HET Seminar: Comments on wormholes and factorization
Justin Kaidi (Stonybrook University)
I will introduce a class of non-invertible topological defects in (3+1)d gauge theories whose fusion rules are the higher-dimensional analogs of those of the Kramers-Wannier defect in the (1+1)d…
Condensed and Living Matter Seminar: "Photo-induced Phase Transitions in Charge Density Waves"
Nuh Gedik (MIT)
Upon excitation with an intense laser pulse, materials can undergo a non-equilibrium phase transition through pathways different from those in thermal equilibrium. The mechanism underlying these…
HET Seminar: Infrared Finite Scattering Theory in QFT and Quantum Gravity
Gautam Satishchandran (University of Chicago)
A long standing problem in QFT and quantum gravity is the construction of an “IR”-finite S-matrix. In the gravitational case, the existence of these “infrared divergences” is intimately tied to the…
Physics and Astronomy Colloquium: "Lucy - the First to the Trojans"
Harold F. Levison (Southwest Research Institute)
I will discuss NASA's Lucy mission. Lucy, selected as part of NASA's Discovery Program, is the first reconnaissance of the Jupiter Trojans, objects that hold vital clues to…
Thesis Defense: “Simons Observatory Large Aperture Telescope Receiver"
Ningfeng Zhu (University of Pennsylvania)
https://upenn.zoom.us/j/96054994396?pwd=c01FamVmempFNUJDTjdYNThHYTg2QT09…
Rittenhouse Lecture: "Galaxy evolution and cosmology via the 21 cm line of atomic hydrogen"
Martha Haynes (Cornell University)
The 21 cm line of atomic hydrogen (HI) provides a powerful probe of the cool-to-warm interstellar gas in galaxies. Virtually all star-forming galaxies contain a cool neutral component…
Condensed and Living Matter Seminar: "Physical Computation in Insect Swarms"
Orit Peleg, University of Colorado
Our world is full of living creatures that must share information to survive and reproduce. As humans, we easily forget how hard it is to communicate within natural environments. So how do organisms solve…