Date: September 29, 2009 -
Time: 4:15 pm -

Stanford University
APPLIED PHYSICS/PHYSICS COLLOQUIUM

Tuesday, September 29, 2009
4:15 p.m. on campus in Hewlett Teaching Center, Rm. 201
Refreshments in the Physics Lobby at 4:00 p.m.

Professor Tom Abel
Stanford University, Physics Dept. and SLAC

"Star Formation Then and Now"

Dramatic algorithmic breakthroughs over the last ten years enabled ab initio calculations of the formation of the first stars, their impact on their environment, early metal enrichment, dwarf galaxy formation, the build up of cosmological magnetic fields and many questions relating to the interplay between galaxies and the intergalactic medium in general. Very complex problems can be addressed using these new numerical techniques. I will discuss new insights gained from such supercomputer calculations into how stars form in our Galaxy and why molecular clouds are long lived.