Don Lincoln
Author
Publisher
Johns Hopkins University Press
Pub. Date
2013
Language
English
Formats
Description
Are alien civilizations really possible?
If extraterrestrials exist, where are they? How likely is it that somewhere in the universe an Earth-like planet supports an advanced culture? Why do so many people claim to have encountered Aliens? In this gripping exploration, scientist Don Lincoln exposes and explains the truths about the belief in and the search for life on other planets.
In the first half of Alien Universe,
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Language
English
Description
How do we know the universe is 13.8 billion years old? How do we know the speed of light is 299,792,458 meters per second? Studying how physicists make discoveries is the best way to understand key developments in modern physics-from quantum mechanics, to the theory of relativity, to cosmology.
In The Evidence for Modern Physics, noted particle physicist Dr. Don Lincoln of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory covers more than a century of progress...
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Consider these commonly held scientific beliefs: Planetary orbits are fixed ellipses; we only use 10 percent of our brains; nothing travels faster than light; a thrown object's trajectory is a parabola. They seem correct, but they're all misconceptions that aren't entirely accurate. There's much more to the story than you think.
These magnificent 24 lectures are devoted to busting myths, clearing up confusion, and giving you scientific epiphanies...
Author
Language
English
Description
Humanity has long looked to the sky and marveled at the world around us. We've wondered why the world is the way it is and whether it has to be that way. For millennia these questions were theological, transitioning to philosophical during the Enlightenment, but the discipline that now drives progress is science. We now look forward, hoping to make additional connections and create a better understanding of the ultimate laws of nature. We dream of...
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Learn how Dr. Lincoln routinely conducts experiments that show the bizarre effects of Einstein's special theory of relativity, which come into play at speeds approaching that of light. Like quantum theory, relativity strains credulity, but clocks really do slow down and length contracts at relativistic speeds; we just don't notice these effects in our relatively slow-moving lives.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 5
Language
English
Description
Take a deeper step into the quantum world, observing how the theory of quantum electrodynamics, or QED, unites quantum mechanics with special relativity. Discover that the handy sketches of subatomic behavior called Feynman diagrams (named after physicist Richard Feynman) are really equations in disguise.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 23
Language
English
Description
Now step into the realm of other universes. Do they exist? If so, how could we possibly know? Start by examining the free parameters that govern the structure and behavior of our universe. Then seek answers to four crucial questions that address why the parameters take the values that they do.
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Start your journey through some of the most jarring misconceptions of science with this introductory look at the nature of science itself. You'll examine ways the scientific method deviates from the way it's taught, the true definitions of terms like "theory" and "model," and the relationship science shares with philosophy.
12) Theory of Everything: The Quest to Explain All Reality: Big Bang And Inflation Explain Our Universe
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 22
Language
English
Description
Starting with the big bang, plot the history of our universe, focusing on events in the tiniest fraction of the first second, when phenomena such as supersymmetry, superstrings, and quantum loops may have come into play. Consider the explanatory power of the theory of cosmic inflation.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 7
Language
English
Description
Analyze more idiosyncrasies of the weak force, focusing on the three massive particles that mediate its interactions. Discover that the weak force is unique in its ability to change a characteristic called flavor, and learn that at high energies the weak force is exceptionally strong.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 17
Language
English
Description
Built on the equivalence of inertial and gravitational mass, Einstein's general theory of relativity explains gravity in a surprising new way. See how matter and energy determine the shape of space and time. Investigate confirming evidence for general relativity, including the discovery of gravitational waves in 2015.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 2
Language
English
Description
Learn how two seemingly separate phenomena, electricity and magnetism, were shown by James Clerk Maxwell in the 1860s to be aspects of a single underlying force, demonstrating how unification works in physics. Then see how Maxwell's equations of electromagnetism make a remarkable prediction.
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Language
English
Description
Planets beyond our solar system weren't discovered until the 1990s. Since then, thousands have been confirmed around nearby stars, and billions likely populate the Milky Way Galaxy. Planets are so dim compared to the stars they orbit that observers had to come up with clever techniques to infer their presence. Focus on the "wobble" and "shadow" methods, which have been remarkably productive.
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Series
Language
English
Description
Hear the story of the neutrino, the ghostly particle that passes through you at the rate of one quadrillion per second, with no ill effects. Neutrinos are created copiously in nuclear reactions and are fiendishly difficult to detect. Pinning them down took great experimental ingenuity, especially since neutrinos turn out to be quick-change artists, often transforming their identities in flight.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 16
Language
English
Description
Gravity is by far the weakest of the fundamental forces. Learn how Newton achieved the first major unification in physics by showing that terrestrial and celestial gravity are the same. He also tacitly equated inertial mass and gravitational mass, leading to the startling theory 250 years later.