Please note that today's SydFop seminar, "Testing times for string theory", by Dean Rickles, will now commence at 12:00, not 11:30; due to sub-optimal velocity effects on the train from Mittagong.
*HUW PRICE* | ARC Federation Fellow & Challis Professor of Philosophy Centre for Time | SOPHI | Faculty of Arts THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY P Centre for Time, Main Quad A14, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia T +61 2 9351 4057 | F +61 2 9351 3918 E [email protected] | W http://sydney.edu.au/centre_for_time/ On Fri, Apr 23, 2010 at 5:05 PM, Owen Maroney <[email protected]>wrote: > The University of Sydney Foundations of Physics seminar series > (http://bit.ly/SydFop<https://www.owa.usyd.edu.au/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://bit.ly/SydFop>) > continues on Wednesday 28th April > > All seminars held in the Philosophy Common Room, Main Quad, University of > Sydney, unless otherwise stated. > > Wednesday, 28th April, 11:30am-1pm: > > Speaker: Dean Rickles (University of Sydney) > > Title: Testing Times for String Theory? > > "Various claims have been made recently, on several fronts, concerning the > empirical support of string theory and its ability to make predictions. The > predictions do not concern Planck scale physics, but rather several distinct > (though connected) aspects of low energy physics, especially condensed > matter physics: superconductors, superfluids, and quark-gluon plasmas. These > examples are paraded as evidence for string theory. In this paper I argue > that this is not the case. The sense in which they are connected to string > theory is very weak and cannot be used as support for string theory qua > quantum theory of gravity or theory of everything. At best they highlight > the fact that string theory contains some interesting universal structure. > At worst it is not string theoretic at all and rests, rather, on the more > general principle of holography." > > Wednesday, 12th May, 11:30am-1pm > > Speaker: Matt Palmer and Maki Takahashi (University of Sydney) > > Title: Qubits in Curved Spacetime > > "In this talk we consider the transport of qubits in curved spacetime, and > look at how to produce a consistent way to relate spins across a curved > space. We proceed by considering the action of a sequence of Lorentz > transformations on a spin state, and then use the equivalence principle to > obtain the Fermi-Walker derivative. This gives us a description of the > transformation on a qubit’s state due to the particle’s traversal through > curved spacetime. Further, in geometries in which we can distinguish a > time-like coordinate from a static space we obtain a *spatial* qubit > transport equation. This provides a consistent description of qubits in > curved space with which we can examine spin quantum mechanics and its > associated phenomena" > > Anyone wishing to give a talk in this series, or to suggest a prospective > speaker in the series, should contact Karim Thebault ( > [email protected] ) or Owen Maroney ( > [email protected]). > > Apologies for cross listing. > > --- > DR OWEN J E MARONEY | Post doctoral research fellow > The Centre for Time | SOPHI > THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY > Rm S403, Main Quad | The University of Sydney | NSW | 2006 > T +61 2 9036 7184 | F +61 2 9351 3918 > E [email protected] | W http://sydney.edu.au > > > CRICOS 00026A > This email plus any attachments to it are confidential. Any unauthorised > use > is strictly prohibited. If you receive this email in error, please delete > it > and any attachments. > > Please think of our environment and only print this e-mail if necessary. > > _______________________________________________ > SydPhil mailing list: http://sydphil.info > > 950 subscribers now served. > > To UNSUBSCRIBE, change your MEMBERSHIP OPTIONS, find ANSWERS TO COMMON > PROBLEMS, or visit our ONLINE ARCHIVES, please go to the LIST INFORMATION > PAGE: http://sydphil.info > >
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