SCIENCE AT THE SHINE DOME canberra 6 - 8 may 2009

Symposium: Evolution of the universe, the planets, life and thought

Friday, 8 May 2009

Professor Mike Turner
Departments of Astronomy and Astrophysics, and Physics, University of Chicago

Mike Turner's research focuses on the application of modern ideas in elementary particle theory to cosmology and astrophysics. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a leading proponent of the theory of the origin of the universe known as the ‘cold dark matter theory’. Turner chaired the National Research Council's Committee on the Physics of the Universe, which in 2003 published Connecting quarks with the cosmos. The report assessed the scientific opportunities that occur on the frontiers of research at the intersection of physics and astronomy. Mike completed a two-year term as assistant
director for mathematical and physical sciences at the National Science Foundation in 2006.

Creation and evolution of the universe: From before the big bang to the end of time

Darwin’s publication of the Origin of the species150 years ago marked the beginning of the scientific exploration of our origins. More than 50 years passed before the exploration of the origin of the universe began, enabled by Einstein’s general theory of relativity, large reflecting telescopes on high mountains in California and an astronomer from the Midwest of the USA, Edwin Hubble. Cosmology is a young science. Powered by ideas and instruments, the last 30 years have dramatically improved our knowledge of the universe as well as refined our understanding of its origin and evolution. We know that the universe began from a hot, dense and simple state (the big bang) 13.7 billion years ago; as it expanded and cooled, it evolved layer upon layer of structure, from quarks to neutrons and protons to nuclei and to atoms, and from atoms to stars, galaxies, clusters of galaxies and even larger structures, all held together by the gravity of a mysterious dark matter. Today the universe expands at an accelerating pace, driven by a new form of energy with repulsive gravity (dark energy). We are poised to answer some big questions – the nature of the dark matter and dark energy, what caused the big bang, and the destiny of the universe.