Nobel Prize-winning physicist to deliver public talk

Time, Einstein, and the Coolest Stuff in the Universe

Nobel Prize-winning physicist Prof. William D. Phillips has been invited to deliver a public talk titled ‘Time, Einstein, and the Coolest Stuff in the Universe’ at the Aula Magna, University of Malta Valletta Campus of the on 9 November at 7pm.

At the beginning of the 20th century Einstein changed the way we think about Time. At the beginning of the 21st century Einstein’s thinking is shaping one of the key scientific and technological wonders of contemporary life: atomic clocks, the best timekeepers ever made. Such super-accurate clocks are essential to industry, commerce, and science; they are the heart of the Global Positioning System (GPS), which guides cars, airplanes, and hikers to their destinations. Today, atomic clocks are still being improved, using atoms cooled to incredibly low temperatures. Atomic gases reach temperatures less than a billionth of a degree above Absolute Zero. Supercold atoms are at the heart of Primary Clocks accurate to better than a second in 100 million years. Such clocks also use, and allow tests of some of Einstein’s strangest predictions.

This talk is aimed at the general public and will be a lively, multimedia presentation, including experimental demonstrations and down-to-earth explanations about some of today’s most exciting science.

This event is supported by the University of Malta, the Ministry for Justice, Dialogue and the Family, the US Embassy in Malta, The Malta Chamber of Scientists, Malta Cafe Scientifique, and the Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector.