Presented on ZOOM 14th November 2022 at 7pm
ABOUT THE LECTURE:
Professor Hendry is a lifetime fan of Star Wars. In fact he says that it was Star Wars that influenced him to become an Astrophysicist in the first place. In this talk Professor Hendry explores the science behind Star Wars. Could we travel to distant galaxies, travel through wormholes? What is possible and what is inot possible?
This is a light hearted look at the fact and fiction behind Star Wars.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Professor Martin Hendry is Professor of Gravitational Astrophysics and Cosmology at the University of Glasgow and is a passionate advocate for STEM education and science engagement with schools and public audiences.
His principal research interests lie in: (1) Gravitational wave astronomy – particularly the use of current and future gravitational wave observations to constrain astrophysical and cosmological parameters, and optimal methods for combining “multi-messenger” data from gravitational wave sources and their electromagnetic counterparts and/or host galaxies. (2) Advanced statistical methods for the analysis of astrophysical and cosmological data sets, particularly Bayesian inference methods and non-parametric approaches and their uses in diagnosing systematics such as observational selection effects. (3) Applications of gravitational lensing, including lensing by both electromagnetic and gravitational-wave sources as a probe of the nature and distribution of dark matter Over the years he has taught a large number of undergraduate and postgraduate courses spanning a wide range of topics in astrophysics, cosmology and relativity. From 2012-2020 he was Head of the School of Physics and Astronomy. In 2022 he was appointed Clerk of Senate and Vice-Principal of the University.