Gary Grice, aka GZA, aka “The Genius” was at Harvard the other day lecturing about a whole bunch of GZA-type stuff like kung-fu, nursery rhymes, chess, TV forensics shows, and rapping. Post-lecture he made it over to MIT and took a tour and talked to a bunch scientists about black holes, quantum physics, the genome, and technology policy. One researcher also gave him some sea monkeys in a fully sealed ecosphere. It kinda sounds like the most awesome class trip ever.

Word is that the Wu Tang mainstay was hunting out inspiration for a new LP, which is probably not the announced and then withdrawn Liquid Swords sequel, but something else. On one hand, that sucks because the world needs a Liquid Swords 2. But, at the same time, a whole album of the GZA rapping about things he learned about at MIT seems alright. What would be really alright was if making music about science turned into a hugely fashionable trend and kids started getting down to quantum house music and Higgs-wave and lab punk.

GZA meets with graduate student Jessie Thompson and marine biologist Penny Chisholm at MIT.

GZA at MIT’s Center for Civic Media

Anyhow, here’s some GZA knowledge: “Every being and object within the universe is connected somehow, whether visibly or invisibly; I saw that in the lab today. From micro to macro. . .the deeper one sees into life, the wider life opens itself to one, you see that from working in the lab.” Time for a second career?

Connections:

• Now Watch This: Awesome Nerd Humor, Ke$ha, and Astrobiology
• A Soundboard Designed For Rappers’ Delight: A Q+A With The Creator of The Rap Board

Reach this writer at michaelb@motherboard.tv.