Joint cosmology seminar at MIT:

Tuesday, October 25, 2022, 2:30 pm
Cosman Seminar Room\\
Center for Theoretical Physics\\
Building 6C, Room 6C-442\\
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Einselection, Equilibrium and Cosmology

Andreas Albrecht
UC Davis

Abstract:

I consider the question of whether an arrow of time is needed for a quantum system to manifest classical behavior. I answer this question using calculations in a particular toy model, and link the results to cosmology, where the arrow of time is connected with deep questions about tuning and initial conditions This will be an informal presentation which invites strong engagement from the audience, and which does not assume familiarity with the diverse range of physics topics tied together in this work. (Based on arXiv:2105.14017 [hep-th].)