Jan 8, 2014 – “A brief update on modern physics” – W. John McDonald

Posted by as Meetings

Quarks
Quarks

From the smallest constituents of atoms to the largest structures in the Universe nothing is as it seemed in 1900 just before relativity and the quantum revolutionized science. My aim is to give a broad-brush picture of the material world that emerges from observations of systems ranging in size from quarks, leptons and the Higgs boson to stars, galaxies and universe itself. It is a picture that differs greatly from our common sense ideas. Those ideas evolved historically based on interpreting information we got from our human senses. With the development of modern instruments that let us see further and deeper into nature’s secrets a picture of a very different reality is evolving. It is an incomplete picture but rich and compelling nevertheless.

Presentation (4.1MB pdf)

2 Responses to “Jan 8, 2014 – “A brief update on modern physics” – W. John McDonald”

  1. John McDonald

    Thanks Randy. Good to hear from you.
    John

  2. Randy MacDonald

    Hi, John,

    I just came across your “Brief Update” and enjoyed it very much — a very good reminder of why I thought physics was interesting.

    Cheers,
    Randy

Comments are closed.