Keith R. Dienes, Program Director, Physics, National Science Foundation and Professor of Physics, University of Arizona
In this series kickoff lecture, we take a tour through some of the most cutting-edge concepts in modern physics. After discussing the connections between symmetries, forces, and conservation laws, we describe the fundamental building blocks of the natural world and what they tell us about where physics might be heading in the future. Finally, we discuss how physics gives rise to “weirdness at the extremes”, including the emergence of a new “dark sector” populated by modern ghosts.