HON-494 (28987)

The Higgs, Quarks and the Big Bang

Barrett, the Honors College

Spring, 2014

SYLLABUS

(Revised 2/21/14)

Instructor: Richard J. Jacob, Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus of Physics

Barrett Emeritus Fellow

Arizona State University

rjjacob@asu.edu

(602) 677-5789 (cell & text)

Times: T, Θ 3:00 – 4:15 PM, Sage 142

Consultation: T, Θ 1:30 – 2:45 PM, Sage 145

Or by appointment

This is a course in Particle Cosmology – the hybrid field formed from Elementary Particle Physics, Astrophysics and Cosmology. It is taught at the upper-division general studies level, intended for honors students majoring in anything. The math and science prerequisites are no more than those required for admission to the university in full standing.

The course can be viewed as a study in Nobel Prizes. Fully 40% of the Nobel Prizes in Physics since 1945 have been awarded in relevant fields, most of them of seminal importance. Thus, part of the class activities will involve the reading of a select number of Nobel Prize Lectures, at least those that were accessible in understanding to the King of Sweden. Each student will prepare a 20 minute presentation on a given Nobel Prize Lecture taken from the list linked below. Each student will also write a 1500 word paper based on their presentation (exact details also below.)

Class periods will be spent in presentations, discussions and a bit of lecture by the instructor. The following tentative sequence of topics will evolve and harden as the term approaches.

· Elementary building blocks of matter: electron, proton and neutron

· Light! The photon in all its guises

· Some relevancies from Special Relativity

· Effervescent cousins: muons and mesons

· Antimatter and other matter

· Neutrinos: nature’s ghosts

· Albert had a little lambda

· The universe expands and Einstein capitulates

· Pre Sputnik cosmology - the dulcet years

· “Three quarks for Muster Mark”

· Father Lemaitre’s Big Bang

· Hubble goes up and sees out

· Standard candles and supernovae

· The universe expands as Nobel Prizes proliferate

· We all glow

· The universe glows

· Baby pictures of the universe

· The first 300,000 years

· Structure

· The three pillars of the Big Bang model.

· The Dark Side

· United we stand – but where is the Higgs?

· Reproducing the Big Bang – the LHC

· Producing and detecting the Higgs

· It’s a point! It’s a plane! It’s Supersymmetry!

· Are there strings attached?

· Brains on branes.

· Up to our eyeballs in universes.

· What next?

Required texts: The following four fairly short books are required reading. We will read them almost simultaneously; click here for a reading guide. The books listed are not ordered at the University Book Store since the selection occurred later than the order deadline. Students should obtain them through their own favorite book source. Paperback or e-reader are adequate.

• The First Three Minutes (2^nd Edition Updated), Steven Weinberg. This is a classic, written by a Nobel Prize winner for, as he describes it, “a smart old attorney who does not speak my language, but who expects nonetheless to hear some convincing arguments before he makes up his mind.” It is a bit dated, but there is nothing in it that needs to be seriously revised.

· The Particle at the End of the Universe, Sean Carroll. Carroll is a well-regarded general relativity and cosmology researcher, currently at Cal Tech, who also blogs on science.

· The 4% Universe, Richard Panek. This is not only a good presentation of the physics behind the Standard Model of Cosmology, but an engrossing story of competition in science and the race to the 2011 Nobel Prize. While not a working scientist, Panek is an award winning scientific journalist.

· Warped Passages, Lisa Randall. Randall is probably the most famous currently active female theoretical physicist. Her work involves alternative ideas to string theory. She is at Harvard and on many TV shows.

Required Nobel Lectures: Each student will select a Nobel Prize lecture from the approved list – first come, first served – as his or her presentation and term paper topic. Lectures are available at the links provided. All lectures selected by class members become required reading for everyone in the class.

Presentation and Term Paper: Your presentation and term paper will be on the area covered in the Nobel Prize lecture(s) you have chosen. Presentations and papers should not simply be reviews of the chosen lecture(s), but should examine or expand upon an important theme or topic found therein. (I will enlarge upon this in class.) You need not be technical beyond your own level of preparation or background. Presentations should be 20 minutes in length, not counting time for questions. They will be scheduled at a fitting time in relationship to the topical list above. You may use PowerPoint or other graphic illustrations to support your oral presentation. The term paper should be at least 1,500 but no more than 2,000 words, not counting references and citations. It should be appropriately footnoted and written in acceptable academic style. Note that while Wikipedia and other unauthoritative sources are useful for starting a paper chase, only authoritative sources are acceptable for citation. First drafts of term papers are due at 11:59 PM, April 18. First drafts will be reviewed by two classmates. Final drafts of term papers will be due at 11:59 PM on the last day of classes (May 2.) They should be submitted as electronic editable files (MS Word preferred) attached to an email addressed to rjjacob@asu.edu.

Examination: There will be one examination: the final. It will be essay in format with both required and elective questions. Bring a sufficient supply of Blue Books or writing paper. No laptops, pads, etc.

Grade: The final grade will be based upon attendance and participation (25%), individual Nobel Prize presentation (25%), term paper (25%) and final examination (25%). Grade will be reduced by 1/3 letter for each unexcused absence. Requests for excused absences, with justification, should be emailed to the instructor before 5:00 PM of the class day in question. Attendance is important. This is not a robocourse. Grade levels are tentatively set as follows: (Grade level requirements will not be increased but may be reduced at the discretion of the instructor.) A+: >90%; A: >80%; A-: >75%; B+: >70%; B: >65%; B-: >60%; C: >50%; D: >40%. There will be no C+, C-, D+ or D- grades. The final grade will be calculated before any deductions due to unexcused absences.

Non required Suggested Readings:

• Higgs Discovery: the Power of Empty Space, Lisa Randall. Randall is a Harvard cosmologist and theoretical physicist best known to the public for her book, Warped Passages.
• The God Particle, Leon Lederman. The book that introduced the appellation for the Higgs boson that all physicists hate, including Nobel laureate Lederman, himself.
• The Elegant Universe, Brian Greene. A theoretical physicist who writes for the public on String Theory and extreme cosmology and appears a lot on public television.
• The Inflationary Universe, Alan Guth. Guth introduced the idea that saved the Big Bang.
• The Second Creation, Robert Crease and Charles Mann. An excellent history of particle physics through 1985.

· Introduction to Cosmology, Barbara Ryden. For the student with a college level math and physics background, this provides a good technical survey of cosmology as a branch of physics.

· Exploring Black Holes, Edwin Taylor and John Wheeler. A really fun introduction to General Relativity for anyone who’s had a calculus course.

· Black Holes and Time Warps, Kip S. Thorne. A very readable account of General Relativity. Lots of “What would happen if you….?”

· Particle Physics: A VeryShort Introduction, Frank Close. In a nutshell. Almost a handbook for non-physicists. Close is a long time researcher and important contributor to particle physics. Not required, but recommended for anyone new to particle physics.

Miscellaneous:

• In addition to my regularly scheduled consultation hours before class each day, I can also often be met without appointment in the Barrett dining hall on class days. I welcome company during lunch.
• Consultation appointments may often be in my office at the Emeritus College, Old Main, 102. Walk down the ramp under the front stairs.