Science
Physics
Stories matter, as do the ways we tell them. Hear from the founder of an audiobook empire and a renowned theoretical physicist on the art and power of capturing and conveying human experience through compelling narrative.
The Afternoon of Conversation is the Aspen Ideas Festival's pinnacle programming moment. Over 2,000 people gather in the Benedict Music Tent, an open-air venue with acoustics that mimic an amphitheater, to hear from global leaders, community change-makers, journalists, politicians, and more. Doors open at 2 p.m.
Science communicators Greg and Mitch of AsapSCIENCE share their journey of using science to connect with an array of audiences and advocate for big issues such as climate change action and diversity. Join this live session, with Q&A, where you’ll learn how to use science in your own field to compel audiences to care about your cause. Presented by YouTube
The #MeToo movement has inspired a sister movement called #USToo, designed to expose and eliminate sexual harassment in the sciences. A sweeping new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine looks at the extent to which women in these fields are harassed on campuses, research labs, medical centers and other academic environments. The chillin...
Nanobiophysics draws together the mainstays of physics, such as mechanical forces and electromagnetic fields, with the biochemical and cellular processes at the foundation of medicine. Anita Goel, a pioneer in this emerging platform, helped rocket MRSA, the antibiotic-resistant superbug, to the International Space Station so that scientists can study the influence of micro...
Do we owe our existence to a thin disk of matter in the plane of the Milky Way that caused a minor space perturbation that resulted in a major earthquake that in turn killed the dinosaurs? Renowned theoretical physicist and best-selling author Lisa Randall discusses her original research showing the surprising connections between the cosmos and life on Earth.
Ever since humans looked up at the night sky, we have searched for clues that connect the celestial and terrestrial. However, it was not until the birth of modern science—seeking explanations with empirical data—that we came to understand our cosmic habitat better. And although we now know much about the universe we inhabit, there are many unsolved conundrums regarding the...
Even a generation ago, fundamental existential questions may have appeared as forever inaccessible metaphysical questions. How did the universe begin? How will it end? Are we alone? Are there universes? Remarkably, in the past decade or two and in some cases in the past year or so, it has become clear that all of these are accessible at least in principle, to experimentati...
What is the universe made of and why don't we know what it's made of? From the esoteric to the concrete.
Through a powerful narrative that’s sure to inspire wonder and awe, Lisa Kaltenegger, director of the Carl Sagan Institute, shares her research on newly discovered planets outside our solar system. Kaltenegger is joined by astronaut and recently retired NASA science chief John Grunsfeld, who famously helped repair the Hubble Telescope in orbit. He was in charge during monu...
Black holes are dark. That’s their essence. Being dark against a dark sky and a shadow against a bright sky are the defining features that earned them a name. A telescope has never found one unadorned. Bare black holes—those too solitary to tear down sufficient debris—in their obliterating darkness are practically impossible to observe, but not entirely impossible. Award-w...
Are we alone? It’s an age-old quandary, and no discussion of space would be complete without addressing the possibility of life beyond Earth. Science and technology have accelerated to the point that we’re only about ten to 20 years from being able to answer the question. What does that mean to us as humans? Join an astronaut and a theoretical physicist as they ponder the...
The fastest spacecraft ever launched, NASA’s New Horizons left Earth on January 19, 2006, headed for Pluto and the Kuiper Belt at 36,373 mph. Hurling three billion miles from Earth, New Horizons completed the first exploration of the Pluto system, culminating in last summer’s highly successful flyby inside the orbits of all five of Pluto’s moons. New Horizons Mission Leade...
Physicist Brian Greene explains the Higgs boson particle, also known as the "God Particle," and why you should care about it. This energetic and delightful talk will make you wish your high school physics teacher taught like this. Greene says the feat of finding such a particle is akin to "trying to hear a tiny, delicate whisper over the massive thundering, deafening din o...