Category Archives: Episodes

Episode 8: the wavelike nature of quanta

Posted on 2009/11/03 by kiwinerd

Last time, in Episode 007, we started our two-part introduction to Quantum Mechanics, the story of physics at sub-microscopic scales. Today, we contine to develop this, and introduce new ideas about the wavelike nature of all quanta – including our … Continue reading →

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Episode 7: Blackbody Radiation, the Photoelectric Effect and the Quantum

Posted on 2009/10/15 by kiwinerd

Today’s episode is all about Blackbody Radiation and the Photoelectric Effect. These two phenomena constituted two of the biggest unsolved puzzles at the turn of the previous century, and studying them led to the revolution known as Quantum Mechanics. By … Continue reading →

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Episode 6: Hawking radiation

Posted on 2009/10/11 by kiwinerd

Today’s episode is about some of the more theoretical aspects of black holes, as compared to the astrophysical focus of Ep.5. The point of this week’s Episode 6 is to introduce for interested viewers the concept of Hawking radiation, invented … Continue reading →

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Episode 5: black holes

Posted on 2009/10/11 by kiwinerd

Note: sorry this episode is late. Right now it’s grant application silly-season at the university, and I’m (appropriately) extremely preoccupied with that task. I find writing grant applications the least pleasant responsibility of all as a researcher, because it’s  political, … Continue reading →

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Episode 4: light as guide to the universe

Posted on 2009/09/28 by kiwinerd

Today’s focus is how photons – the particles of light – help us learn about gravitational systems such as stars orbiting planets, or indeed the dynamics of the entire cosmos. We kick off Episode 4 by describing how knowledge of … Continue reading →

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Episode 3: Newton, Einstein and Relativity

Posted on 2009/09/21 by kiwinerd

Today we begin discussing gravity in detail, by introducing Isaac Newton’s incredible insight of over three centuries ago that the very same gravity force is responsible for the motions of celestial bodies and for the motions of human scale objects … Continue reading →

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Episode 2: the Standard Model of Particle Physics

Posted on 2009/09/21 by kiwinerd

Continuing our look into the subatomic realm that we began last week, we kick off Episode 2 by discussing how physicists tell particles apart. Essentially the idea is that we pick invariants – particle properties that remain unchanged under symmetry … Continue reading →

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Episode 1: Scale

Posted on 2009/09/21 by kiwinerd

Our tour of Modern Physics in Perspective begins with a discussion of the three interlocking methods physicists use to unlock secrets of the universe: experiment (measuring), theory (modelling) and computation (woohoo! geekage!). Next up is Powers of 10, a useful … Continue reading →

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Introduction

Posted on 2009/09/21 by kiwinerd

Hi! My name is Amanda Peet, the physicist (not the Hollywood actress). I’m a tenured Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Toronto; my professional awards include a Radcliffe Fellowship at Harvard University and an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation … Continue reading →

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