Many heads are better than one – especially when it comes to investigating something as complicated as the origins, evolution, and eventual fate of the universe. This was the motivating principle behind the annual Vancouver-area Cosmology Meeting, which brought together cosmologists to share ideas, discuss new research developments, and learn about the efforts of others in their field. Several members of TRIUMF's Theory Group attended the gathering, which was held at SFU Harbour Centre on Friday January 17, 2014.
Attendees hailed primarily from UBC, SFU, and TRIUMF, but the meeting also welcomed visiting scientists from locales as far-flung as Budapest and Buenos Aires. Organized by SFU's Levon Pogosian with input from TRIUMF and UBC, the event facilitated interaction and conversation between graduate students, postdocs, faculty members, and research scientists from these institutions.
"We have a good deal of overlap in the topics we work on, but due to busyness and geography, we don't have many opportunities to speak to each other directly all that often. To fix that a little, we hold these meetings," explains David Morrissey, a TRIUMF research scientist in the Theory Group. The university research community sees TRIUMF as a mechanism to strengthen, expand and leverage their research programs.
The meeting began with a series of five-minute summary presentations, followed by several more in-depth explanations of recent research and areas of interest related to cosmology. Topics presented at the meeting included "Supersymmetry and Vacuum Stability" and "Cosmic Bubble Collision in the Early Universe." Enthusiasm was palpable in the lively dialogue during question-and-answer periods, as well as in the conversational buzz that filled the room during the coffee break. The meeting provided an excellent opportunity for TRIUMF scientists to connect with local faculty members, sharing information and ideas as they work towards their common goal of answering cosmology's biggest questions.
Top photograph, from left: Jonathan Kozaczuk, David Morrissey, Alejandro de la Puente
Bottom photograph: Nikita Blinov
-Lindsay Kroes, Communications Assistant