A gray cloud rolls off the edge of the stage, fizzling out as it spills into the crowded hall. The audience gasps in surprise and on-stage, Nobel Laureate Bill Phillips smiles as he continues to pour liquid nitrogen across the floor. Phillips, recipient of the Nobel prize in Physics in 1997 for his work cooling atoms with laser light and a member of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, stands in Bethel’s Benson Great Hall before a captivated audience.
Phillips has worked as an experimental physicist for almost fifty years and is globally recognized for his scientific contributions. Last Thursday night, he explained how cooling atoms using laser technology has applications to building ultra-accurate atomic clocks in a family-friendly presentation sponsored by the Bethel Physics Department and titled “Time, Einstein, and the Coolest Stuff in the Universe”. With humility and humor, Phillips described how laser technology, when used to cool atoms, slows the atoms down, allowing scientists to build increasingly accurate atomic clocks that measure over a million times better than your average wristwatch. These clocks can then help increase the accuracy and reliability of GPS technology, which is used by everyone from drivers, bikers, and golfers to commercial and military aircraft and …show more content…
“Science and religion are two powerful forces in modern society,” Phillips said, “so we should take the time to understand their relationship.” As both a person of faith and a renowned physicist, Phillips shared his unique perspective and position to address this relationship, believing science and religion ask different questions but aren’t fundamentally opposed as so many seem to believe. “Being an ordinary scientist,” Phillips explained, “and an ordinary Christian seems perfectly natural to
Phillips has worked as an experimental physicist for almost fifty years and is globally recognized for his scientific contributions. Last Thursday night, he explained how cooling atoms using laser technology has applications to building ultra-accurate atomic clocks in a family-friendly presentation sponsored by the Bethel Physics Department and titled “Time, Einstein, and the Coolest Stuff in the Universe”. With humility and humor, Phillips described how laser technology, when used to cool atoms, slows the atoms down, allowing scientists to build increasingly accurate atomic clocks that measure over a million times better than your average wristwatch. These clocks can then help increase the accuracy and reliability of GPS technology, which is used by everyone from drivers, bikers, and golfers to commercial and military aircraft and …show more content…
“Science and religion are two powerful forces in modern society,” Phillips said, “so we should take the time to understand their relationship.” As both a person of faith and a renowned physicist, Phillips shared his unique perspective and position to address this relationship, believing science and religion ask different questions but aren’t fundamentally opposed as so many seem to believe. “Being an ordinary scientist,” Phillips explained, “and an ordinary Christian seems perfectly natural to