Programme SMS Lecture Series
Audience General (Suitable for students at JC Level and above)
Description This lecture series will feature eminent local mathematicians or mathematics educators to share with the public some of their interests and ideas.
Speaker

Brett McInnes, National University of Singapore

Professor Brett McInnes has published 76 scientific papers on a wide variety of applications of geometry and topology to particle and nuclear physics, string theory, general relativity, and cosmology.
Title Topology, Geometry, and Nuclear Physics
Abstract At the Large Hadron Collider in Geneva, one of the experiments studies what happens when nuclei of lead atoms are smashed together at extremely high speeds [over 99.99% of the speed of light]. The result is the hottest matter ever observed [about 5.5 trillion degrees K]. The behaviour of matter under such extreme conditions is not easily understood using conventional physics. Recently it has been suggested that methods from black hole theory, involving sophisticated techniques from topology and global differential geometry, may be needed to predict its behaviour. I will talk about one such application, in a non-technical way.
Date/Time March 11 (Monday) 2013 / 4.30-5.30pm
Venue NUS, LT31
Registration For catering purposes, we request all attendees to register. School teachers may do group registration for their students and teachers by choosing the "group registration" option and indicate the number of people attending the lecture in the online registration form.
Registration Fees Free
Coordinator Dr Ng Kah Loon