Dr. Robert Fleck is an emeritus professor of Physics and Astronomy in the Department of Physical Sciences at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, FL, where for four decades he developed and taught a large number and a wide variety of undergraduate and graduate courses in physics, astronomy, general science, and history of science. For inspiring his students with his passion and enthusiasm for teaching and lifelong learning, he received the University Outstanding Teaching Award in 2000 and 2015, as well as over a dozen faculty appreciation awards from graduating senior classes. Dr. Fleck is a NASA and National Science Foundation supported star and planet formation theorist; his focus in the history of science is on the cultural parallels of science, particularly those pertaining to the visual arts. Dr. Fleck has published in a wide variety of disciplines, including physics and astronomy, history of science, and art-science connections, and he has held appointments as a visiting professor at both the University of Kentucky and the University of Massachusetts, a visiting scientist at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, a lecturer at the University of Maryland, European Division, and a Perren visiting fellow at the University of London; he also pioneered Embry-Riddle’s study abroad program, teaching classes in England, France, Italy, and Greece. Dr. Fleck earned a B.S. in physics from the University of Florida, an M.A. in astronomy from the University of South Florida, and a Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of Florida. Most recently, he has completed three book-length manuscripts: Entrophy and the Second Law of Thermodynamics, or Why Things Tend to Go Wrong and Seem to Get Worse, The Evolution of Scientific Thought: A Cultural History of Western Science from the Paleolithic to the Present, and Art History as Science History from the Paleolithic to the Present. When not reading or writing, Dr. Fleck enjoys swimming, surfing, cycling, and traveling.
