At first glance, cosmology (the study of the universe) and particle physics (the study of subatomic particles and the forces affecting them) have little in common due to size differences. However, the Physics and Astronomy Department has undertaken a new program to allow cosmologists and particle physicists to assist each other in solving some of physics' thorniest problems.
The Center for Particle Cosmology, which opened Jan. 1, will help bring together physicists to "hopefully come up with some big new ideas," said Physics and Astronomy professor Bhuvnesh Jain, who, along with Physics and Astronomy professor Mark Trodden, heads the center.
The center hosted a panel discussion and multimedia event yesterday evening as part of its opening celebration, which featured some of the interdisciplinary science encouraged by the center. The event also featured two presentations on interdisciplinary research in which Penn is participating.
The panel, moderated by Physics and Astronomy professor Gino Segre, featured Physics and Astronomy professors Vijay Balasubramanian from Penn and Janna Levin from Barnard College, in addition to Jain and Trodden.
While the panel did not directly discuss the center, they each shared views on what physics and cosmology problems would be solved in the future.
For example, Trodden expressed a desire to know what happened at the very beginning of the "Big Bang," the commonly accepted model for the universe's beginning marked by a very rapid expansion of all matter from a single point. Resolving this question would require not only cosmology, but also particle physics to explain what occurred at the initial, very small and dense point, he said. "In fact, these two arenas of inquiry are inextricably linked."
"As part of that, Penn had decided to start a brand-new center for this interdisciplinary research," he added.
Eric West, a physics and astronomy graduate student, said the "center will help find some middle ground" between the two fields.
For the time being, "[the Particle Physics and Cosmology departments] are on different floors of [David Rittenhouse Laboratory] and don't have many common seminars," he said.
He explained that the center would remedy this by "[getting] both groups to attend the same seminars and same reading groups" in which they could discuss new findings.
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