Speaker: Nobel Prize Winner Eric Cornell, University of Colorado-JILA
Abstract: Thermodynamic equilibrium, much like the speaker's own personality, is properly understood as an epic struggle between the forces of Laziness and the forces of Disorganization. This afternoon, the battle will be joined on a two-dimensional array of linked miniature Bose-Einstein condensates. Will it be Minimal Energy or Maximal Entropy that carries the day? The answer may hinge on the relative strength of their respective allies, Tunneling and Temperature.