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Scott Lectures Kip S Thorne
Scott Lectures Drawing by Glen Edwards, Utah State University, Logan, UT Kip S Thorne The Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics California Institute of Technology Gravitational Waves: A New Window onto the Universe Monday 17th May 2010 I. Probing the Warped Side of the Universe with Numerical Simulations and Gravitational Waves Our U O Universe i hhas a ""warped d side": id " objects bj t andd phenomena h th thatt are made d nott from f matter, but rather from warped space and warped time. Examples include black holes, cosmic strings and the big-bang singularity in which the Universe was born. Thorne will describe this mysterious warped side, the quest to simulate it using supercomputers, and the quest to observe it using gravitational waves. All Lectures commence at 4.00 pm in the Pippard Lecture Theatre, Cavendish L b t Laboratory, J J Thomson Th A Avenue, C Cambridge, b id CB3 0HE. 0HE F Further th ddetails t il are available il bl from:- http://talks.cam.ac.uk/directory/ All are welcome to attend. Scott Lectures Drawing by Glen Edwards, Utah State University, Logan, UT Kip S Thorne The Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics California Institute of Technology Gravitational Waves: A New Window onto the Universe Wednesday 19th May 2010 II. Gravitational-Wave Detectors above 10Hz: Weber Bars, LIGO, GEO, VIRGO, TAMA, LCGT, and Einstein Telescope Thorne will describe sources of gravitational waves above about 10Hz (neutron stars, black holes, cosmic strings, ...) and the two types of detectors that are being used to search for those waves: Weber bars, and optical interferometers. The first generation interferometers (initial LIGO, initial Virgo, GEO600, TAMA300) are nearing completion of their data collection and are producing astrophysically interesting results, but no detections as yet. The second generation (advanced LIGO, advanced VIRGO, GEO-HF and LCGT) have begun construction or will do so soon, and have a high probability of detecting a wide variety of sources. R&D for the third generation (LIGO-III, Einstein Telescope) is now underway By changing the experimental protocol but not the apparatus, underway. apparatus the second and third generation interferometers may also be used to study quantum behavior of humansized objects --- e.g. quantum entanglement of 40 kg masses several kilometers apart, and "Schrodinger-cat" quantum states. All Lectures commence at 4.00 pm in the Pippard Lecture Theatre, Cavendish Laboratory, J J Thomson Avenue, Cambridge, CB3 0HE. Further details are available from:http://talks.cam.ac.uk/directory/ All are welcome to attend. Scott Lectures Drawing by Glen Edwards, Utah State University, Logan, UT Kip S Thorne The Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics California Institute of Technology gy Gravitational Waves: A New Window onto the Universe Friday 21st May 2010 III GravitationalWave Detectors Below 10Hz: LISA, Pulsar Timing Arrays, III. G it ti lW D t t B l 10H LISA P l Ti i A CMB Polarization, Atom Interferometers, and the Big Bang Observer Thorne will describe gravitational wave sources below about 10 Hz (massive black holes, neutron stars, white dwarfs, and phenomena in the very early universe), and the various techniques that are being developed to search for them: space‐based optical interferometry (LISA and the Big Bang Observer), pulsar timing arrays, CMB (LISA and the Big Bang Observer) pulsar timing arrays CMB polarization, and atom interferometry. It is likely that pulsar timing arrays (at 10‐7 to 10‐9 Hz) will detect waves from supermassive black holes within this decade. LISA (the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna) will likely fly in ~2020 and see tens of thousands of sources at frequencies ~ 0.1 to 10^‐5 Hz. Atom interferometry may open up the frequency band around 0.1 to 10 Hz. CMB Polarization (at ~ 10‐17 Hz) may bring us our first glimpse of the inflationary era when the universe was 10 ‐34 seconds old. our first glimpse of the inflationary era when the universe was ~ 10 seconds old The Big Bang Observer in the 2030s (at ~0.001 to 1 Hz) may bring us an in depth study of the big bang and also the kind of high‐resolution observations of the contemporary universe that are now routinely achieved by optical, radio, and x‐ray telescopes. All Lectures commence at 4.15 4 1 pm in i the h Pippard i d Lecture Theatre, h Cavendish C di h Laboratory, b J J Thomson Avenue, Cambridge, CB3 0HE. Further details are available from:http://talks.cam.ac.uk/directory/ All are welcome to attend.