James Trefil

James Trefil is a theoretical physicist and author who serves as the Clarence J. Robinson Professor of Physics at George Mason University. He previously taught at the University of Virginia and earned a Ph.D. in theoretical physics from Stanford University. His research has included elementary-particle physics, fluid mechanics, medical physics, and Earth sciences.

Trefil has written or co-written more than 40 books and more than 100 professional journal articles. His books include Science Matters: Achieving Scientific Literacy, written with Robert M. Hazen, as well as Other Worlds: The Solar System and Beyond and The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and received the Andrew Gemant Award from the American Institute of Physics.