Google Street View - A tour of CERN: I had to put this as the main image for this post just because I wondered what this woman swimming through the electrical wires tells people she does for a living at dinner parties. Click the image of the swimming lady (left) to be directed to Google's Maps. Then type in 'CERN' and click 'Street View'. Summary: Between 1998-2008 the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) was built by the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN). It is the largest scientific experiment in history and is the highest-energy particle collider. It is a collaboration between over 10,000 scientists and engineers, 100 countries and hundreds of universities. The UK has a lead role as we currently work on all of the experiments, with Professor Brian Cox being one of them. It is 100 metres underground in Geneva Switzerland, weighs in excess of 38,000 tonnes and its circular structure runs for 27km (about 27 airport runways). The LHC was build to test conditions just after the Big Bang. It uses hydrogen particles, as they were the only matter present in the early universe, and strips them of their electrons, runs them to 99.9% of the speed of light (light = 671 million mph) and then smashes them into one another. Supercomputers then observe the collision, what particles are thrown off, their temperature etc. Scientists had hoped by doing this that they would falsify (prove, or disprove) the existence of the elusive Higgs boson which gives mass to subatomic particles by their interaction with the Higgs field. The existence of the Higgs boson was confirmed by the LHC on 14th March 2013. To understand more about the LHC, the Higgs boson and the Higgs field view the short videos below which explain their subject very well in 6 and 3 minutes respectively. - A link to LHC's website: http://www.lhc.ac.uk How the LHC works - video This video is fantastic at explaining what happens inside the LHC in basic terms, in just 6 minutes. If I were to write it all down, it would not be anywhere near as interesting as seeing it visualised. Enjoy! Time: 6:16 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQNpucos9wc Click the image (left) to be directed to this video. What is a Higgs boson? - video A very short video simply explaining what the Higgs boson and Higgs field are. As it turns out, it's very much like you swimming in a swimming pool. Who would have thought. Time: 3:27 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIg1Vh7uPyw Click the image (left) to be directed to this video. HD images of the LHC at CERN:
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TED talks - Ideas Worth Spreading: Summary: Beginning in 1984 and becoming an annual conference by 1994 in Silicon Valley California, TED talks are now widely available through YouTube. In around 20 minutes, presenters give a lecture on topics which concern us and the modern world. Whether that be technology, philosophy, psychology, climate change, sleep, work, poverty or even orgasms. Past presenters include: Malcolm Gladwell, Bill Clinton, Gordon Brown, Richard Dawkins, Bill Gates, Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, and many Nobel Prize winners. A few of my favourite talks - Click the image of the talk you wish to watch. #1 : John Kay : Obliquity - How Complex Goals Are Best Achieved Indirectly Time: 20:25 My Source: YouTube Last viewed: 10th September 2013 Rating: 8/10 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BoAtYL3OWU Summary: I discovered John Kay after reading an article of his in the Financial Times and then typed him into Google. He is a lead Economist, a fellow of John's College Oxford and a visiting professor at the London School of Economics. So, he's quite clever! By using real life examples Kay explains how the best way to achieve our complex goals is by using indirect routes. To highlight this, Kay paraphrases a quote from John Stuart Mill who was a keen advocate of his own philosophy (naturally) Utilitarianism and the maximisation of happiness. However, being unhappy himself led Mill to conclude: "I now thought that this end [happiness] was only to be attained by not making it the direct end. Those only are happy who have their minds fixed on such subject other than their own happiness.". This is my favourite TED talk because it reminds me not to focus too much. Not to not think that everything I do will directly result in what it is I hope to achieve. That sometimes luck, someone you know or some turn of events may be what plays a crucial role in your success. #2: Elanor Longden: The Voices in My Head Time: 14:18 My Source: YouTube Last viewed: 18th September 2013 Rating: 9/10 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syjEN3peCJw Summary: A fascinating insight into schizophrenia whereby Elanor Longden gives a detailed, personal account of her own struggles with paranoid schizophrenia which began at university. She also describes how she overcame the voices in her head, what she went on to achieve (extremely impressive) and delivers a powerful message to all psychologists, psychiatrists, mental health care professionals, families and friends of those suffering and to, of course, those who are suffering with schizophrenia themselves. I find this video uplifting because it is so incredibly positive. Which is a breath of fresh air in mental health rhetoric! #3: Philip Zimbardo: The Psychology of Evil Time: 23:11 My Source: YouTube Last viewed: 25th September 2013 Rating: 7/10 Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsFEV35tWsg Summary: Many know Philip Zimbardo as he brought psychology one of its most famous and emotive field experiments - The Stanford Prison Experiment (1971). In a some-what extension of this, Zimbardo talks about the psychology of evil in this TED talk. Beginning with God's favourite angel Lucifer (Satan or Iblis/Shaytan in Islam) Zimbardo uses the arc angel's cosmic transformation into the devil as a way of explaining the transition from good to evil in human beings. Zimbardo calls this 'The Lucifer Effect', which he has written a book about of the same title. - The Stanford Prison Experiment Documentary (BBC): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_LKzEqlPto The most viewed talks so far - Click the underlined portion to view the talk. Sir Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity (2006): 8,660,010 views Jill Bolte Taylor‘s stroke of insight (2008): 8,087,935 Pranav Mistry on the thrilling potential of SixthSense (2009): 6,747,410 Pattie Maes and Pranav Mistry demo SixthSense (2009): 6,731,153 David Gallo‘s underwater astonishments (2007): 6,411,705 Tony Robbins asks Why we do what we do (2006): 4,909,505 Hans Rosling shows the best stats you’ve ever seen (2006): 3,954,776 Arthur Benjamin does mathemagic (2005): 3,664,705 Jeff Han demos his breakthrough multi-touchscreen (2006): 3,592,795 Johnny Lee shows Wii Remote hacks for educators (2008): 3,225,864 Blaise Aguera y Arcas runs through the Photosynth demo (2007): 3,007,440 Elizabeth Gilbert on nurturing your genius (2009): 2,978,288 Dan Gilbert asks: Why are we happy? (2004): 2,903,993 Stephen Hawking asks big questions about the universe (2008): 2,629,230 Daniel Pink on the surprising science of motivation (2009): 2,616,363 Barry Schwartz on the paradox of choice (2005): 2,263,065 Richard St. John shares 8 secrets of success (2005): 2,252,911 Mary Roach 10 things you didn’t know about orgasm (2009): 2,223,822 Simon Sinek on how great leaders inspire action (2010): 2,187,868 Chimamanda Adichie shares the danger of a single story (2009): 2,143,763 (Source: http://blog.ted.com/2011/06/27/the-20-most-watched-tedtalks-so-far/) Max Tegmark - "The Future of Life: a Cosmic Perspective" Time: 48:55 My Source: YouTube Rating: 8/10 Last viewed: 22nd September 2013 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GctnYAYcMhI Click the image to be directed to this video. Summary: MIT Professor Max Tegmark gives a lecture at a TED-style two day event whereby he explores his own views of the cosmos, what it is, how it will develop, how it could end and perhaps that we are alone in the universe and what that means. Prof. Max Tegmark is not your average cosmologist, nor your average lecturer. He's excitable, engaging and has a very visible passion for what he does but in a different way to how I would describe others who are clearly engaged in their field. It is more that he wishes for others to engage, be excited and become passionate for the field, rather than simply just wishing to demonstrate the depth of his own involvement in the subject. He is also often a benchmark contributor for big documentaries such as 'The Ultimate Guide to Black Holes' (post below) which allows his enthusiasm to reach a wider audience. He has, therefore, become the contributor I look for before watching a documentary! As you will see if you visit his website, he is a very open academic who believes that scientists should 'get off their high horses' and get as many people involved in learning, teaching and research as possible. He is a personal favourite of mine, a very distinct personality and almost his own little wave in cosmology. Don't believe me? Look below to 'Meeting Prof. Max Tegmark'. - His personal website: http://space.mit.edu/home/tegmark/ - Facebook page for his first book 'The Mathematical Universe' (out soon) which he personally manages: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Max-Tegmark/461616050561921?fref=ts Meeting Prof. Max Tegmark at the Royal Institution, London for a talk on his new (and first) book "Our Mathematical Universe - My Quest For The Ultimate Nature Of Reality" (2014) So, this little story will illuminate how wonderful Professor Max Tegmark really is and what I mean when I say I am ultimately very thankful for my insomnia (a common Twitter rant)! It was very late on the 28th January 2014 and I couldn't sleep, as per usual, so I logged into Facebook. I then saw that Max had posted on the page for his new book (link above), that he was on his way to London and should anyone wish to attend the talk he was giving, they should ask. I immediately jumped at the opportunity and soon found Max asking for all those who had requested a ticket for their contact details so he could let us know if any should become available! Over the moon and very aware that it would be on a 'first come, first serve' basis I took to watching my Facebook like a hawk. I saw this request for a mobile number and sent mine via e-mail immediately. I'm not even sure Facebook had managed to turn it's automatic timescale from "a few seconds ago" to "one minute" before I had replied to Max telling him it was on its way! Knowing I had done all I could, I continued to hover around any electronic device which had a Facebook 'notifications' feature and waited to see if any tickets had been arranged. It was now the day of the talk and I knew I would have to leave for London by around 3pm (to meet a good friend whom I very seldom see before hand) and therefore, despite not knowing if I had a ticket at 12pm I decided to get ready anyway. Then, at around 2pm, I had a phone call and I immediately knew who was going to be on the other end. Now, I am not one for buying into 'celebrity' culture but I have those who I admire greatly and Max is one of them. So, if I was to say I 'kept it cool' and used all the social skills I have to restrain myself from bursting out in an ecstatic "Oh my god" whilst burying my head in my hands with a grin from ear to ear, I would probably (definitely) be lying to you. Needless to say I heard "Hello Alainah, it's Max Tegmark here!" in his lovely, excitable voice and I died, a little, of happiness. The ticket was arranged and Max told me of how to obtain it when I reached the doors. But, that was just the beginning of my Max Tegmark experience, which I will try to list from here. When I arrived at the venue, I used my magic word and discovered that I didn't need to pay for a ticket as I had expected, which was extremely generous of both Max and the venue staff, who arranged this for myself and the other 'winner' of the ticket (only two had become available! - the 'hawk-eyed' approach paid off!) and I walked up the stairs and saw Max. He had said on the phone that I should make sure and say hello, so, of course, in light of his generosity I wanted to introduce myself, and of course, thank him. I waited as Max took a photograph with a young school child and when he turned around and walked towards me, we shook hands and I introduced myself. To my surprise he smiled, nodded and said he recognised me. In text, this may not seem a 'like a big deal' but in situations like this (having approached academics at conferences etc.) this is the first time I have felt as though I was approaching a stranger whom I knew (from their careers) but that did not know me, but had made some effort at least to consider the possibility that I was worth meeting too. In essence, for Max, who has seen thousands of faces to have recognised the face of a fan from Facebook is very simply, 'making an effort'. That is the only way in which I can describe the rest of the evening, speaking to Max later when he signed my book and again after that. He had taken the time to ask if I was sticking around and to speak of the prison research I hope to conduct in the summer of this year. By describing this evening I am hoping to iluminate the point that Max is a very warm and generous academic and there are not many like him. I am not stretched to think of friendly academics, but I am certainly stretched to think of any as welcoming and humble as Max. Therefore, the point of this post (there is one, other than me simply gushing over the evening) is that if you want to get involved in physics or cosmology, that you look into Max. Look for YouTube videos of his lectures, documentaries he has been involved in, events he may be holding and of course, read his first and very new, book. For I may be twenty-two and perhaps I should have 'grown out' of responding so strongly to those I admire, but the reason I have still continued with this post (other than because I am not embarrassed of enjoying the things I enjoy!) is also because it is very easy for me to see already how the effect of Max's affection towards his fans (particularly if they are young and wish to move into physics/cosmology) could be life changing for them. Now I know Max's answer would be that in parallel universes just millimetres from where I stand now there is another Alainah who is a cosmologist, but from this version of myself... if I had met Max at seven or eight years old I can only imagine how encouraging his support would have been. Perhaps, right now, I would be finding time to squeeze in reading his new book not because I am at university and busy with my own course, but because I am at university, busy and studying astrophysics. Who knows! Now, Max, you said you had seen my blog so, if you have stumbled across it again - thank you for everything! And, it was a pleasure to finally get to meet you in person too!
Leonard Susskind - Lectures from Stanford University, US Einstein's General Theory of Relativity - Lecture 1: Time: 1:38:28 My Source: YouTube Rating: 8/10 Last viewed: 25th September 2013 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbmf0bB38h0 Click the image to be directed to this lecture. Summary: For anyone with a deep interest in physics, Stanford University's recording of Leonard Susskind's lectures are invaluable. They allow you, in your own time, to go through real university physics lectures from one of the most respected physicists in the world. As they are real lectures, they are difficult. However, I have no background in mathematics but because Susskind is a good and patient teacher, I found I could follow with relative ease. You can follow the suggested videos on YouTube to many more of his lectures but this is one is my favourite and was my starting point. I believe Susskind was an inspiration for the writers of 'The Big Bang Theory' and this is where Leonard Hofstadter get his name. Enjoy! Stephen Hawking documentaries: Documentary series: 'Into the Universe' and 'Grand Design' Episodes: 3 each (6 total) Average length: 40+ minutes Sourced: YouTube and others Rating: 10/10 Year: 2010 - 2013 Broadcast by: Discovery Channel Summary: As my favourite person in the entire universe, Stephen Hawking's documentaries get 10/10 throughout. As always, Hawking is brilliantly funny and takes you through his imagination, which as he says, is what allows him to be free. Hawking's disease renders him completely paralysed apart from one eye, meaning he has to memorise the entirety of chapters for his books or scripts for his documentaries. Personally, I think that deserves a 10/10 straight off the bat. But beyond that, as far as documentaries on these subjects go, Stephen Hawking's are by far my favourite and I am yet to see a documentary series top them. They use the highest quality visualisations and Benedict Cumberbatch's narration is brilliant at conveying Hawking's enthusiasm! Hawking's is also fantastic at teaching. Subjects such as 'string theory' which are extremely complicated, Hawking makes beautifully simple. I can not recommend them highly enough. Also, in an interview with Brian Cox and David Attenborough Hawking said that he dreams in equations. Amazing. Click the image of the episode you wish to watch. Into the Universe - 1 - Aliens Time: 43:30 My Source: YouTube Last viewed: Recently Ranking: 10/10 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_5xBiAalxM Into the Universe - 2 - Time Travel Time: 43:27 My Source: Vimeo Last viewed: Recently Ranking: 10/10 Link: http://vimeo.com/17477895 Into the Universe - 3 - The Story of Everything Time: 1:26:36 My Source: Vimeo Last viewed: Recently Ranking: 10/10 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tptgwvNmFTM Grand Design - 1 - Key to the Cosmos Time: 42:33 My Source: Sockshare Last viewed: Recently Ranking: 10/10 Link: http://www.sockshare.com/file/1130F23444AD038B Grand Design - 2 - The Meaning of Life Time: 42:32 My Source: Sockshare Last viewed: Recently Ranking: 10/10 Link:http://www.sockshare.com/file/9344E675C004FB2C# Grand Design - 3 - Did God Create the Universe Time: 43:59 My Source: Putlocker Last viewed: Recently Ranking: 10/10 Link: http://www.putlocker.com/file/0A62854D7DD4ED4C# 'Secrets of the Sun' - National Geographic documentary Length: 53:06 My source: YouTube Last viewed: 21st September 2013 Ranking: 7/10 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32KVGQy3bMY Click the image to be directed to this documentary. Summary: The 'Solar and Heliospheric Observatory' (SOHO) began orbiting and observing the Sun in 1996. Since then NASA have been able to view the Sun 24 hours a day, 365 days a year as SOHO orbits 92 million miles away. This constant observation has lead to the discovery that the Sun is neither solid, liquid nor a gas. It also lead scientists to discover that the Sun vibrates and makes sound which founded a new science - helioseismology. But, also as SOHO observed through it's several different cameras, it showed solar radiation storms and geomagnetic storms which can result in Coronal Mass Ejections (CME waves). CME waves emit billions of tonnes of electrically charged particles into space, travelling at over 1 million miles per hour. When directed towards Earth, CME waves threaten to damage our protection from the Sun's radiation - our magnetic field. Therefore, The National Space Weather Protection Centre (NOAA/NWS) watches SOHO in the hope that scientists can give warning before CME waves cause overloading of national power grids which can black-out cities for hours, days, weeks or even years. -To view SOHO's images yourself, in real time, download NASA's 'Sun Viewer' application (post below). - A Coronal Mass Ejection (CME): My favourite thing in all of astrophysics. NASA's 'Sun Viewer' app: Price: Free My source: Apple's App Store Rating: 9/10 Downloaded: June 2013 Summary: Thanks to the 'Solar and Heliospheric Observatory' (SOHO) which began operations in 1996, we are now able to track the Sun and monitor its activity in real time. NASA have created an app which allows you to access the images SOHO produces whilst orbiting the Sun from 92 million miles away. The best part of the app for me is being able to monitor the Sun's 'coronal loops' which are not visible to the naked eye as they are magnetic fields. These magnetic fields emerge on the surface from their bending and twisting from deep within the Sun due to the differing density of the plasma below. It is most dense in the middle where nuclear fusion takes place, less dense in the 'radiative zone' beyond it and less still in the 'convective zone' which operates just beneath the surface. Due to the difference in density and therefore speeds in rotation, the magnetic waves become deformed and contorted which leads them to bulge up, just as if you were bending a slinky in different directions making it rise up and down. As these loops are magnetic they have a positive and negative pole located at each end. As the Sun continues to deform the magnetic fields the loops appear to swing, until finally the positive and negative end meet. This results in a 'solar flare' or a 'coronal mass ejection' or (CME wave) which releases billions of tonnes of charged particles. It is thanks to SOHO that we are even aware that these events take place and are now available for us to watch thanks to NASA's 'Sun Viewer' app. The app also includes: 'Live Views', Visualisations', 'Videos', 'Missions', 'My Saved Content', 'The Solar Wind' and 'Aurora'. 'The Ultimate Guide to Black Holes" - BBC documentary Time: 56:45 My source: YouTube Last viewed: 24th September 2013, Rating: 9/10 Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHyWD16VT00 Click the image to be directed to this documentary. Please excuse the strange opening of the video. Summary: Einstein's general relativity (theory of gravity - 1916) mathematically concludes with (0=infinity) meaning that gravity can collapse to create a singular point of infinite mass which contains no space. This is known as a singularity which exists at the centre of a black hole. It is the point where physics as we know it breaks down. This means that no one (not even Einstein who despite his own mathematics dictating their existence, denied that nature would allow them exist) can explain what happens inside a black hole or what can come out of one. Once beyond the 'event horizon' (the circular outside), matter being sucked into a black hole passes the 'inner horizon'. At this point matter is now travelling at the same speed outwards (as it tries to escape) as it is being pulled inwards and therefore is doomed to continue falling. In the same way that you are doomed to fall into a waterfall as soon as the speed of your swimming matches the speed of the water (the same experience of not being able to fight water rapids). This happens to all matter, even light (C) which travels at C = 671 million mph. This is where the name 'black hole' derives. Due to their very nature of being black, it is almost impossible to see a black hole but astrophysicists and cosmologists have developed ways of not only detecting them but also ways to measure them, to assess how common they are, where they exist, their proportional relation to their galaxy (which they are the centre of) and to conclude that black holes may be as creative as they are destructive. |
Alainah Rook
BA Criminology & Sociology
University of Kent Third year undergraduate Twitter: Alainah_NTR E-mail: [email protected] kent.academia.edu/AlainahR Archives
July 2014
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