marcus said:
The 24th Solvay is going to happen in a week or so.
10 - 13 October
24th Solvay Conference on Physics
"Quantum Theory of Condensed Matter"
...
Does anybody have a link to the program of talks being given at the XXIV Solvay?
I found some material on the part of the programme that is open to the public
http://www.solvayinstitutes.be/QuantumWorld.html
==excerpt==
...
15:15 – 15:55 Talk by Prof. Wolfgang Ketterle (2001 Nobel Laureate in Physics, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, USA):
“New Forms of Quantum Matter near Absolute
Zero Temperature”.
15:55 – 16:05 Question session.
16:05 – 16:45 Talk by Prof. J.C. Séamus DAVIS (2005 Fritz London Memorial Prize, Cornell
University, USA): “Visualizing Complex Electronic Quantum Matter at Atomic
Scale”.
16:45 – 17:00 Question session.
17:00 – 17:40 Debate chaired by Bertrand Halperin (Harvard) and with the participation of
Carlo Beenakker (Leiden), J.C. Séamus Davis (Cornell), Steven Girvin (Yale),
Catherine Kallin (Mc Master), Wolfgang Ketterle (Nobel Laureate, MIT), Leo
Kouwenhoven (Delft) and
Frank Wilczek (Nobel Laureate, MIT).
Moderator: Prof. Franklin Lambert
...
==endquote==
It interested me that Wilczek would be on the panel at the debate. His new book Lightness of Being emphasizes the analogies between the particle theory vacuum and "new forms of matter near absolute zero" (condensates.)
As further indicator of what the organizers of the XXIV Solvay conference see as the main themes, here is a press release exerpt
for the public programme:
==quote==
...
What are superconductors?
What are Bose-Einstein condensates?
Is it true that a fluid can sometimes creep out of its container and escape?
What happens to atoms when they are cooled to nearly absolute zero temperature (and
how does one do that)?
How does quantum teleportation work?
What are quantum computers?
What does it mean that an electron can simultaneously be in two different places?
What is an atom laser?
What are atomic clocks?
In the 20th century, quantum mechanics revolutionized our understanding of matter at the
atomic scale. It was discovered that light sometimes behaves as particles, and electrons as
waves, allowing them to be in two places at the same time. This first quantum revolution
led to dramatic applications, such as lasers and transistors.
Today, in what is sometimes referred to as a second quantum revolution, the most bizarre
features of quantum mechanics are being turned into powerful tools for yet newer
technologies, such as quantum computers and quantum cryptography. In particular,
physicists are gaining enough control over matter to create special quantum states,
sometimes designed for specific purposes, such as quantum dots. In this public event, two
talks on fundamental physical aspects of the second quantum revolution will be followed
by a questions/answers session with a scientific panel including several Nobel laureates...
...
==endquote==
It would still be nice to have a list of the actual scientific talks, not merely material about the public programme. I have so far not been able to find such a list.
