Heinz Oberhummer, physicist, Died at 74

  Dead Famous

Heinz Oberhummer was born on May 19, 1941, and died on November 23, 2015, he was an Austrian physicist and skeptic.

He was born in Bischofshofen and grew up in Obertauern, Austria.

Heinz studied physics at the University of Graz and the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.

He lived in the village of Oberwölbling in the Dunkelsteinerwald, Lower Austria.

Heinz was married and had two children.

He was professor emeritus of Theoretical Physics at the Atominstitut of the Vienna University of Technology.

His main research area was nucleosynthesis. Heinz was also involved in questions concerning the fine-tuning of the Universe.

Heinz, Csótó und Schlattl were able to derive quantifiable results concerning the fine-tuning of the Universe by investigating the creation of carbon and oxygen in the triple-alpha process in red giants.

Heinz was the initiator of ‘Nuclei in the Cosmos, the most important international conference series in the field of nuclear astrophysics taking place for the tenth time in the year 2008 at Michigan State University, U.S.A.

He was especially engaged in popularisation of scientific contents, including the new media.

Heinz developed web-based learning and information systems and co-ordinates educational projects funded by the European Commission like Cinema and Science.

He was also engaged in the creation and presentation of popular science with the Science Busters in the Rabenhof Theater in Vienna and as a weekly radio column and podcast in the Austrian youth radio station FM4.

Heinz was member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Giordano Bruno Foundation and the Gesellschaft zur wissenschaftlichen Untersuchung von Parawissenschaften (GWUP), the German-speaking branch of the worldwide skeptical movement.

Furthermore, Heinz was president of the “Gesellschaft für Kritisches Denken” (the Austrian branch of the GWUP), and of the Austrian “Zentralrat für Konfessionsfreie” (National Council of Non-confessionals.

Heinz was president of the secularist initiative “Religion ist Privatsache” (Religion is private matter).

Heinz passed away at age 74 on November 23, 2015 in Vienna.