Universe recipes

Dust did not exist in the very early universe, the death of the first stars is needed to form dust from the heavy elements. From that time on dust is found in all environments in space: the interstellar medium, molecular clouds, planetary systems and even in intergalactic space. The evolution of dust between these environments is an area of current research, since the Herschel and Planck Satellites have sent us detailed information about the cold dust for the first time.

Just by using pieces of LEGO, learn about the evolution of the universe from the Big Bang to now. PhD students from the Physics department of Queen Mary will explain how the different forces between particles evolved, and how the first nuclei were formed.

We spend most of our physics education discussing topics which are so well established that any disagreement with their underlying principles is tantamount to heresy. However, as in any scientific discipline, the forefront of current research is rife with topics upon which there is not necessarily a consensus. In this talk, I describe some recent such controversial issues in theoretical high energy physics, explain the opposing points of view, and discuss their implications for future research.