Show for Nov 7, 2010. The Universe Writ Small: A Primer on Particle Physics, Pt. 1
We get a tour of the subatomic realm and an introduction to particle physics from Bruce Schumm. He’s a professor of physics at UC Santa Cruz, a particle man himself and the author of Deep Down Things: The 
Breathtaking Beauty of Particle Physics. And while media coverage tends to favor the speculative fringes of physics theory (extra dimensions, man-made black holes, disembodied brains in space), we’re going back to basics. We’ll focus on the Standard Model of particle physics, which encompasses most of what scientists know about the universe at small scales. And don’t let its drab-sounding name fool you. The Standard Model is a catalog of marvels that strain the limits of human understanding (mine, at least).
In this first of a two-part series, we’ll learn about some of the basic ingredients of the model, including particles, fields and forces. Coming up in part two, the deeper organizing principles (gauge theory and symmetry), holes in the Standard Model and next steps.
Click the “play” arrow above to listen, or download the MP3 here.
