Matthieu Ricard, molecular biologist, Bhuddist monk, translator to the Dalai Lama, best-selling author, and photographer, spent the evening of October 16, 2009, at swissnex San Francisco, where he spoke on Compassion in Action. Ricard is founder of Karuna-Shechen, a charitable foundation that provides medical, social, and educational services in the Himalayan region. Brain scans done by neuroscientists at the University of Wisconsin peg him as the happiest man on Earth.

Watch a video from the event, The Science of Meditation, held in honor of Ricard’s visit.