Making Math and Science a Laughing Matter 
by Andrew Kerr
September 2006

Most of us at one point or another in our lives face that familiar question, "What if I had accepted the traveling circus's invitation to become a lion tamer whose astonishing feats of bravery would have thrilled Russian showgirls of indescribable beauty? Instead of sticking to accounting?"

In other words, what might have been. Well, Dr. Peter "Pete" Ludovice of Georgia Tech's School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering faced a similar question, only you can replace the bit about lion taming with a dream about being a stand-up comedian. And today (unlike our trapped accountant in the example above), Pete happily exists in both the Georgia Tech universe and the equally intriguing world of comedy clubs, radio, and the odd high school assembly.

"Sometime slightly before January 2004 I snapped," he explained. "I finally bit the bullet and said, 'I'm going to go to an open mic'."

And what was your first open mic experience like?

"The first night I went I had to pick a number out of a hat. The number determined the order. No one wants to go first. So of course I reached in and picked number one."

And how did it go?

"Ray Romano once said about comedians, 'Everybody stinks at the beginning'."

Two years after his aromatic debut, you can hear a confident and polished Pete every week on Radio Sandy Springs, where he co-hosts a show that harmoniously bridges the science universe and the comedy one. "Inside the Black Box," a show featuring lively chatter and humor about all things scientific, airs Saturday mornings at 9 AM. Although the range of the station is extremely local, you can also hear the program streamed live on the Internet. The most recent two episodes are always available online.

But before Pete could get his show started there was a problem to be resolved. "I needed a partner, because my wife was not going to let me do this alone." How could they take weekend trips if Pete was always tied to the microphone? she reasoned.

Enter Dr. Bill Hunt, Georgia Tech Electrical and Computer Engineering professor by day, open mic comedian by night. When he's not building electronic smelling devices, or playing the piano, he has been honing his comic skills in front of extremely varied Atlanta area audiences.

After a none-more-appropriate April Fool's Day debut, the two of them, along with their many guests from the world of academia, spend an hour every Saturday morning explore such varied topics as Dr. Julia Kubanek's research (which loyal Gazette readers are familiar with), Plutos' demotion from planet to "dwarf planet" (this complete with a spot-on Mickey Mouse impression, as Mr. Mouse had a dog sharing the name of that ill-fated frozen chunk of rock), and fuel cells (with a special phoned-in appearance from guest professor Tom Fuller's son Steven).

A figure that looms large in any discussion of Georgia Tech comedy is Jeff Foxworthy, one of the most recognized comedians in the United States. Author of the popular "You Might be a Redneck" series of books, and one of the best-known faces on Comedy Central's "Blue Collar TV" show, he was a member of Georgia Tech's class of 1979 and spent five years working at IBM before beginning his new life in stand-up. But unlike Foxworthy, whose comedy is typically an end unto itself, Pete and Bill use comedy as a tool with which science topics can be taught.

"The fact that there's a light comic air to things just makes it more entertaining," says Bill. "It makes it seem more accessible to people who would be listening. Comedy is one of the ways that people can actually learn something. You get things across, people's appetites are whetted, and they think 'Wow, this is kinda interesting!'"

In other words, "If you're not careful, you might learn something!"

You may not know the name Sir Donald Wolfit, but you certainly have heard the phrase attributed to him: "Dying is easy. Comedy is hard."

"Somebody referred to comedy as a brutal Toastmasters," Bill says. "I like doing it because it's hard, the most difficult thing I can think of doing. I have this tendency to inflict pain on myself.

"There's a big difference between making somebody laugh one-on-one, even if they're a complete stranger, and making a crowd full of people that you don't know laugh," he continues. "You ask yourself, 'How do you that? How do you connect quickly to the audience?'"

But Pete adds optimistically, "Here's the nice thing about comedy: if you work on it you can improve substantially."

Both find that comedy also dovetails neatly into the world of being a professor. After all, every professor is a performer who must hold the attention of an audience.

In doing the show, Pete and Bill have perfected their banter and their manner of setting up jokes. Radio Sandy Springs has proven a fertile testing ground for an idea that may grow down the road.