What Is Matter, Really?

Pint of Science Houston presents the third in its annual series of talks by Houston-area researchers.

Description: "Matter is more mysterious than it looks. When pushed to extremes, its tiniest building blocks can stop acting alone and become something new: flowing, organizing, and revealing hidden rules of nature.

"Join us to explore how laboratory experiments help us understand the strange collective life of matter."

Talks:

### Einstein’s Nightmare, Our Quantum Future

Kaden Hazzard (Associate Professor - Rice University )

Quantum physics upended our understanding of reality, suggesting that particles can exist in multiple places at once—a claim so strange that Einstein refused to accept it. A century later, we can test these ideas in the lab, controlling atoms one by one. The result: technologies that go beyond anything possible in the non-quantum world, from ultra-precise sensors to quantum computers capable of solving problems that would take today’s supercomputers longer than the age of the universe.

### The Hottest Thing in the Universe

Frank Geurts (Professor - Rice University)

Ever wondered what happens if you cook matter until it literally melts? Join me as we travel back to the first microseconds of the Big Bang to witness the "hottest thing in the universe"—a bizarre, liquid-like soup where the building blocks of atoms roam free. We’ll explore the high-tech thermometers scientists use to measure the hottest substance ever made on Earth—a liquid so perfect it puts your pint to shame. You’ll leave the pub knowing how we "cook" atoms to cosmic temperatures and why the early universe flowed more like the beer in your glass than a cloud of gas.

Learn more and purchase tickets ($2): https://pintofscience.us/event/what-is-matter-really/