Revived ‘Cosmos’ tv-series illuminates mysteries of the galaxy

Relatively Quarky: Proof of the big bang is mind-blowing

Over Spring Break, physicists from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics made an announcement that has been reverberating throughout the scientific community ever since. The discovery came from a small telescope known as BICEP2 located less than a mile from the geographic South Pole. From this location, scientists were able to glimpse much more than space through the telescope; they were able to see ripples formed at the very beginning of the universe.
Albert Einstein first theorized the existence of these ripples, known as gravitational waves, in his 1916 general theory of relativity. On March 17, however, it was announced that direct images of gravitational waves were detected for the first time.
Einstein’s general theory of relativity is currently our best model for gravity. It beautifully unites the dimensions of space and time, describing it as a fabric known as space-time that permeates throughout the cosmos.
General relativity describes the gravitational force as a curvature of space-time.
The more massive an object, the more the object warps the space-time surrounding it. Think of what happens to the fabric of a trampoline when someone stands in the middle. If you were to roll billiard balls around that person, they would ride along this curvature and begin to orbit like planets around a star.
Einstein’s equations of general relativity predict that large accelerations of mass in space-time create gravitational waves, not unlike the waves traveling through a bed sheet when you make your bed. For the most part, these waves are so absurdly small that they are nearly impossible to measure.
In the first fractions of a second after the big bang, however, the theory maintains that the universe accelerated so rapidly that the ripples that were sent through space-time then are still detectable now.
The effects of these primordial ripples are exactly what the BICEP2 telescope detected.This period of incredible expansion at the beginning of the universe is known as inflation, and the gravitational waves detected from the early universe are the most compelling evidence of inflation theory to date.
I had the opportunity to talk with Bowdoin professor Thomas Baumgarte, of the physics and astronomy department, about the recent discovery. Baumgarte specializes in a field known as numerical relativity, where he uses computers to solve Einstein’s equations and to model astrophysical systems.
On the significance of the discovery Baumgarte said, “It’s the first time that the imprint of gravitational waves is measured in the cosmic microwave background and it’s also the firmest confirmation of the phase known as inflation.”
He went on to say, “It’s amazing that [we] can actually detect the effect of gravitational radiation from the first tiniest fractions of seconds of the beginning of the universe.”
Baumgarte is very familiar with gravitational waves due to the nature of his numerical relativity models. He has focused on modeling what the gravitational radiation would look like if two black holes or two massive stars known as neutron stars orbited each other in a binary system.
As for the reward for this incredible insight into the early inflationary universe, Baumgarte agreed that the Nobel committee will have quite a headache picking three out of the dozens of ingenious scientists behind this extraordinary discovery.

Relatively Quarky: Mind the mind: research on our consciousness is evolving

On Monday morning, throngs of students slowly made their way back to their weekly routines, their thoughts filled with a sense of nostalgia for the past weekend and anxieties for the upcoming last few days of classes. These thoughts, and others like them, are the daily norm. We accept them for what they are and rarely question where they come from.
Our daily consciousness is the sole force that gives rise to what makes up everything we see and feel and think, but where does it come from? We all share the daily experience of “reality” and we accept it, yet neuroscientists today have very little idea of how it happens.
How does something inanimate and material such as the human brain give rise to subjective reality and emotions such as anxiety and nostalgia? For a while this question was strictly in the realm of philosophy, where there was a divide based on whether or not the mind is something entirely separate from the body. This mind-body dualism was most notably proposed by the French philosopher René Descartes.
Descartes posited that the mind—and thus subjective conscious experience—actually originates from an immaterial substance he called “res cogitans,” Latin for thinking thing. This substance allows for conscious thoughts and decision making, and exists somewhere outside the physical world we are so familiar with and on which all observational science is based.
This view, however, is opposed today by many neuroscientists who identify as physicalists, believing that consciousness comes from highly organized normal matter.
This different approach turns out to be exceedingly difficult. Explaining how subjective experience arises from normal matter is so difficult, in fact, that philosophers have dubbed it the “hard” problem. In the past decade, however, the science of consciousness is quickly gaining a legitimate scientific grounding.
This past week, hundreds of the world’s leading experts in consciousness studies gathered in Arizona for the largest conference on the subject. It is here where many scientists and philosophers hope for a significant lead in tackling the “hard” problem. That lead may finally have come to fruition.
Acclaimed MIT physicist, Max Tegmark, is widely known for his work on cosmology, but he recently released a paper that takes a completely different look at what consciousness might be. He supposes that consciousness can be modeled as a state of matter. Although this sounds quite fanciful at first, he gives an interesting and rigorous argument for his novel approach.
Tegmark contends that states of consciousness must obey a set of mathematical rules similar to the rules that govern varying states of matter. Just as ice turns to water under certain conditions, different levels of consciousness vary from one state to another. Approaching the problem in this way allows physicists and neuroscientists to start making progress towards a quantitative approach to consciousness.
For years, neuroscientists have agreed that consciousness must arise from certain parameters such as the processing of information in an integrated way. Now, Tegmark believes that this information processing can be categorized more specifically and will soon be able to be treated in a mathematically rigorous way.
Tegmark’s model, as with all models of consciousness, is still very speculative. Will there ever be a practical physical model for the nature of consciousness, or is this question outside the realm of the observational science that we know today?
Regardless, understanding how the human brain functions is at the frontier of modern science and will push developments in neuroscience through the next century.

Relatively Quarky

Revived ‘Cosmos’ tv-series illuminates mysteries of the galaxy

This piece represents the opinion of the author:

David Miller

Columnist

April 10, 2014

As director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City and host of the newly reissued “Cosmos” series, Neil deGrasse Tyson knows a thing or two about the public promotion of science.

In fact, his ability to communicate complex cosmological discoveries to a general audience is practically unparalleled. So it is only natural that he would be the one to carry on the legacy of our greatest communicator of science, Carl Sagan.

In addition to his incredible career in astrophysics and his undeniable penchant for turtle neck sweaters, the late Carl Sagan is best-known for his landmark 1980 television show—the original “Cosmos.” The 13-part series initially featured Sagan promoting the importance of scientific reasoning and explaining everything from the origin of the universe to the beginning of life on earth.

At a time when global warming and rising health care costs are predictable headlines in the daily news, the scientific innovation Sagan so fervently promoted is now even more crucial. In the near future, humanity will depend on the development of alternative energy sources, and the consolidation of engineering and medicine. In order to follow through, scientific awareness and literacy among the next generation of students is critical.

With words that resonate with erudite passion, Neil deGrasse Tyson understands this present situation more than most. After Sagan’s death, there was speculation that Tyson would headline a reissue of “Cosmos.” Finally, after a chance lunch meeting in New York with Seth MacFarlane, this became a reality.

The March 9 premiere of the series was nothing less than a global event. After opening with an introduction by President Obama, the show was broadcast to over 180 countries. Being able to reach and perhaps inspire an audience of that magnitude could be essential to solving the technological and environmental issues at hand.

The potential impact Tyson can have on the progression of scientific education is exciting.
Now in its fifth week, the series has spanned many different areas of scientific exploration. Topics have ranged from the origin and development of life on earth to the formation and evolution of various stars and galaxies.

Throughout these episodes, Tyson consistently makes a distinction between scientific and other forms of knowledge such as religious or mythical belief.

He makes clear the benefit of deduction and experimentation, providing examples of how the scientific method has led to incredible predictive power and technological advancement—more so than any other method in human history.

Each episode unveils discoveries that reveal the beauty tucked away behind the stars. Just as Sagan did, Tyson encourages ravenous curiosity and incessant questioning in order to further reveal these beautiful layers of understanding.

He retells the stories of science’s intellectual giants such as Edmond Halley and Isaac Newton, sharing the dramatic paths leading to their discoveries.

Even though the shoes Tyson had to fill were enormous, the reissue of “Cosmos” has done exactly what it intended: to inspire and remind viewers that there is much more out there to be discovered. In the words of Carl Sagan, “We are a way for the cosmos to know itself.”

The Society of Physics Students will host a Cosmos viewing event every Monday for the rest of the semester at 8 p.m. in Burnett House. All students looking for an insight into the nature of the universe are welcome to come, and you may even find a physics faculty member doing the same.

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