19 March 2013

How To Use a Magnet to Predict the Value of the Stockmarket

Organised by:

SCI's London Group

UCL, London

Registration Closed

This event is no longer available for registration.

Synopsis

How can forest fires and avalanches be understood by studying piles of grains of rice? How are stock market fluctuations related to magnetic vortices? And, most importantly, just exactly how can a Dyson washing machine help in predicting the height of the Danube? In this talk Simon Banks will explain the connections between these apparently disparate phenomena, introducing the remarkable concepts underpinning critical phenomena, self-organization and universality. Along the way he will explain why static sounds white but Vivaldi sounds pink as well as briefly discussing the fundamental role played by M&Ms candy in the field of statistical physics.