APS April 2011 Overview & Summary

1. APS April 2011Overview & Summary David Webber Group Meeting June 3, 2011

2. Central Themes(at least the ones I gravitated toward) • Neutrinos • LHC • Education • Outreach • Supernovae (will not discuss here)

3. Some talks are online • http://www.physics.wisc.edu/apsapril2011 • All Plenary Sessions • “Essense of neutrinos” • Reactor neutrinos at short baselines, Ed BLUCHER • Reactor neutrinos at long baselines, Brian FUJIKAWA • Weighing neutrinos, Joseph FORMAGGIO • “Direct detection of Dark Matter” • Xenon 100 • Coupp and Cogent

4. 100 Years of Dark Matter – Plenary I • Weinberg gave a talk with no visual aids • A nice history of discovery in particle physics • Prior to 1920’s, physics was • Mechanics, heat, light, electricity • QM in 1920’s allowed derivation of chemistry from physics • Evidence of new physics at 1015 or 1016 GeV • Light neutrino masses • Convergence of energy-dependent SM couplings • Other talks available online (overviews only) • Maria Spiropulu: LHC overview • Dan Hooper: Dark matter searches – direct, indirect, accelerator

5. Electromagnetic Pulses - Parallel • 3 classes of EMP • E1 • fries microchips and <3m antennae • Produced by high-altitude nuke • E2 • eg. lightning. • Systems are protected • E3 • slow and long-lasting. • Fireball changes shape of earth’s magnetic field and creates electric field. • Nukes and solar storms

6. Electromagnetic Pulses – Parallel • We are vulnerable to E3. How? • Major solar storm occurs every 100 years, last one in 1850 • Massive and long-lasting power outages. • No call centers • No “just in time” pharmaceutical delivery • Millions of americans would die within 24 hours • There are 39 critical power nodes in the US. • The cost of 1 day of blackout is several billion dollars (eg NY blackouts) • How do we reduce vulnerability? • Monitoring, prediction, hardening, response • 1/3 of solar storms arrive unpredicted • If predicted, can get a few hours of warning • Harden back-up links • Hardening costs $0.20/person/month for 1 year • Stockpile transformers • Train emergency responders • GPS is used to sync power phases – add a redundant system • GPS satellites are vulnerable to solar storm

7. Undergraduate Mentoring – Parallel • Professors do teaching, research, service • Mentoring involves all 3 • Undergraduate Needs • Peer group • Quantity and quality of interactions with faculty outside classroom • Support/validation of academic and social lives • Challenging and relevant work • Undergraduate Research (eg REU summer research) • Faculty/student interaction • Involvement in own learning • Academic and social peer group • Opportunities to see themselves as faculty • Relevance of coursework to research • Solve technical problems • Changes quality of recommendation letters • Helps student understand demands of a field • APS.org keyword mentor training. Developed in Madison.

8. Scent of Neutrinos - Parallel • Lisa Everett • Motivation for measuring q13 • Tell theorists the starting point for mixing angles • Typical approach: choose 2 and constrain the 3rd to data • 2 large 1 small is “odd” • Mike Kordosky: Beam measurement • Protons on target produces pions and kaons. • Cross-sections not well known. • Neutrino beams are a “rough sport” • ZarkoPavlovic: Low-energy neutrino oscillation • 1-2 Sterile neutrinos from cosmology • Gallex/Sage experiments

9. Reactor Neutrino Experiments - Parallel • YueMeng: Daya Bay Muon System • Ahe Wang: Progress & Schedule of Daya Bay • Igor Ostrovsky: Double-Chooz far detector is taking data • Radovan Milincia: double Chooz full-volume calibration using 3 LEDs and corner cube on articulated arm • Bryce Littlejohn: 1st pair of Ads • WeiliZhong: PMT system for Daya Bay

10. Exoplanet update by John Johnson(plenary II) • Goals • Understanding our origins • Galactic context of our solar system • Techniques • Stellar wobble • Planetary transits • Direct imaging • Microlensing • Findings • >1235 planets. See exoplanets.org • Rich variety of orbits and physical characteristics • Metallicity and composition of planets and stars are correlated • Small planets are numerous • Post-formation dynamics are relevant • Circular orbits (such as our system) are uncommon in comparison

11. Carl Weinman: Understanding federal science policy and funding from a White-House perspective • Office of science and technology policy - validity • Office of management and budget – funding • Problems because – good intentions, rapid decisions, poor background • Don’t confuse limited background with stupidity. (Scientists are often condescending) • Useful info • Why X is going to be important • Why X is more important than Y • Major unsolved problems that need tackling • Eg failing programs or funding gap • Important demographic shifts in field • Push science – if the push stops then the momentum is lost • In 2012, science didn’t go up much but did very well in comparison to everything else (eg poor people)

12. Carl Weinman: Understanding federal science policy and funding from a White-House perspective • In colleges and Universities • Input: tuition, state, federal research • Ouput: education and research expenses • T+F  E + R • R=1.2 F, i.e. tuition is funding research • Middle and lower-class students are suffering • Undergraduates are subsidizing our research, so we owe them a good education. We are not doing a good job. • Brain development requires strenuous exercise with feedback • Are we teaching scientific illiteracy and disinterest? • Is there a failure in communication? • Students at the end feel less like experts than at the beginning

13. Storing Energy Efficiently (Plenary II) • In a battery, the area between charge and discharge profile causes inefficiency. • Base a battery on oxygen reduction • O2+2H2 2H2O on platinum • Reduction of H, Li, M • Present efficiency is 75%. Goal 90%.

14. Neutrinos and Fundamental Symmetries – Parallel • Neutrino cross-sections – Sam Zeller • Correlated nucleons in nucleus give enhancement • egm+p+p final state vsm+p • Nuclear effects different for n and anti-n • Be careful you’re not introducing a CP effect by mistake • Do Sterile Neutrinos Exist? – Celia Lunardini • World n data is compatible with 3 neutrinos • World anti-n data is compatible with 3+1 • World n and anti-n data  3+2 or 1+3+1 • Consistency with solar n requires 3+3+CP violation

15. Slide by Celia Lunardini

16. Slide by Celia Lunardini

17. Plenary III • What’s up with the proton charge radius? – Marciano • Lamb shift ~ m3 • Proton radius discrepancy is 5-8 s, g-2 is 3.6 s • Could be a new light gauge or scalar interaction • a really light Higgs? • A “dark photon”? • Doesn’t really work • Stay tuned • Accelerators across physics and society – Stuart Henderson • Business, medicine, research (non-physics), security • Quantum opportunities in gravitational wave detection – NergisMavalvala • Optically trap the 40 kg mirror in it’s quantum ground state • Quantum noise: vacuum fluctuations enter the system through an open port • Squeeze the vacuum along the axis of measurement

18. Working with Luis Alvarez • Luis W. Alvarez (June 13, 1911 – September 1, 1988) was an Americanexperimental physicist and inventor, who spent nearly all of his long professional career on the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley. The American Journal of Physics commented, "Luis Alvarez (1911–1988) was one of the most brilliant and productive experimental physicists of the twentieth century."[1] He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1968, and received over 40 patents, some of which proved commercially viable. – Wikipedia • Invented ground-controlled approach allowing planes to land in the fog • People thanked him for saving lives for the rest of his life • Invented radar that reduced in power as 1/r3 to allow planes to sneak up on submarines • Had idea for x-raying pyramid with cosmic rays • “Hey Luis, I heard you x-rayed the pyramids and didn’t find any chambers” • “No, I x-rayed the pyramids and found there were no chambers” • He discovered what killed the dinosaurs with his son Walter, a paleontologist 1/r4 1/r2

19. Working with Luis Alvarez American Journal of Physics -- September 1976

20. How to be like Luis • Snoop • Be aware of what’s going on in every room of every building • Be aware of what’s going on in physics, engineering • “What do I know that he doesn’t know that would help solve his problem?” • Be willing to turn off your ego • Have ideas • What have I learned this week? What new problems? How can I solve them? • Work on the idea for a week. Try to work out the details. • 1 good idea a month • 1 per year would be worth following up on • Be an explorer. Find a good mystery and solve it. • Be an entrepreneur. Have an idea. Gather a group. Get started.

21. Outreach Opportunity • If you want to provide technical advise to the arts, consider the national academy of sciences education exchange • http://www.scienceandentertainmentexchange.org/