Marylou Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 Just watched this on www.pbs.org Very interesting. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/elegant-universe-einstein.html Part 1, "Einstein's Dream," introduces string theory and shows how modern physics—composed of two theories that are ferociously incompatible—reached its schizophrenic impasse: One theory, general relativity, successfully describes big things like stars and galaxies, while another, quantum mechanics, is equally successful at explaining small things like atoms and subatomic particles. Albert Einstein, the inventor of general relativity, dreamed of finding a single theory that would embrace all of nature's laws. But in this quest for the so-called unified theory, Einstein came up empty-handed, and the conflict between general relativity and quantum mechanics has stymied all who've followed. That is, until the discovery of string theory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 We actually watched this on Netflix today, not instant play. We just finished reading Simply Einstein and ds is intrigued. I have the book Elegant Universe, but the videos (pt 1 & 2) are more accessible for the layman. It was a great way to spend a Monday morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 (edited) We've been watching the new NOVA series The Fabric of the Cosmos. My kids are enthralled. They're airing The Elegant Universe series right after - I already have it on DVD, but my kids were much younger when I recorded it. I'm thinking that'll be a great follow up/complement to The Fabric of the Cosmos... A somewhat (but perhaps not entirely) unexpected side-effect of letting them watch lots of science fiction this past year is that they're really interested in this kind of stuff. They just signed up for SPLASH next weekend and are very excited about classes like Dark Matter Detection, Multiverse Architecture and The Physics of the Universe in One Hour. :tongue_smilie: Edited November 15, 2011 by matroyshka Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 What is SPLASH? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 What is SPLASH? SPLASH is a program put on by various universities - it's outreach for middle and high school students; an entire weekend of classes to sample from. This one's at MIT, but I know locally BU also has a SPLASH program, and I saw a post here on the high school board for one somewhere else in the US (Chicago??) so I'm thinking many universities have programs modeled like this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 SPLASH is a program put on by various universities - it's outreach for middle and high school students; an entire weekend of classes to sample from. This one's at MIT, but I know locally BU also has a SPLASH program, and I saw a post here on the high school board for one somewhere else in the US (Chicago??) so I'm thinking many universities have programs modeled like this? Thanks, I'll look into that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bang!Zoom! Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 I could probably work on a piece of poetry that better catches what I think about this. But maybe not. And then there are days like today; where I sit and sit and watch and watch the kid work something through; something so elementary (literally)- and I watch the fight "upstairs"- and then I see it "click"- and I can't help myself but to feel that small shudder - the same one, the very same one I get when I start messing with these ideas up there in those posts above.... I want to say something that says, " I get it, I saw it too.." So in witness to all that's awesome on/above/below this stringy mess of bits, I offer a find from tonight. It seems, somehow, to celebrate a small thing and a big thing at the same time. If it's totally confusing, that's okay, doesn't matter. Go see the pretty pictures anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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