whaT's InsIde - Perimeter Institute

InsIde the PerImeterFour leadIng sCIenTIsTs joIn PerImeTer InsTITuTe’ssCIenTIFIC advIsory CommITTeePerimeter Institute Director Neil Turok is pleased to announce the appointment of an additional four eminent internationalscientists to serve on Perimeter Institute’s Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC).In making the announcement, Dr. Turok stated, “These outstanding scientists will provide crucial guidance as the Instituteexpands, ensuring that our research and training programs continue to grow and flourish in exciting new directions.”bRIAN gReeNeBrian Greene is a Professor of Mathematics and Physics at Columbia University, where he isco-Director of the Institute for Strings, Cosmology, and Astroparticle Physics (ISCAP). ProfessorGreene has made groundbreaking discoveries in superstring theory, exploring the physicalimplications and mathematical properties of the extra dimensions the theory posits. His currentresearch centres on string cosmology, seeking to understand the physics of the universe’sfirst moments. Professor Greene is well known for his work on communicating theoreticalphysics for general audiences, and his books include The Elegant Universe, which has soldmore than a million copies worldwide; The Fabric of the Cosmos, which spent six months onthe New York Times Best Seller List; and Icarus at the Edge of Time, A Children’s Tale. A threepartNOVA special based on The Elegant Universe won both the Emmy and Peabody Awards.ReNATe LOLLRenate Loll is a Professor of Theoretical Physics and a member of the Institute for TheoreticalPhysics in the Faculty of Physics and Astronomy at Utrecht University. Her research centres onquantum gravity, the search for a consistent theory that describes the microscopic constituentsof spacetime geometry and the quantum-dynamical laws governing their interaction. She hasmade major contributions to loop quantum gravity and, with her collaborators, has proposed anovel theory of quantum gravity via ‘Causal Dynamical Triangulations.’ Dr. Loll heads one ofthe largest research groups on nonperturbative quantum gravity worldwide, and is the recipientof a prestigious personal VICI-grant of the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research.Professor Loll is a Perimeter Institute Distinguished Research Chair, and is also a lecturer inthe Perimeter Scholars International program at the Institute.eRIk veRLINDeErik Verlinde is a Professor of Theoretical Physics at the Institute for Theoretical Physics atthe University of Amsterdam. Professor Verlinde is world-renowned for his many contributions,which include Verlinde algebra and the Verlinde formula, which are important in conformal fieldtheory and topological field theory. His research centres on string theory, gravity, black holesand cosmology. He recently proposed a holographic theory of gravity which appears to leadnaturally to the observed values of dark energy in the universe.bIRgITTA WHALeyBirgitta Whaley is a Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of California,Berkeley, where she is Director of the Berkeley Quantum Information and Computation Center.Professor Whaley’s research centres on understanding and manipulating quantum dynamicsof atoms, molecules and nanomaterials in complex environments to explore fundamentalissues in quantum behavior. She has made major contributions to the analysis and controlof decoherence and universality in quantum information processing, as well as to analysis ofphysical implementations of quantum computation. Professor Whaley is also known for hertheory of molecular solvation in nanoscale superfluid helium systems. Current research includestheoretical aspects of quantum information science, quantum simulation of exotic topologicalphases and exploration of quantum effects in biological systems.— Natasha Waxman06 Fall 2010