Paul G. Hewitt was a Silver Medalist flyweight Boxing Champion for New England States at the age of 17. He was then a cartoonist, sign painter, and uranium prospector before beginning his physics studies. Conceptual Physics was first published in 1971, while Hewitt was teaching at City College of San Francisco. He has also served as a guest lecturer at the University of California at Berkeley, the University of California at Santa Cruz, the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and the University of Hawaii at Hilo. Hewitt returned to San Francisco to teach at the City College and the well-known science museum, The Exploratorium. He retired from full-time teaching in 2000, and currently resides in St. Petersburg, Florida.