Author Archives: woit

The Fabric of the Cosmos on PBS

Posted on August 15, 2011 by woit

A four-part NOVA series based upon Brian Greene’s The Fabric of the Cosmos is coming to PBS this fall, starting November 2. In some sense this is a follow-on to his wildly successful The Elegant Universe NOVA series from 2003, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 32 Comments

Talks at the KITP

Posted on August 12, 2011 by woit

Back now from vacation, and found that there have been quite a few interesting talks at the KITP in Santa Barbara this week which are now available on-line: Since the EPS-HEP conference last month, the “First Year of the LHC” … Continue reading →

Posted in Langlands, Uncategorized | 13 Comments

This Week’s Hype

Posted on August 5, 2011 by woit

I noticed today that BBC News has a story headlined ‘Multiverse’ theory suggested by microwave background that assures us that: The idea that other universes – as well as our own – lie within “bubbles” of space and time has … Continue reading →

Posted in Multiverse Mania, This Week's Hype | 25 Comments

News From Simons Center

Posted on July 28, 2011 by woit

The Simons Center for Geometry and Physics at Stony Brook has a new web-site, and this week their annual summer workshop got underway, talks available in very high quality video here. Luca Mazzucato, a postdoc there, has started putting together … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

String Theorists Throw SUSY Under the Bus

Posted on July 25, 2011 by woit

Over the past few days the results of the 2011 LHC run have been revealed at the EPS-HEP 2011 conference in Grenoble, where a press conference today marked the beginning of the next part of the conference, featuring summary talks. … Continue reading →

Posted in Favorite Old Posts, Uncategorized | 75 Comments

Results from EPS-HEP 2011

Posted on July 21, 2011 by woit

Results from the EPS-HEP 2011 conference that began today are starting to appear. These include the first results making use of most of the 2011 LHC run data. This is a factor of 30 or so more data than that … Continue reading →

Posted in Experimental HEP News | 66 Comments

First International Spring School on Particle Physics and Philosophy

Posted on July 19, 2011 by woit

From an article in the CERN Courier I recently learned about a program that brought together physicists and philosophers of science earlier this year around the topic of philosophy and particle physics. This was the First International Spring School on … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Questions About the Multiverse

Posted on July 19, 2011 by woit

The August issue of Scientific American has the multiverse on the cover, with a skeptical feature article on the topic by George F. R. Ellis, Does the Multiverse Really Exist?, which argues that heavily promoted multiverse research isn’t really testable … Continue reading →

Posted in Multiverse Mania | 29 Comments

This Week’s Leak

Posted on July 12, 2011 by woit

Everyone in the HEP community is breathlessly awaiting the release of results from the 2011 LHC run, expected to come at the EPS-HEP 2011 conference in Grenoble starting July 21. A public press conference has been announced for July 25. … Continue reading →

Posted in Experimental HEP News | 11 Comments

Higher Speculations

Posted on July 8, 2011 by woit

Some commenters here a while ago made the excellent suggestion that I should take a look at a book published this spring, Helge Kragh’s Higher Speculations: Grand Theories and Failed Revolutions in Physics and Cosmology. I’ve always wondered what historians … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews | 29 Comments