[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/burgess.jpg” caption=”Cliff Burgess”]It's been described as the theory of everything – a theory
that might possibly be the ultimate, or final theory of matter at its most fundamental level.

String theory states that absolutely everything in the universe – all of the particles that make up matter and forces – consist of unimaginably* tiny loops of vibrating string.

Join physicist Cliff Burgess at tonight's Science in the City lecture to hear about this radically new perspective of matter – those unimaginably tiny strings and how they just might be the start of a beautiful relationship between quantum mechanics (the modern theory of the very small) and gravity (the modern theory of space and time itself).

Burgess will provide an overview of this controversial theory, a candidate for a unified theory of matter that resolves the incompatibility between quantum mechanics and general relativity. He will also share the excitement that reigns in the field of contemporary theoretical physics – where “the bodies are buried” among string theorists and those who question this theory as one that cannot be experimentally proven.

* And when we say “unimaginably,” we mean it: your average string, if it exists, could be about 10-33 centimeters long. That's a point followed by 32 zeros and then a 1. It's a millionth of a billionth of a billionth of a billionth of a centimetre.

This free public lecture will take place in the Hamilton Spectator Auditorium. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the lecture begins at 7 p.m.

There are still seats available for this lecture. To reserve your spot, call 905-525-9140, ext. 24934 or e-mail sciencecity@mcmaster.ca