IRS for ANZAPA

2 for ANZAPA #257 - October 2010 and for display on eFanzines (www.efanzines.com) If you're being chased by a police dog, try not to go through a tunnel, then on to a little seesaw, then jump through a hoop of fire. They're trained for that. Milton Jones at the Underbelly. Contents This Issue‟s Cover .............................................................................................................................................. 2 LoC from Chris Garcia ....................................................................................................................................... 6 LoC from Lloyd Penney ..................................................................................................................................... 7 Those lovely, lovely dinosaur computers ........................................................................................................... 8 Aussiecon 4 ...................................................................................................................................................... 12 Clerihew corner ................................................................................................................................................ 20 Stefan zone ....................................................................................................................................................... 21 Best dressed fan at Aussiecon 4 ....................................................................................................................... 23 Art, etc. credits… Cover: Graphic by Ditmar Page 2 Photos of Bill Wright and Dick Jenssen Page 11 Charles Babbage‟s difference engine Pages 4 & 5 Book covers Pages 13-18 Photos from Aussiecon 4 by Ditmar, Helena Binns and others Page 5 Calibi-Yau shapes Page 18 „Doc Rat‟ cover illustration by Jenner Page 7 Illustration by Ian Gunn Page 19 Photos by Richard Morden Page 8 John Webster at the ILLIAC computer Page 22 Drawing of actor Robert Mitchum by Dennis Callegari Page 9 UTECOM‟s 50th anniversary plaque Page 22 Photo from 2010 Commonwealth Games at Delhi Page 9 Output from CSIRAC computer Page 23 Ditmar Jenssen and John Hertz at Aussiecon 4, photo by Helena Binns Page 10 Ditmar Jenssen operating the CSIRAC Ctesibius's clepsydra 3 This Issue’s Cover It’s a Universe, Jim, but not as we know it... Graphic and notes by Dick Jenssen According to the mathematics of String Theory there are indications that alternative universes could exist – an enormous number of them, in fact, of the order of 10500 – a belief expounded in The Cosmic Landscape by Leonard Susskind. As well, the birth of such universes may be a frequent occurrence – universes budding off from universes quite spontaneously – see, for example Alex Vilenkin‟s book Many Worlds in One. These universes could have, and almost certainly will have, different fundamental physical constants to ours – the value of the coupling constant, strength of the weak force, and so on. Many such universes will be cold, dead, devoid of stars, planets and life. Others may support stars and planets, perhaps even life, but not of a sentient nature. Some, though, could lead to thinking creatures, aware that they are aware. However, if only a miniscule fraction of those universes were favourable to life, they would still constitute a huge range of possibilities (one in a trillion trillion trillion of 10500 is still 10446, even if a „trillion‟ is taken to be a million million million). Recent advances in the theory, and practical application of string theory, have led to the ability to unilaterally contact a few, a very few, of these other branes, for brief, ephemeral, moments. The transitory nature of such glimpses is a result of the still underdeveloped technology available to researchers. But, fortunately, one or two of the other viewed universes have permitted scientists to piece together a reasonably coherent picture of the life which exists therein. The cover is a photo of such a contact. But, it must be stressed that this „contact‟ is, in effect, just a „peek‟ – there has been, so far, no way in which our scientists can communicate with the other universe. As far as can be judged, the planet of the cover is either largely deficient in some of Earth‟s basic materials, or the inhabitants of the world have a science somewhat different to ours and have opted for a technology based on metals, solar and steam power, with what appears to be a reasonably heavy reliance on the energy which may be stored in springs. Nonetheless, in spite of this unusual approach, they have, as is clear from the cover, developed a sophisticated science of great practical utility. But, as in all endeavours – and, it would seem even alien endeavours – there will be unexpected problems. From the small number of visual contacts of the other world, a „story‟ has been pieced together by our researchers of exploration by the aliens, in a submarine, which was caught in a massive hurricane, thrown onto a beach, and left stranded as the tide withdrew. As far as can be determined, the „beach‟ is not sand, but a highly viscous and adhesive substance, which has trapped the submarine. A rescue craft – which looks rather like an aerial bathysphere – is effecting a rescue of the mariners. If further images are forthcoming, the readers of IRS will, naturally, be among the first to learn of these. Technical notes As always, the cover graphic was generated in E-on‟s Vue Complete 8. The submarine and aerial bathysphere were purchased (yes, I spend money quite recklessly for IRS readers) from Cornucopia and imported into Vue. Everything else was generated using that software. Final tweaks, and text, etc, were effected in Photoshop CS5. More on particles and strings I have two books to recommend to the Inquisitive Readers of IRS – which have some bearing on the above cover notes – but which, in contrast to those notes, are of real science. They involve the basic forces – in our universe – of the strong, the weak, the electromagnetic and the gravitational forces, as well as some of the basic ideas of String Theory. Let me stress, at the outset, that these two books are in no way difficult, esoteric, or incomprehensible even though they describe some recent ideas in physics and mathematics. 4 First, there is A Zeptospace Odyssey by Gian Francesco Giudice (Oxford University Press). The book is subtitled A Journey into the Physics of the LHC . The LHC is the Large Hadron Collider, and a zeptometre is a length of 10-21 metre, which is the scale which the LHC can explore as it searches for existing, and yet-to-be-discovered, fundamental particles. Of course, if the logistics and use of the LHC are to be made clear, then these particles must also be discussed and clarified. So the book begins with a discussion of these. I wish every popular science book could be written with Giudice‟s clarity of exposition. The basic building blocks of matter are discussed – along with their discovery and discoverers – and the Standard Model of physics is then described. I have never before come across a more succinct and transparent coverage of this model. And, along with this there are a number of anecdotes which bring life and humanity to the scientists involved. Even the chapter heading quotes are enlightening – for example, A vacuum is a hell of a lot better than some of the stuff that nature replaces it with (from Tennessee Williams‟ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof). The LHC is then discussed. Now I am not someone who is happy with equipment (I must be one of the very few who failed final year Physics practical work at University), and normally I yawn and flip my way through pages which discuss technical details of machinery. But – again – here was a description so intriguing that I found myself reading every word, and eagerly so. Of course some of the asides helped enormously in sustaining my interest (and amusement): for example Giudice points out that “the material costs of the LHC construction amount(ed) to about 3 billion euros (and) would cost about the same, kilo for kilo, if it were made of premium Swiss chocolate”. The description of the LHC had me in awe of its complexity and size – so much more impressive, as the photos in the book show, than the „Mighty Machines‟ of 30s SF, and even of the Krell technology of Forbidden Planet. Giudice had pointed out the problems associated with The Standard Model (his terminology is the Sublime Marvel) and continues with a treatment of the vexing question of where does mass come from, thereby introducing the Higgs field and boson. Again, this is the best exposition of that subject I have read. But there are problems with the Higgs, and so there is a follow up with Supersymmetry Theory and String Theory and extra dimensions – the Calibi-Yau compactifications. The book end with a trip into cosmology. As Giudice points out, LHC will enable many of the vexing questions in the Standard Model, in the theory of the Higgs field and particle, in Supersymmetry and even perhaps in String Theory, to be tested. All of this is in under 250 pages of main text! The prose is crystal clear and so engrossing that the huge amount of information seems no more difficult to read than an ordinary novel. Highly recommended. The cover notes above, and Giudice‟s book, both refer to String Theory – which some physicists regard as more philosophy than science, simply because it has made no predictions which can, with contemporary technology, be tested. However, as Giudice points out, the LHC may be able

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