May with a four-part summer arc: an interconnected series of talks that continues this exploration of humanity’s place in the cosmos. The series will move from our home within the Milky Way Galaxy to a reflection on what it means for the universe to become aware of itself through us.
“New York audiences don’t come to be talked at—they come to think, laugh, and be engaged,” said Dr. White. “If I’m doing it right, we’re not just learning science, we’re working the problem together!”
Dr. White serves as Director of Talcott Mountain Research Institute (TMRI) and as Director of Science & Innovation at Talcott where he works with students, educators, and researchers to create opportunities for deep engagement in science and mathematics. Across Talcott’s programs—from immersive STEM education at the Science Center and Academy to mentored research at the Institute—students are invited not only to learn science but to participate in it.
Lectures on Tap, the original Manhattan-based series, has grown into a national platform with new programs in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, and with more planned for other cities. Known for its distinctive blend of intellectual depth and informal atmosphere, the series brings together curious audiences for evenings that are as engaging as they are thought-provoking.
Dr. White’s continuing role in the series reflects both the strength of Talcott’s educational mission and its expanding national presence. Added Ms. Freely, “Dr. White truly personifies what we’re building at Lectures on Tap—big ideas, made accessible, in a room full of people excited to think together.”
Learn more about Talcott at talcottmountainresearch.org and more about Lectures on Tap at lecturesontap.com.
The Talcott Mountain Research Institute (TMRI) is the research-focused arm of Talcott Mountain Science Center, Academy, & Research Institute. TMRI immerses students in sustained scientific inquiry, connects young scholars with leading investigators, and engages the public through initiatives such as the On the Shoulders of Giants Lecture Series and immersive STEM travel programs. Through partnerships with STEM professionals, colleges, universities, and research institutions, TMRI cultivates disciplined curiosity, collaborative problem-solving, and enduring intellectual challenge. Learn more at talcottmountainresearch.org.