MIT Physics Professor Doubles as Web Celeb; Dazzles Students Worldwide

The latest web celeb is a physics professor. Professor Walter
Lewin, who teaches an introductory physics course at MIT, has become an internet celebrity thank to his outrageous antics, daredevil experiments and lectures. His videotaped lectures, available for free through iTunesU and MIT's OpenCourseWarehave become wildly popular, igniting a following of devotees around the world.

The New York Times ran a profile on the Dutch physics professor, saying:

In his lectures at ocw.mit.edu, Professor Lewin beats a student with cat fur to demonstrate electrostatics.
Wearing shorts, sandals with socks and a pith helmet — nerd safari garb
— he fires a cannon loaded with a golf ball at a stuffed monkey wearing a bulletproof vest to demonstrate the trajectories of objects in free fall.

According to the article, he unlikely download sensation spends 25 hours preparing each new lecture for download, choreographing details and stripping down extra chit-chat to ensure clarity for his viewers.

Photo via MIT.