Lene Hau Quotes

Lene Hau — Danish Physicist born on November 13, 1959,

Lene Vestergaard Hau is a Danish physicist. In 1999, she led a Harvard University team who, by use of a Bose-Einstein condensate, succeeded in slowing a beam of light to about 17 metres per second, and, in 2001, was able to stop a beam completely. Later work based on these experiments led to the transfer of light to matter, then from matter back into light, a process with important implications for quantum encryption and quantum computing. More recent work has involved research into novel interactions between ultracold atom and nanoscopic scale systems. In addition to teaching physics and applied physics, she has taught Energy Science at Harvard, involving photovoltaic cells, nuclear power, batteries, and photosynthesis. As well as her own experiments and research, she is often asked to speak at International Conferences, and is involved in structuring the science policies of various institutions. She was keynote speaker at EliteForsk-konferencen 2013, in Copenhagen, February 7, 2013, which is attended by government ministers, as well as senior science policy and research developers in Denmark... (wikipedia)

Physics is about questioning, studying, probing nature. You probe, and, if you're lucky, you get strange clues.

To me, what makes physics physics is that experiment is intimately connected to theory. It's one whole.

There's a tremendous amount of work building the apparatus, getting the experiment to work. But sitting there late at night in the lab, and knowing light is going at bicycle speed, and that nobody in the history of mankind has ever been here before - that is mind-boggling. It's worth everything.

Incidentally, think about the ramifications of storing data on light waves that can be stopped and started at the speed of light.

Of course, in all magic tricks there's a secret.