{"id":137638,"date":"2022-04-02T22:02:17","date_gmt":"2022-04-03T03:02:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/2022\/04\/using-steampunk-to-explain-quantum-physics"},"modified":"2022-04-02T22:02:17","modified_gmt":"2022-04-03T03:02:17","slug":"using-steampunk-to-explain-quantum-physics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/2022\/04\/using-steampunk-to-explain-quantum-physics","title":{"rendered":"Using steampunk to explain quantum physics"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a class=\"aligncenter blog-photo\" href=\"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog.images\/using-steampunk-to-explain-quantum-physics.jpg\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>What do quantum computers have to do with smog-filled London streets, flying submarines, waistcoats, petticoats, Sherlock Holmesian mysteries, and brass goggles?<\/p>\n<p>A whole lot, according to Nicole Yunger Halpern. Last week, the <a href=\"https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/theoretical+physicist\/\" rel=\"tag\" class=\"\">theoretical physicist<\/a> joined Jacob Barandes, co-director of graduate studies for physics, to discuss her new book, \u201cQuantum Steampunk: The Physics of Yesterday\u2019s Tomorrow.\u201d In it, Yunger Halpern dissects a new branch of science\u2014quantum thermodynamics, or quantum steampunk as she calls it\u2014by fusing steampunk fiction with nonfiction and Victorian-era thermodynamics (the heat and energy that gets <a href=\"https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/steam+engines\/\" rel=\"tag\" class=\"\">steam engines<\/a> pumping) with <a href=\"https:\/\/phys.org\/tags\/quantum+physics\/\" rel=\"tag\" class=\"\">quantum physics<\/a>. Yunger Halpern presents a whimsical lens through which readers can watch a \u201cscientific revolution that\u2019s happening in real time,\u201d Barandes said, exploring mysteries even Holmes couldn\u2019t hope to solve, such as why time flows in only one direction.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis fusion of old and new creates a wonderful sense of nostalgia and adventure, romance and exploration,\u201d Yunger Halpern said during a virtual Harvard Science Book Talk presented by the University\u2019s Division of Science, Cabot Science Library, and Harvard Book Store. In steampunk, she continued, \u201cfans dress up in costumes full of top hats and goggles and gears and gather at conventions. What they dream, I have the immense privilege of having the opportunity to live.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What do quantum computers have to do with smog-filled London streets, flying submarines, waistcoats, petticoats, Sherlock Holmesian mysteries, and brass goggles? A whole lot, according to Nicole Yunger Halpern. Last week, the theoretical physicist joined Jacob Barandes, co-director of graduate studies for physics, to discuss her new book, \u201cQuantum Steampunk: The Physics of Yesterday\u2019s Tomorrow.\u201d [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":599,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1523,1507,1617],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-137638","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-computing","category-environmental","category-quantum-physics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137638","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/599"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=137638"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137638\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=137638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=137638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifeboat.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=137638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}