The mysterious Universe - exploring our world with particle accelerators

by Jim Brau (U. Oregon)

Thursday 1 Oct 2009, 19:00 → 20:00 America/Denver

Anthropology Lecture Hall 163 (University of New Mexico)

The universe is dark and mysterious, more so than even Einstein imagined. While modern science has established deep understanding of the matter we know, it is the elements we don't know ("Dark Matter" and "Dark Energy") that dominate the structure of the universe, its behavior and its destiny. What are these curious elements? Scientists are now searching for answers to these and other challenging questions about the universe with experiments at particle accelerators on Earth, and with satellites in space. Results of this research may revolutionize our view of nature as dramatically as the theories of Einstein and other quantum pioneers one hundred years ago.

Prof. Brau's lecture is aimed at a general audience, high-school students are especially welcome. He will explain the mysteries, describe the facilities which explore them experimentally, and present our current understanding of the underlying science. The presentation will be at an introductory level, appropriate for anyone interested in physics and astronomy. This public lecture is part of a five-day, international conference on future accelerators, hosted by the University of New Mexico and organized by the American Linear Collider Physics Group.

Slides public_lecture_091001c.pdf