Welcome!
In this 4th episode we continue our survey* of what is known and what is still not understood in theoretical physics, this time focussing on the Special Theory of Relativity.
We will cover:
The principle of relativity, the absolute speed of light, the relativity of time, the maximum speed of information transfer, the equaivalence of mass and energy, time travel, four dimensional spacetime, tachyons, evidence for special relativity and its possible violations.
The presentations, by a theoretical physicist, will be mostly qualitative and heuristic, aimed primarily at newbies and other enthusiasts. Pointers will also be provided to additional resources, most of which are freely available online (see below).
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Please note:
1. All participants must turn on their video feed for the event, with your face clearly visible.
2. The event will last between 60 to 90 minutes.
2. You can stay for the whole session or leave when you want.
3. If no one shows up within first 10 minutes, the event for that day will be closed.
4. Follow up dicussions may be held online on another day or in this Telegram channel: https://t.me/+7AbAhntPHC45ZDhl
You need to download the free Telegram app on your phone. Telegram allows for privacy as you can use a userid without revealing your phone number to the group.
5. You may message me in advance if you have some specific topic you would like to hear about.
6. Additional resources will be posted in the Telegram Group.
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*Synopsis of the Series:
What have physicists learned about how our world works?
What do we still not understand?
Is time travel possible? What is time? Do wormholes exist?
What is dark matter? Are black holes really black?
What is quantum physics? What was there before the Big Bang?
Where are the magnetic monopoles?
Where did the elements on Earth come from?
Can the laws of Nature change with time? How will our universe end?
Is there more than one universe, with different laws?
Is there Life elsewhere in our universe?
Why are we seeking Grand Unified Theories and Theories of Everything?
Will finding those help answer the question to "Life, the Universe and Everything?" :)
That, and more, is what we intend to talk about in this series of online events aimed primarily at newbies and other enthusiasts.
But to do that, we need to first establish some common language and base knowledge. We will build that up systematically in the upcoming weeks, focussing on some core topic at each session, starting from classical physics to relativity and quantum physics and so on. We will also bring up some open problems and proposed solutions in each session.
EPN4
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*Tentative schedule for the coming weeks:
Episode 1: What is Physics? (Completed).
Episode 2: Newton, Maxwell and the Unification Theme (Completed)
Episode 3: Complexity, Emergence, and Information (Completed)
Episode 4: Special Relativity and Puzzles (Upcoming)
Episode 5: Gravity, Cosmology and Open Problems
Episode 6: Quantum Theory and Weirdness
Episode 7: Fundamental Particles, Forces and Open Problems
Episode 8: Dreams of Unified Theories
Episode 9 : Feel free to suggest other topics!
