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Sir Martin Rees (23 Jun 1942 - ) English cosmologist and astrophysicist who became Astronomer Royal in 1995. He studied the distribution of quasars, which he proposed drew their power from huge black holes. Short biography of Sir Martin Rees >>

Martin Rees - Context of quote “Cosmos…laboratory…to test new ideas on particle physics”

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“The cosmos provides the only laboratory where sufficiently extreme conditions are ever achieved to test new ideas on particle physics.”

— Martin Rees

From BBC radio interview transcript published in A Passion For Science.

More Martin Rees quotes on science >>

This quote by Martin Rees is as it appeared, in a possibly editted form, from the transcript of a program broadcast on BBC Radio 3. It was one of a series by Lewis Wolpert interviewing scientists from diverse fields. Each could speak vividly on their personal view of science, why they became scientists, and the rewards they found in their research. In their conversations, each scientist described their scientific work in a way easily understandable for the general listener.

Martin Rees explained how astrophysics research intersected with high-energy particle physics:

It’s becoming clear that in a sense the cosmos provides the only laboratory where sufficiently extreme conditions are ever achieved to test new ideas on particle physics. The energies in the Big Bang were far higher than we can ever achieve on Earth. So by looking at evidence for the Big Bang, and by studying things like neutron stars, we are in effect learning something about fundamental physics.

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Nature bears long with those who wrong her. She is patient under abuse. But when abuse has gone too far, when the time of reckoning finally comes, she is equally slow to be appeased and to turn away her wrath. (1882) -- Nathaniel Egleston, who was writing then about deforestation, but speaks equally well about the danger of climate change today.

Carl Sagan: In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion. (1987) ...(more by Sagan)

Albert Einstein: I used to wonder how it comes about that the electron is negative. Negative-positive—these are perfectly symmetric in physics. There is no reason whatever to prefer one to the other. Then why is the electron negative? I thought about this for a long time and at last all I could think was “It won the fight!” ...(more by Einstein)

Richard Feynman: It is the facts that matter, not the proofs. Physics can progress without the proofs, but we can't go on without the facts ... if the facts are right, then the proofs are a matter of playing around with the algebra correctly. ...(more by Feynman)

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