Quarks, Spacetime, and the Big Bang
ISP220, Spring 2017
A Big questions Course
A Big questions Course
how this works.
things you need to know in order to understand ISP220.
Your background
I know. The "M" word.
How much mathematics you're asking yourself? Should I have had a physics course before? Inquring minds want to know.
the stories.
What we'll talk about and how we'll do it.
Our journey
Big Ideas.
We'll take a very long journey through the 20th Century and the amazing progress into...Origins.
THE GOALS.
this is A BIG QUESTIONS* COURSE
...in which we study the origins of the Universe: how it came to be, how it evolved, and why we think we understand these things.
You'll:
learn stuff
You'll learn the contemporary theories of fundamental physics and cosmology and learn to be aware of open Big Questions.
You'll learn abstract ways of thinking about Nature and mathematics.
You'll learn how current research tells us about the nature of space, time, and our Origins.
You'll learn about current and future experiments aimed at tackling some of the Big Questions and how Michigan State is involved.
do stuff
You'll learn how to apply some basic tools of reasoning and mathematics to understand experiments and theoretical techniques. You'll learn how to analyze particle reactions using Feynman Diagrams.
meet people
You'll meet some of the amazing scientists of the 20th century - some you've heard of and some you probably have not. Their personal lives are sometimes intriguing and their ability to think completely outside of their training is often amazing. These are true intellectual superstars.
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