“Cosmology: Man’s Place in the Universe”
by Professor Virginia Trimble
Human beings come in the middle. We are middle sized, middle aged, and middle weight - halfway (geometrically) between the small-scale phenomena of nuclear and atomic physics and the large scale ones of astronomy and cosmology. This means that we can hope to learn about both the atom and the universe by looking at how we came to be here. Life on earth is part of the present epoch of a long history, beginning with (indeed, very possibly before) the Big Bang, the early, hot, dense stage of which we see several relics. Then came the emergence of structures: first, probably, very massive stars, and rather wimpish (in several senses) galaxies; then stars more like our own and larger galaxies and clusters; and planets, life and (arguably) intelligence. Changing even one of the fundamental constants of physics or cosmology would prevent one or more of these vital stages from happening. Thus the very fact that we are here to observe the universe and ask questions about it guarantees that the universe must be more or less the way it is. The implications of this will be explored. |
THURSDAY,
OCTOBER 12th, 2006
in 10-250 (Huntington Hall) at 4:15pm
Cookie Social is at 3:45pm in 8-329
For more information, please contact:
Rosrin Srethapramote,
Events and Special Projects
77 Massachusetts Avenue, NE25-4100
Cambridge, MA 02139
Phone: 617.253.6259
Fax: 617.253.8544
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Professor Trimble received her B.A. from UCLA in 1964 and her M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the California Institute of Technology in 1965 and 1968 respectively. She joined the UCI faculty in 1971, after a year's teaching at Smith College and two postdoctoral fellowship years at Cambridge University (M.A. 1969). She received the 1986 National Academy of Sciences Award for scientific reviewing and currently serves as Vice President of the International Astronomical Union; Vice President of the American Astronomical Society and Chair of its Historical Astronomy Division; and Member of the Executive Board of the American Physical Society and Chair-elect of its Division of Astrophysics.