Category Archives: Appearances

The Exotic Physics of an Ordinary Morning: Talk at TEDxAlbany

December 4, 2015 Chad

I gave a talk at TEDxAlbany on December 3, 2015, on “The Exotic Physics of an Ordinary Morning”:

You might think that the bizarre predictions of quantum mechanics and relativity– particles that are also waves, cats that are both alive and dead, clocks that run at different rates depending on how you’re moving– and only come into play in physics laboratories or near black holes. In fact, though, even the strangest features of modern physics are essential for everything around us. The mundane process of getting up and getting ready for work relies on surprisingly exotic physics; understanding how this plays out adds an element of wonder to even the most ordinary morning.

(This is based on a preliminary draft; final talk does not, in fact, discuss relativity.)

Talk slides are here slides on SlideShare:

The Exotic Physics of an Ordinary Morning from Chad Orzel

Eureka Interview on WICN’s “Inquiry”

January 24, 2015 Chad

I did an interview with Mark Lynch for the Inquiry podcast. We talked in detail about a bunch of stuff from the “Looking” section of the book that hasn’t come up in other interviews.

(Note: I had some difficulty getting the audio to play properly in Chrome, but it worked fine in other browsers.)

Appearances, Books, Eureka

Eureka Interview on The Roundtable

January 12, 2015 Chad

I appeared on the WAMC radio show The Roundtable on January 9, and the audio is available via their web site. It’s a bit less than 15 minutes, and covers a lot of ground; Joe Donahue is a really good interviewer, and this was a fun conversation.

Appearances, Books, Eureka

Eureka on KERA Radio’s Think, 12/10/14

December 5, 2014 Chad

I’ll be appearing on KERA radio’s “Think” on Wednesday December 10 from 12-1 Central time (1-2pm Eastern). This will be a live interview, possibly including call-in questions.

UPDATE: Audio from the episode is available on the KERA web page.

Appearances, Books, Eureka

Eureka Signing at the Open Door

November 30, 2014 Chad

I’ll be at the Open Door bookstore in downtown Schenectady, NY, on Sunday, December 14, 2014 signing Eureka: Discovering Your Inner Scientist from noon to 1:30pm. If you’re in town, stop by and support a great little independent bookstore.

Appearances, Speaking

Past Appearances/ Talks

November 30, 2014 Chad

An incomplete list of selected appearances/ speaking engagements in recent years, to give a sense of the kind of thing I regularly do:

Public Talks, Panel Discussions, etc.:

“Secret Science Club: Particle Fever,” guest scientist for a showing of the documentary Particle Fever; answered audience questions before and after the movie. October 25, 2014, organized by the Secret Science Club, hosted at MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA.

“Discovering Your Inner Scientist,” talk for the Bristol Festival of Ideas. August 13, 2014, at the Institute of Physics in Bristol, UK.

“What to Tell Your Dog About Einstein,” talk for “Physics Days” at the Space Center Houston. May 1-2, 2014, Space Center Houston, TX. (Blog post, with slides.)

“Quantum Crosswords,” talk at the TED@NYC talent search in New York. (TED hasn’t posted video, but it’s the same material as this video). October 8, 2013, Joe’s Pub in Manhattan.

“What Every Dog Should Know About Quantum Physics,” talk at the opening of the Quantum Nano Center at the University of Waterloo. (Video, with some minor technical issues regarding the slides) September 29, 2012, in Waterloo, Ontario.

“Bridging Worlds,” panel discussion at the opening of the Quantum Nano Center at the University of Waterloo (Video of the panel) September 29, 2012 in Waterloo, Ontario.

Science Communication, Science Education:

“Talking to My Dog About Science: Why Public Communication of Science Matters, and How Social Media Can Help,” colloquium talk at the University of Binghamton. December 9, 2013, in Binghamton, NY. (Also many other places, under more or less the same title…)

“What Physics Knowledge Is Assessed in TIMSS Advanced 2008?,” AAAS Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, February 2011. (APS News writeup)

“Lasers in the Undergraduate Laboratory: Precision Measurement for the Masses,” talk at APS March Meeting (slides) March 16, 2010.

“Communicating Science in the 21st Century,” panel discussion at the Quantum to Cosmos festival. (Video) October 24, 2009 at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ontario.

Technical Lectures

“High Precision, Not High Energy: Using Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics to Look Beyond the Standard Model,” Nordita Science Writers Workshop. (Video and slides) August 28, 2014, Stockholm, Sweden.

“What’s So Interesting About AMO Physics?,” American Physical Society Division of Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics (DAMOP) Meeting, Atlanta, GA, June 2011.

“Counting Atoms for Astrophysics: Atom Traps, Neutrino Detectors, and Radioactive Background Measurements,” Southern Connecticut State University Physics Colloquium, New Haven, CT, April 2011.

Science for Humans and Dogs