British Trio Wins Nobel Prize In Physics For Study of Exotic Matter (theguardian.com) 25
Dave Knott writes: David J. Thouless, F. Duncan M. Haldane and J. Michael Kosterlitz were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics on Tuesday for discoveries in condensed-matter physics that have transformed the understanding of matter that assumes strange shapes. All three were born in Britain but work in the United States. Using advanced mathematical models, the three scientists studied unusual phases, or states, of matter, such as superconductors, superfluids or thin magnetic films. Their findings have relevance for materials science and electronics. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm awarded the prize for "theoretical discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological phases of matter." Topology is a branch of mathematics that describes properties that change only in increments. In the early 1970s, Dr. Kosterlitz and Dr. Thouless "demonstrated that superconductivity could occur at low temperatures and also explained the mechanism, phase transition, that makes superconductivity disappear at higher temperatures," the academy found. In the 1980s, Dr. Thouless showed that the integers by which the conductivity of electricity could be measured were topological in their nature. Around that time, Dr. Haldane discovered how topological concepts could be used to understand the properties of chains of small magnets found in some materials. "We now know of many topological phases, not only in thin layers and threads, but also in ordinary three-dimensional materials," the academy said. "Over the last decade, this area has boosted front-line research in condensed matter physics, not least because of the hope that topological materials could be used in new generations of electronics and superconductors, or in future quantum computers."
Using advanced mathematical models (Score:1)
Gnarleigh
Haldane (Score:2)
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Wikipedia was uninformative.
I found a genealogy site with a page for JBS: https://www.geni.com/people/J-... [geni.com]
Unfortunately, sometimes the links are to a 'private' person, at which point the chain is broken.
JBS had a stepchild but no children of his own. His dad was famous, as were his dad's two brothers and his grandfather. One of those (Richard Burdon Sanderson Haldane) was a viscount and Lord Chancellor, but had no sons. The other, Sir William Stowell Haldane had three sons.
William's sons: Thomas Graeme Nel
Re: (Score:2)
I've always admired people with three first names. My family was poor so I only got the one.
Re: Haldane (Score:1)
Yeah but you still made Pope. Or is Pope your first name?
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I volunteer to do peer review.
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I see what you did there.
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*blushes*
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You are adorable when you're so mad.
Worst Description of Topology ...Ever. (Score:3, Informative)
Then out came the Bagels....
Face meet palm.
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Hmmm. . . Bagels!
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TFS described topology as a branch of mathematics, which is in fact not physics. It then said that it was the study of things that change in increments, which is barely even wrong. Topology is the study of certain properties of sets, which can be finite or infinite, and don't have to be quantized. What people think of when they talk about topology is the study of properties that are invariant under transformations involving continuous functions. Sets of discrete objects can have topologies, but mathema
Goddam furriners! (Score:3, Funny)
Trump will build the Atlantic Ocean and make the Limeys pay for it.
Half a century late (Score:5, Interesting)
So they're rewarding NOW research from early 1970s. What's the point? The Nobel prize was designed to provide funds to the best scientists so they can continue research without wasting most of their time begging for sponsors(then)/grants(now). Instead, it degenerated into a list of "greatest minds of the last century who haven't still keeled over" that'd fit more in a random popsci colourful periodical.
That, and the Political Correctness ("Peace") prize.
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No, that's not what the Nobel price was about. It was a recognition reward, not an equivalent of a sponsorship or a grant, for discoveries in certain fields, as outlined by his will, that contributed the most to mankind(yes, that is SPECIFICALLY mentioned in the will that laid out the rules that govern the foundation). At the same time, the people involved in science have increased a couple of orders of magnitude. Also, some discoveries take decades to understand the exact worth. So you get awards like this