The 15th Annual Biard Lecture

A famous law of physics, the Second Law of Thermodynamics, states that the entropy of the universe increases over time. And entropy is supposed to be a measure of disorder or randomness. This raises an important question: how did we come to be? Biological organisms are exquisitely ordered and complex, not something we might expect to arise out of a universal tendency toward disorder. In this talk I will show how simplicity/complexity is a distinct idea from order/disorder, and suggest how complexity can naturally develop between the Big Bang and today, before eventually fading away in the far future.

Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University and Fractal Faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. He received his Ph.D. in 1993 from Harvard University. His research focuses on the foundations of physics, including issues in quantum mechanics, spacetime, cosmology, and emergence. He is the author of several books, most recently The Biggest Ideas in the Universe, Vol. 2: Quanta and Fields. He has been awarded prizes and fellowships by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Sloan Foundation, the Packard Foundation, the American Physical Society, the American Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of London, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is the host of the weekly Mindscape podcast.

To RSVP, please go to 15th Biard Lecture Registration.

The Biard Lecture is a free of charge event and open to all.

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is an annual series of lectures created and endowed by a generous estate gift by the late Captain Forrest R. Biard, U.S. Navy. Free and open to the public, these annual lectures bring recognized speakers at the forefront of cosmology and astrophysics research to campus for the benefit of the university and central Ohio community.

The cornerstone of CCAPP's outreach effort, the Biard Lecture allows scientists and non-scientists alike to learn about new discoveries, theories, and experiments in the field of astrophysics. In addition to increasing public awareness of the scientific advances made possible by taxpayer-supported funding, the Biard Lectures are an opportunity for the public to experience and enjoy the wonders of scientific exploration.

6:00 pm -- Door opens

6:30 pm -- Lecture

7:30 pm -- Questions & Answers

Reception with Hors D’oeuvre and beverages will follow immediately and everyone is invited.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Mershon Auditorium, 1871 North High Street, Columbus, United States