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The  Simple  Universe

Modern Physics Discussions

Sections

1) Charge and electroweak theory
Matt O'Dowd, PBS Space Time channel

2) Double copy theory : a new way to think about gravity
Dr. Christopher White, PsiStar Society channel

3) Double-slit experiment at home
Mithuna Yoganathan, Looking Glass Universe channel

4) Fundamental forces
Arvin Ash channel

5) Mass symmetry breaking
ZAP Physics channel

6) Spacetime story and spacetime atoms
Fay Dowker, The Royal Institution channel

7) Standard model of particle physics
ZAP Physics channel

8) String theory mathematics
Leonard Susskind, Stanford University channel

9) Quantum mechanics course of 10 lectures
Leonard Susskind, Stanford University channel


1) Charge and electroweak theory

Matt O'Dowd in 2022 discusses what if charge is not fundamental and in 2020 discusses the electroweak force interactions

1) 1 of 2 Discussion on electric charge

0 minutes : introduction

8 minutes : isospin and hypercharge

9 minutes : the weak force transforms particles

1) 2 of 2 Discussion on electroweak interactions

0 minutes   : introduction

2 minutes   : the weak interaction

4 minutes   : gauge theory

6 minutes   : unitarity

11 minutes : electroweak field

13 minutes : questions


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2) Double copy theory : a new way to think about gravity

Dr. Christopher White in 2021 discusses the double copy theory of gravity

2) 1 of 1 Discussion on the double copy theory of gravity

0 minutes   : four fundamental forces in nature

1 minutes   : the double copy theory

2 minutes   : particle physics

4 minutes   : quantum field theory

5 minutes   : gravity

6 minutes   : quantum gravity

7 minutes   : the strong force

8 minutes   : quantum Chromo-dynamics

13 minutes : the wave equation

15 minutes : field theory

20 minutes : general relativity

31 minutes : Feynman diagrams

39 minutes : trinity of theories

57 minutes : Big Bang theory

1 hour and 10 minutes : what's coming in the future


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3) Double-slit experiment at home

Mithuna Yoganathan in 2022 discusses the double-slit experiment

3) 1 of 1 Discussion on the double-slit experiment

0 minutes : example of the double-slit experiment at home

3 minutes : is light a particle or a wave

4 minutes : Newton's and Thomas Young's view of light

5 minutes : Thomas Young demonstrates the wave nature of light

7 minutes : light as a particle cannot explain cancellation of light

8 minutes : how light as a wave explains cancellation of light


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4) Fundamental Forces

Arvin Ash in 2020 discusses the four fundamental forces and how they work, and discusses how the electro-magnetic force and the weak force unite

4) 1 of 2 Discussion on the four fundamental forces

0 minutes   : how do forces work

3 minutes   : virtual particles

5 minutes   : the electro-magnetic force

7 minutes   : the range of the forces

11 minutes : the strong force

13 minutes : the weak force

14 minutes : gravity

4) 2 of 2 Discussion on the unification of the electric and the electroweak forces

0 minutes   : the four fundamental forces

2 minutes   : the Higgs boson

4 minutes   : beta decay of the neutron

6 minutes   : mass energy equivalence

11 minutes : the Higgs potential

13 minutes : the importance of the electro weak force


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5) Mass symmetry breaking

ZAP Physics in 2022 discusses mass

5) 1 of 1 Discussion on mass

0 minutes : symmetries

1 minutes : symmetry breaking

3 minutes : quantum fields

4 minutes : vacuum state

7 minutes : spontaneous symmetry breaking

8 minutes : mass


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6) Spacetime story and spacetime atoms

Fay Dowker is a professor of theoretical physics at Imperial College University, London

The Spacetime Story lecture is a public lecture given in 2015 at the Royal Institution, London, and discusses the story of spacetime from Newtonian gravity through to general relativity

The Spacetime Atoms lecture is a public lecture given in 2011 at the Perimeter Institute for theoretical physics, Ontario, Canada, and gives an overview of causal set theory and the discreteness of spacetime, which is referred to as a spacetime atom in the lecture

6) 1 of 2 Lecture on the story of spacetime

6 minutes   : Newton's theory of gravity

11 minutes : Newton's reservations

22 minutes : general relativity

26 minutes : time

6) 2 of 2 Lecture on spacetime atoms

3 minutes   : thermo-dynamics

7 minutes   : entropy

19 minutes : black holes

50 minutes : accelerating expansion


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7) Standard model of particle physics

ZAP Physics in 2021 discusses the Standard model of particle physics, including baryons, mesons, quarks, neutrinos, symmetry, quantum electrodynamics, quantum spin, renormalisation

7) 1 of 5 Discussion on baryons, mesons and quarks

0 minutes   : sub atomic physics

7 minutes   : nucleons

9 minutes   : the omega meson

10 minutes : what is the isospin of an antiparticle

13 minutes : the discovery of quarks

7) 2 of 5 Discussion on neutrinos

0 minutes : introduction

1 minutes : radioactive emission of an electron

2 minutes : measuring the mass of the particles

3 minutes : spin considerations

4 minutes : the concept of the neutrino

6 minutes : the concept of the antineutrino

8 minutes : detecting the neutrino

7) 3 of 5 Discussion on quantum electrodynamics

0 minutes   : where to start

1 minutes   : global and local

2 minutes   : external versus internal

3 minutes   : Nether's theorem

4 minutes   : conservation of electric charge

5 minutes   : quantum electro-magnetism

6 minutes   : symmetry of rotations

9 minutes   : quantum electrodynamics

10 minutes : anomalous magnetic dipole moment of the electron

7) 4 of 5 Discussion on quantum spin

0 minutes   : introduction

1 minutes   : intrinsic angular momentum

3 minutes   : orbital angular momentum

9 minutes   : angular momentum is quantised

12 minutes : half integer spin and integer spin

7) 5 of 5 Discussion on renormalisation in quantum mechanics

0 minutes : introduction

1 minutes : unspecified momenta leads to summation divergence

3 minutes : a simple analogy

8 minutes : renormalisation


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8) String theory mathematics

Leonard Susskind is a professor of theoretical physics at Stanford University, California, and gave the following lecture in 2010 for students of the university's Continuing Studies course

The lecture discusses the mathematics of string theory and M-theory

8) 1 of 1 Lecture on string theory

16 minutes : winding number

25 minutes : radius compact-ification

33 minutes : duality equations

39 minutes : gravitational attraction (and repulsion)

44 minutes : gravity in five dimensions

1 hour and 0 minutes   : Kalb-Ramond field

1 hour and 29 minutes : 2-dimensional D-Branes

1 hour and 43 minutes : magnetic monopoles


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9) Quantum mechanics course of 10 lectures

Leonard Susskind is a professor of theoretical physics at Stanford University, California, and gave the following ten lectures in 2008 for students of the university's Continuing Studies course

The ten lectures step through the mathematics of quantum mechanics

9) 1 of 10 Introduction To These Lectures

7 minutes   : classical and quantum randomness

13 minutes : double-slit experiment

25 minutes : deterministic laws

33 minutes : single-slit experiment

1 hour and 22 minutes : vector space


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9) 2 of 10 Linear Operators And Vector Spaces

4 minutes   : uncertainty

13 minutes : complex conjugate

17 minutes : complex vector space

26 minutes : dimension of a vector space

44 minutes : inner product space

59 minutes : basis vectors

1 hour and 8 minutes   : coefficients of a vector

1 hour and 41 minutes : operators


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9) 3 of 10 Wave Functions

0 minutes   : linear operators

4 minutes   : basis of vectors

19 minutes : hermitian operators

26 minutes : eigenvalues and eigenvectors

40 minutes : postulates of quantum mechanics

56 minutes : motion of a particle on a line

1 hour and 7 minutes   : Dirac delta function

1 hour and 43 minutes : momentum interpretation

1 hour and 47 minutes : incompatible quantities


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9) 4 of 10 Angular Momentum

0 minutes   : review of quantum systems

7 minutes   : delta functions

16 minutes : probabilities in quantum mechanics

34 minutes : particle on a circular line

53 minutes : angular momentum

59 minutes : quantum mechanics versus classical mechanics

1 hour and 19 minutes : double-slit experiment

1 hour and 30 minutes : the puzzling phenomenon of interference

1 hour and 49 minutes : modelling for a single slit


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9) 5 of 10 Photon Polarization

0 minutes   : concept of a periodic line

14 minutes : stretching eigenvectors

24 minutes : identity operator

28 minutes : wave function definition

49 minutes : describing a wave packet

55 minutes : incompatible observables

1 hour and 5 minutes   : photons passing through a polarizer

1 hour and 30 minutes : polarized photon at forty five degrees passing through a vertical polarizer


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9) 6 of 10 Photon Polarization Continued

0 minutes   : review of a polarized photon

3 minutes   : properties of a polarized photon

7 minutes   : polarizer as both a measuring apparatus and a preparer of states

14 minutes : quantum mechanics analysis of a polarized photon

38 minutes : polarizers with arbitrary angle

51 minutes : review of trigonometric formulas

1 hour and 8 minutes   : matrix formulation of theta polarization observable

1 hour and 20 minutes : circular polarization

1 hour and 31 minutes : elliptical polarization


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9) 7 of 10 Circular Polarization Continued

6 minutes   : comparison of classical mechanics and quantum mechanics

13 minutes : measurements of different observables

16 minutes : phase change to a state

47 minutes : dynamics of states in time

53 minutes : differences of states are conserved

1 hour and 2 minutes : unitary operators


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9) 8 of 10 Evolution Of States In Phase Space

10 minutes : time evolution is unitary in quantum mechanics

15 minutes : derivation of Hamiltonian

28 minutes : Schrodinger equation

33 minutes : polarisation

1 hour and 7 minutes   : observable change in time, commutator

1 hour and 17 minutes : conserved expectation values

1 hour and 21 minutes : particle on a line


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9) 9 of 10 Black Body Radiation And History Of Quantum Mechanics

18 minutes : Schrodinger equation for free one dimensional particle

1 hour and 0 minutes   : time evolution of expectation values

1 hour and 11 minutes : commutators

1 hour and 32 minutes : particle with potential

1 hour and 42 minutes : Ehrenfest theorem


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9) 10 of 10 Harmonic Oscillator And Angular Momentum

0 minutes   : wave motion and the Lagrangian

25 minutes : wave function over time

34 minutes : energy eigenvalues of the harmonic oscillator

50 minutes : ground state of the harmonic oscillator

1 hour and 27 minutes : quantised energy of oscillations

1 hour and 33 minutes : calculating the energy levels of excited states


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