Gravity: a fundamental force revisited
Guest Prof. Erik Verlinde
Date 16 / 02 / 22
Time 20:00 - 21:30
Location Online
This BètaBreak edition is hosted in collaboration with SPUI25. Click on the link to join the BètaBreak edition:
Gravity is a force that seems central to us walking around on this globe, but how essential is it in a physicist’s world? In physics there are considered to be four fundamental forces; interactions that do not appear to be reducible to more basic interactions. A couple of years ago, professor Erik Verlinde from the UvA proposed a new theory of gravity that challenges the conventional idea that gravity is a fundamental force.
His theory describes gravity as an entropic force; a force rooted in the interaction of matter on the smallest scale. In this line of thought gravity would no longer be a fundamental force. Rather, it is considered a phenomenon that emerges from quantum interactions of spacetime information. If the last sentence intrigues you or makes you scratch your head, make sure to attend the next edition of the BètaBreak!
Taking place on Wednesday the 16th of February from 20:00 to 21:15 we will discuss -in understandable language- what Verlinde’s theory entails, if other physicists agree with it, and what its consequences could be.
About the speaker
Erik Verlinde is a professor in theoretical physics and string theory at the University of Amsterdam. His research deals with string theory, gravity, black holes and cosmology.
