Gintaras Duda
Professor
Creighton University
Monday, October 17, 2011
4:30 p.m.
Cardwell 102
Measurements and observations of the 20th and 21st century paint a bizarre picture of the universe. Not only is the universe expanding (and accelerating in its expansion), but most of the mass of the universe is locked in a dark form of matter which is invisible to us (except through gravity and perhaps the weak force). This talk will explore the evidence for, nature of, and detection of dark matter. Using the universe as our laboratory, this talk will explore the deep connections between fundamental particle physics and astrophysics/cosmology. The talk will conclude with an introduction to intriguing new data relating to dark matter detection from satellite experiments such as FERMI and PAMELA as well as the earth-based experiments CoGeNT and XENON.