Prior to joining MIT, he received his PhD in computer science from UC Berkeley, and did postdocs at the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, and the University of Waterloo. His research focuses on the capabilities and limits of quantum computers, and more generally on computational complexity theory and its relationship to physics. His first book, "Quantum Computing Since Democritus," was recently published by Cambridge University Press. Aaronson has written about quantum computing for Scientific American and the New York Times, and writes a popular blog (http://www.scottaaronson.com/blog). He's received the National Science Foundation's Alan T. Waterman Award, the United States PECASE Award, and MIT's Junior Bose Award for Excellence in Teaching.