Symmetries – The Secret Language of the Universe (2024)
The 21st Wright Colloquium for Science was held from November 4 to 8, 2024 at the University of Geneva on the theme of symmetries in the Universe. This vast and fundamental concept was explored through five lectures dedicated to the role of symmetries in the history of our Universe, from the Big Bang to living cells and the passage of time.
About the Colloquium
The concept of symmetry is familiar to us. It’s found in art, music and architecture – and in biology, chemistry and physics. It’s in us and around us. But what is not as well known or as obvious are the symmetries that exist in the infinitely large and the infinitely small. These symmetries are intricately linked to the physical laws that govern our Universe.
It is to this vast and fundamental concept that the five Wright Colloquium lectures were dedicated this year. The aim was to explain the fundamental role that symmetry plays in the history of our Universe, from the big bang to living cells and the passage of time.
Conference Program
Monday, November 4th 6:30 PM – Jean-Philippe Uzan
The Making of a True Second
Time is a central dimension of our universe. The history of time and physics is a long one, full of twists and turns and unexpected discoveries. From astronomy to atomic clocks, through the Newtonian and Einsteinian revolutions.
Tuesday, November 5th 6:30 PM – Daniel Baumann
The Power of Symmetry
Symmetry is everywhere. In modern physics, we are not only interested in the symmetry of objects, but also with the symmetries of the physical laws themselves. These symmetries, at the most fundamental level, govern the laws of nature.
Wednesday, November 6th 6:30 PM – Yasmine Amhis
Is Alice’s Rabbit Made of Antimatter?
Thanks to discrete symmetries, physics offers us a mathematical framework for linking and describing the differences between matter and antimatter. Why has antimatter disappeared from our Universe?
Thursday, November 7th 6:30 PM – Edmund Copeland
Your Universe – the Past, the Present and the Future!
The Universe we live in is large, old and expanding. It is 13.8 billion years old and obeys numerous symmetries. Exploration of its evolution, from the Big Bang to its probable future.
Friday, November 8th 6:30 PM – Enrico Coen
From Atoms to Orchids: Unravelling the Symmetries of Life
Why do we see such exquisite symmetries in the living world? Symmetries arise through a marriage between physics and biology: through the regularity of physical laws in space and time combined with the economy of natural selection.
Practical Information
- Dates: November 4-8, 2024
- Time: 6:30 PM each evening
- Location: Uni Dufour, 24 rue Général Dufour, 1204 Geneva
- Free entrance subject to available seats
- Simultaneous translation French-English
- Live streaming on ColloqueWright.ch
Sound and Light Show
The sound and light show “Journey in Symmetries” accompanied the colloquium from October 27 to November 17, 2024 at the Geneva Museum of Art and History (façade on rue Charles-Galland). Performances at 6:30 PM, 7:30 PM and 8:30 PM.
For Youth
An informal meeting was scheduled for Wednesday, November 6th at CERN between young people (15-20 years old) and the speakers of the Colloquium, followed by visits to CERN’s science portal.