Introducing Hawking & Susskind: An Academic Tale

[Ivan Seeking]

Who introduced Hawking to Susskind. What was his original profession, and what was his profession when he introduced the two scientists.

 

[FrancisZ]

Who introduced Hawking to Susskind. What was his original profession, and what was his profession when he introduced the two scientists.

Feinmann? Not sure about his job beyond being a professor.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Nope.

The answer is quite surprising.

Also, welcome to PF!

 

[RetardedBastard]

Werner Erhard, who was orginnaly a car salesman, and probably doing his psychological therapy BS when Hawking and Susskind met.

BTW, somebody beat you to this interesting event by 2 years :)
https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=89240

Or maybe they met even earlier than this?

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Yes! Erhard was actively engaged in his transformation therapy [the BS you mentioned], when, due to his love of physics and physicists, and because of his wealth, he hosted a conference at which Susskind and Hawking met. Who would have thought that two of the greatest minds of our time would meet at the house of a crackpot and former car salesman!

By PF tradition you are entitled to post a question if you like.

 

[RetardedBastard]

You guys are including me in part of your tradition? I feel so special!

OK, on to the next question...

During World War II, as part of British propaganda against the Germans, (1) what food item did the Brits say their top pilot was eating to give the pilot near-superhuman (2) _______ . All this was actually part of a cover to provide misleading information to keep (3) what very important British invention a secret?

 

[FrancisZ]

You guys are including me in part of your tradition? I feel so special!

OK, on to the next question...

During World War II, as part of British propaganda against the Germans, (1) what food item did the Brits say their top pilot was eating to give the pilot near-superhuman (2) _______ . All this was actually part of a cover to provide misleading information to keep (3) what very important British invention a secret?

1) Grits? :)

2) Eyesight?

3) Colossus, I would think.

 

[mgb_phys]

Carrots - we don't eat grits (In fact I don't think anyone eats grits, I think they are a trick played on tourists!)
Night vision
Radar

oh - I suppose I have to keep the thread going.
From his studies of biology what did JBS Haldane say he had found that God had an inordinate fondness for?

 

[RetardedBastard]

Carrots - we don't eat grits (In fact I don't think anyone eats grits, I think they are a trick played on tourists!)
Night vision
Radar

Excellent. 3 out of 3!

oh - I suppose I have to keep the thread going.
From his studies of biology what did JBS Haldane say he had found that God had an inordinate fondness for?

I think it was insects due to the large percentage of the biomass they occupy.

 

[mgb_phys]

I think it was insects due to the large percentage of the biomass they occupy.

Close - it was a specific family, that has more species than most species have members.

( he was also being sarcastic - JBS was the Richard Dawkins of his day)

 

[neutrino]

Moths?

 

[neutrino]

Hey...that post was less than 10 characters long!

 

[FrancisZ]

Close - it was a specific family, that has more species than most species have members.

( he was also being sarcastic - JBS was the Richard Dawkins of his day)

Arachnids?

 

[Gokul43201]

Close - it was a specific family, that has more species than most species have members.

That makes it easy - beetles. I thought the answer was going to be 'stupid people'.

 

[Gokul43201]

Here's mine: What does it take to propel the Turtle through water?

 

[neutrino]

A lot of energy

 

[Gokul43201]

Could you elaborate?

 

[neutrino]

I suppose you didn't realize that I was kidding. Anyway, for a more "serious" answer, I would say their flippers, although I'm not sure if that's the kind of answer you want.

 

[Gokul43201]

No it's not. Note the punctuation used.

 

[Janus]

Ah, Then you must be referring to the submarine from the 1770's. It needed a human to to turn the crank which drove the propeller.

 

[Gokul43201]

Correct Janus. The Turtle was Bushnell's (first?) submarine, and it was propelled by a hand crank! And it could hold only one (strong armed, multi-tasking) person.

Your turn...

 

[Janus]

This is probably too easy, but:

Who said, "Who ordered that?", and why?

 

[George Jones]

This is probably too easy, but:

Who said, "Who ordered that?", and why?

Rabi, in response to yet another elementary particle, the muon being discovered.

 

[Janus]

Rabi, in response to yet another elementary particle, the muon being discovered.

I knew it was too easy.

Your turn.

 

[Gokul43201]

Rabi, in response to yet another elementary particle, the muon being discovered.

I think the statement was not really in response to the discovery of yet another elementary particle, especially given that it was made several years after the discovery. In fact, when the muon (then called the mesotron) was discovered, it was desperately hoped to be the "Yukawa particle" (the pion was discovered much later) as it seemed to have the right mass for the job. But it disappointed everyone and turned out to just be a fat, good-for-nothing lepton that played no role of significance in any way (at least, not in the strong interaction). All it ever seemed to do was goof off for a couple microseconds before it decayed into electrons and neutrinos. Oppenheimer called it the ten year joke.

 

[George Jones]

I think the statement was not really in response to the discovery of yet another elementary particle, especially given that it was made several years after the discovery. In fact, when the muon (then called the mesotron) was discovered, it was desperately hoped to be the "Yukawa particle" (the pion was discovered much later) as it seemed to have the right mass for the job. But it disappointed everyone and turned out to just be a fat, good-for-nothing lepton that played no role of significance in any way (at least, not in the strong interaction). All it ever seemed to do was goof off for a couple microseconds before it decayed into electrons and neutrinos. Oppenheimer called it the ten year joke.

I knew that, initially, it was hoped/thought mu-mesons (muons) were Yukawa mesons, but I guess the connection with Rabi's comment never stuck in my mind. I believe, but haven't checked, Lamb proposed that a fine be levied on discoverers of new particles.

 

[George Jones]

I don't whether it should be Gokul43201 or me that gives the next question, but here goes:

What famous pop singer probably had a famous grandfather? Why probably?

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Holy crap! Olivia Newton John is Max Born's granddaughter?

I can't find the reason for probably... I will guess that this is due to a possible indiscretion on the part of a parent or grandparent? [mother or grandmother ]

I fell hopelessly in love with Olivia when her first album came out.

 

[George Jones]

Holy crap! Olivia Newton John is Max Born's granddaughter?

Yup.

Makes sense: Born was a physicist; Newton-John sang "Let's Get Physical."

I can't find the reason for probably...

Born introduced the probability interpretation of the wavefuntion into quantum theory.

Back to you.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Born introduced the probability interpretation of the wavefuntion into quantum theory.

DUH! I guess the shock over Olivia was too much.

Be back soon.

 

[neutrino]

Holy crap! Olivia Newton John is Max Born's granddaughter?

Ah, yes. I now remember reading about this. But I never knew that Newton John was also a pop-singer. I knew she acted in Grease, but that's about it.

 

[Gokul43201]

This came up before ( https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=101383&highlight=olivia ) in a thread that went off-topic so fast, the forum background turned red.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Historically speaking, and probably still true today, what disorder would sometimes extend the lives of the people who had it, and why?

 

[Gokul43201]

I don't believe this is the answer you are looking for, but there was some survey from a few years ago showing that (male) castration resulted in an average increase in lifespan by 13 years. So, I imagine low testosterone levels might have a beneficial influence on longevity...

Also, I imagine that during wartime, any medical disorder that kept a male out of the draft very likely increased his lifespan.

 

[mgb_phys]

Historically speaking, and probably still true today, what disorder would sometimes extend the lives of the people who had it, and why?

That's true for a number of disorders - which eventually become 'orders' if they prolong enough peoples lives.
Along with most europeans I have a mutation which allows me to metabolise lactose as an adult. I can also metabolise alcohol effectively which means my ancestors could drink beer instead of dirty water.
I don't have sickle-cell because my ancestors didn't live in areas with enough malaria for that disorder to have an advantage.