Jake Allen's Ockhamist.com

Elegant Universe

Quantum physics is fascinating because the unexpected becomes reality. We learn that the world we live in, indeed the matter within and around us, does not act like what we see and touch. It acts a bit more like what we hear and smell. When we can taste quantum, then we'll have the Unified Theory. In the quantum universe, waves become matter, matter becomes energy, and energy is freed from material contraints. It pure MADNESS!

NOVA, the mostly boring program funded by my tax dollars that occasionally produces some gems and even some diamonds, has The ELEGANT UNIVERSE on-line for free, in nice digestible segments. They are short enough for you to take your own commercial breaks, and I highly recommend them. If you do not understand what all this talk about "String Theory" is about, this will bring you many steps closer. It's over three hours altogether, so get going.

Also, for those of you who are not too busy finding out about Nicole Richie's new dog (it's quite ugly), there is a neat little video below about the famous Quantum Physics Double Slit Experiment. It's part of a weird propaganda film, but this short is quite excellent.
pop-link to Google If you ignore the NOVA link completely, do be sure and see this. It's quick, informative, and entertaining.

Lastly, there is going to be a new Star Trek:TOS film in 2008, directed by J.J. Abrams, of Alias and Lost fame. The Starfleet Academy angle seems to have already been played, but I'll pay to see Vulcan co-eds and a young Dr. McCoy, and unless it really gets panned to the point where you will be embarrassed to tell people you have seen it, so will most of you, at least on video. You might wonder what the new Star Trek movie has to do with a post on quantum physics videos. But how else would one explain an inverse tachyon pulse?

apologies to digg, /., and videosift
MADNESS!

Madness!

Posted by Jake Allen at April 21, 2006 06:57 PM