Issue 51 of Plus - http://plus.maths.org/issue51/index.html?nl=0
This special double issue of Plus is cause for celebration: both of the
endeavours of physics to understand our Universe, and of the writers of
tomorrow who may help explain it. We explore the frontiers of modern
physics: searching for alien life in space and exotic particles in the LHC,
looking through the Hubble Space Telescope, imagining a holographic
Universe, and wrestling with one of the biggest problems in modern physics.
And the winners of the Plus new writers award 2009 explore the most
beautiful equation of them all, explain the credit crunch, and unveil the
curse of good looks. We raise a toast to mathematics and physics - to all
the explorers of the new frontiers and the new writers who can take us
there!
In this issue...
The Plus new writers award 2009
http://plus.maths.org/issue51/winners.html?nl=0
We are delighted to announce the winners of the Plus new writers award 2009
in this issue of Plus! The award attracted the usual flood of fascinating
articles on all aspects of maths and after much deliberation we chose a
winner and runner-up in each of our three categories, school students,
university students and general public. Reflecting the wide range of topics
covered, the winning entries explore beauty in people and equations, find
patterns in our solar system, explain the credit crunch, knit strange
surfaces, and venture into higher dimensions. A big thank you to everyone
who took part!
Read the winning entries
http://plus.maths.org/issue51/winners.html?nl=0
Also in this issue...
* Hunting for life in alien worlds
Two of the most fundamental questions asked by people are how life emerged
on the Earth, and whether we are alone in the cosmos. These deeply
important questions form the core of a new kind of science, one that
recently has been rapidly gathering momentum: astrobiology. Lewis Dartnell
explains. http://plus.maths.org/issue51/features/dartnell/index.html?nl=0
* Hubble's top five scientific achievements
On May 19 2009 the Space Shuttle Atlantis released the Hubble Space
Telescope back into orbit after a hugely successful servicing mission. To
mark the occasion, Mario Livio, one of the scientists involved in the
mission and intimately acquainted with Hubble, takes stock of its
scientific legacy.
http://plus.maths.org/issue51/features/livio/index.html?nl=0
* Particle hunting at the LHC
It's hard to avoid CERN these days. Last year's successful switch-on of
CERN's Large Hadron Collider, followed by a blow-out which is currently
being fixed, sparked wide-spread media coverage, and currently CERN stars
in the Tom Hanks movie Angels and Demons. So what goes on at CERN and why
the hubbub about the Large Hadron Collider, known as the LHC? Ben Allanach
investigates.
http://plus.maths.org/issue51/features/allanach/index.html?nl=0
* The illusory Universe
With online socialising and alternative realities like Second Life it may
seem as if reality has become a whole lot bigger over the last few years.
In one branch of theoretical physics, though, things seem to be going the
other way. String theorists have been developing the idea that the space
and time we inhabit, including ourselves, might be nothing more than an
illusion, a hologram conjured up by a reality which lacks a crucial feature
of the world as we perceive it: the third dimension. Plus talks to Juan
Maldacena to find out more.
http://plus.maths.org/issue51/features/maldacena/index.html?nl=0
* Lambda marks the spot - the biggest problem in theoretical physics
The mathematical maps in theoretical physics have been highly successful in
guiding our understanding of the universe at the largest and smallest
scales. Linking these two scales together is one of the golden goals of
theoretical physics. But, at the very edges of our understanding of these
fields, one of the most controversial areas of physics lies where these
maps merge: the cosmological constant problem.
http://plus.maths.org/issue51/features/lambda/index.html?nl=0
* Career interview: Visual effects director
Alexis Wajsbrot is a visual effects specialist who has worked on a number
of high-profile films including Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince,
Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix, Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd, and also
on some of those visually stunning commercials you see while waiting for
your film to start. His speciality is anything that behaves like a fluid:
water, smoke, fire, even fur or cloth. Plus went to see him to find out
more. http://plus.maths.org/issue51/interview/index.html?nl=0
* Teacher package: On thin ice - maths and climate change in the Arctic
In this issue's teacher package we look at some of the maths and science
behind a recent expedition to the Arctic. The aim of the Catlin Arctic
Survey was to gather data on ice thickness that will help to predict when
the North Pole sea ice cover will melt, an event that will have dramatic
consequence for the Arctic ecosystem and the Earth's climate as a whole.
Plus was commissioned by Catlin Arctic Survey Education to produce
mathematics and science enrichment material for ages 14 to 19 (key stages 4
and 5). The toolkits look at climate and sea ice models, GPS and
cartography, how to predict future climate trends, and how to present
statistical evidence. http://plus.maths.org/issue51/package/index.html?nl=0
But wait, there's more!
* Win at Wimbledon
http://plus.maths.org/issue51/puzzle/index.html?nl=0
* And find out if the constants of nature are changing
http://plus.maths.org/issue51/outerspace/index.html?nl=0
**********
Happy reading from the Plus team!
**********
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