| Title | Science Café in English “The geometric origins of supersymmetry” |
| Speaker | Katherine Alston Maxwell (Kavli IPMU Project Researcher) |
| Date | Sat, Sep 16, 2023, 13:30 – 15:30 |
| Abstract | “Supersymmetry” is a term from physics which describes an extra symmetry among the elementary particles of physics. It hypothesizes that there exists superpartners between the two types of particles, bosons and fermions.
The term “supersymmetry” also appears in mathematics, but the meaning can seem to be different from the meaning in physics. For example, a supermanifold is a geometrical space which is like a manifold but with invisibly small extra dimensions. In my talk, firstly, I will give an example of how supersymmetry in physics and supersymmetry in mathematics are related. Secondly, since I am a mathematician myself, I will describe how supergeometry is well-motivated independently of physics. At its core, supergeometry is related to taking squareroots. For example, what is the squareroot of –1, and how does this relate to supersymmetry? Part of the answer is the number system called the octonions, which is an 8-dimensional extension of the real numbers. |
| Place | Tamarokuto Science Center |
| Capacity | 36 |
| Age to apply | 1st year junior high school student or over |
| Application | Participants are chosen by lottery. Application Deadline: Fri, Sep 1st. Application Form |
| Remarks | Admission fee required. (Adult 520 JPY, Child 210 JPY) Only participants are allowed in the room. |
