Catalog Search Results
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 9
Language
English
Description
Explore the force that helps hold the atomic nucleus together, called the strong force. Chart the discovery of this mysterious mechanism - which only works at extremely short range - and see how it led to concepts such as quarks, gluons, and the color force, which is responsible for the strong interaction.
2) Theory of Everything: The Quest to Explain All Reality: Conservation Laws And Symmetry: Emmy Noether
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 12
Language
English
Description
Consider why mathematics is such an effective tool for describing nature. Then focus on mathematician Emmy Noether's remarkable insight that links symmetries in the equations of a physical system to conservation laws, such as the conservation of energy and conservation of momentum.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 6
Language
English
Description
Study the weak nuclear force, which is responsible for beta decay: the emission of an electron from a nucleus during radioactive decay. Discover that much more is going on, including weird transformations that pose a challenge to a theory of everything.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 3
Language
English
Description
Follow one of the strangest turns in modern science: the discovery of the paradoxical world of light, which spawned the theory of quantum mechanics. Discover how light and matter behave as both particles and waves, and look at evidence for this curious feature of the quantum world.
5) Theory of Everything: The Quest to Explain All Reality: Electroweak Unification Via The Higgs Field
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 8
Language
English
Description
A key step in the quest for a theory of everything has been the realization that the electromagnetic and weak forces are aspects of the same force. Follow the saga of electroweak unification, which culminated in the discovery of the Higgs boson in 2012.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 15
Language
English
Description
The fundamental building blocks of matter are thought to be quarks (which interact by the strong force) and leptons (which interact by the electromagnetic and weak forces). But could there be a deeper level? Explore the theory of preons, which may be even more fundamental than quarks and leptons.
7) Theory of Everything: The Quest to Explain All Reality: Big Bang And Inflation Explain Our Universe
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 22
Language
English
Description
Starting with the big bang, plot the history of our universe, focusing on events in the tiniest fraction of the first second, when phenomena such as supersymmetry, superstrings, and quantum loops may have come into play. Consider the explanatory power of the theory of cosmic inflation.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 2
Language
English
Description
Learn how two seemingly separate phenomena, electricity and magnetism, were shown by James Clerk Maxwell in the 1860s to be aspects of a single underlying force, demonstrating how unification works in physics. Then see how Maxwell's equations of electromagnetism make a remarkable prediction.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 7
Language
English
Description
Analyze more idiosyncrasies of the weak force, focusing on the three massive particles that mediate its interactions. Discover that the weak force is unique in its ability to change a characteristic called flavor, and learn that at high energies the weak force is exceptionally strong.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 17
Language
English
Description
Built on the equivalence of inertial and gravitational mass, Einstein's general theory of relativity explains gravity in a surprising new way. See how matter and energy determine the shape of space and time. Investigate confirming evidence for general relativity, including the discovery of gravitational waves in 2015.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 5
Language
English
Description
Take a deeper step into the quantum world, observing how the theory of quantum electrodynamics, or QED, unites quantum mechanics with special relativity. Discover that the handy sketches of subatomic behavior called Feynman diagrams (named after physicist Richard Feynman) are really equations in disguise.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 23
Language
English
Description
Now step into the realm of other universes. Do they exist? If so, how could we possibly know? Start by examining the free parameters that govern the structure and behavior of our universe. Then seek answers to four crucial questions that address why the parameters take the values that they do.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 4
Language
English
Description
Trace the reasoning that led Einstein to his special theory of relativity, proposed in 1905. Address common misconceptions about this startling new view of time and space, which led to ideas such as mass-energy equivalence, the impossibility of faster-than-light travel, and the space-time continuum.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 13
Language
English
Description
The first inklings of a successful theory of everything will probably arise from symmetries and group theory. Prepare for this epochal moment by digging into these important mathematical ideas. Also, learn to approach proposed theories of everything with fascination, tinged with healthy skepticism.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 1
Language
English
Description
Embark with Dr. Lincoln on a search for a theory of everything - a simple and comprehensive explanation for all physical phenomena in the universe. Confront the incompatibility of our two best prototypes: the standard model of particle physics and the general theory of relativity.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 24
Language
English
Description
Finish the course by reviewing unified theories since Newton, analyzing a remarkable equation that brings major insights together and represents the current status of a theory of everything. Then look ahead to the next steps, and hear Dr. Lincoln's own research agenda for this momentous quest.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 11
Language
English
Description
Transition to a new perspective as Professor Lincoln spotlights speculative ideas that may contribute to a theory of everything. In this lecture, explore the mysteries of neutrinos, which are extraordinarily hard to detect yet hold intriguing clues about the possible unity of fundamental forces.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 16
Language
English
Description
Gravity is by far the weakest of the fundamental forces. Learn how Newton achieved the first major unification in physics by showing that terrestrial and celestial gravity are the same. He also tacitly equated inertial mass and gravitational mass, leading to the startling theory 250 years later.
19) Theory of Everything: The Quest to Explain All Reality: What Pushes The Universe Apart: Dark Energy
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 19
Language
English
Description
Turn to dark energy, the ghostly energy field that appears to be pushing the universe apart at an ever-greater rate. Learn how this extraordinary discovery was made in 1998, and explore theories that attempt to explain dark energy and its strange consequences.
Author
Series
Great Courses volume 21
Language
English
Description
Venture into extra dimensions to investigate gravity's extraordinary weakness compared to the other fundamental forces. This journey also sheds light on the possible creation of subatomic black holes in particle accelerators and why tiny black holes pose no risk to humanity.
In Interlibrary Loan
Didn't find what you need? Items not owned by Jackson County Oregon can be requested from other Interlibrary Loan libraries to be delivered to your local library for pickup.
Didn't find it?
Can't find what you are looking for? Try our Materials Request Service. Submit Request