Symmetry

Obituary

Steven Weinberg (3 May 1933, New York City – 23 July 2021, Austin, Texas)

Nobel laureate (1979) Steven Weinberg was Honorary Member of the International Symmetry Association (2009-). Besides the Nobel prize, he won many other prizes and distinctions. His discoveries deepened understanding of the basic forces at play in the universe.

The work for which Dr Weinberg was awarded the Nobel had a transformative impact on physics to understand and explain what happens in the subatomic world. He discovered that two of the universe’s forces are really the same and helped to lay the foundation for the development of the Standard Model, a theory that classifies all known elementary particles in the universe, making it one of the most important breakthroughs in physics in the 20th century.

Though he had the respect, almost awe, of his colleagues for his scientific abilities and insights, he also possessed a rare ability among scientists to communicate and explain abstruse scientific ideas to the public. He was a sought-after speaker, and he wrote several books in the fields of the foundations of physics and cosmology. He read a keynote lecture at the 2009 Symmetry Festival held in Budapest with the title “Accidental Symmetry”. An edited version of his paper was published in Symmetry: Culture and Science (Vol. 23, No. 1, pp. 5-16).

There are four known forces in the universe: gravity; electromagnetism; the strong force, which binds the nuclei of atoms together; and the weak force, which causes radioactive decay. The first two forces have been known for centuries, but the other two were discovered only in the 20th century. Physicists struggled long to find a theory that would account for all the forces. Though there were significant discoveries, a unified theory or model remained elusive.

He proposed that, at very high energy levels, the electromagnetic and weak forces should be one and the same. It was a step on the path to the unified theory that physicists had been searching for. Dr Weinberg published his findings in 1967 in a groundbreaking paper, “A Model of Leptons,” in the journal Physical Review Letters. The article is one of the most-cited research papers in history.

Among many groundbreaking theoretical discoveries, he developed the theory of ‘symmetry breaking’. (Not to be confused with the notion of the violation of symmetry.) Introducing the idea of a process called by him ‘spontaneous symmetry breaking’, he gave a model to explain the mass difference of the bosons that mediate between the agents of the electroweak interaction. Weinberg’s model, known as the electroweak unification theory, had the same symmetry structure as that proposed by Glashow in 1961.

Then, the electroweak theory was made consistent with a theory of the strong interactions between quarks, in one overarching theory, based on a unification of the symmetry groups characterising the individual physical interaction types. The model developed by him (and independently by A. Salam) was revolutionary, not only for proposing the unification of the electromagnetic and weak forces but also for creating a classification system of masses and charges for all fundamental particles, thereby forming the basis of the celebrated Standard Model of physics, which includes all the forces except gravity.

S. Weinberg, A. Salam and Sh. L. Glashow, an old high school classmate of Dr Weinberg’s who had resolved a critical problem with the Weinberg-Salam model, were jointly awarded the 1979 Nobel Prize “for their contributions to the theory of the unified weak and electromagnetic interaction between elementary particles” based on spontaneous symmetry breaking. His contribution to the development of the theory of physical symmetries raised him among the greatest physicists of the 20^th century.

He never retired, he taught until the spring of this year. During his decades at the University of Texas at Austin he tutored many students, eight of them became full professors and five assistant professors at his university.

 

International Conference, , Exhibitions, Concerts, Public workshops
Symmetry Festival 2021
July 9-12, 2021
Sofia, Bulgaria

Symmetry in Nature and Society

The World’s Largest Multidisciplinary Conference & Art Festival in Symmetry Studies

Conference venue
National Museum “Earth and Man”
Blvd. Cherni Vrah 4; Sofia 1421, Bulgaria

E-mail:
earth.and.man@gmail.com
office@earthandman.org
Phone:
+359 28656639
Web

Organized by SYMMETRION, under the auspices of the International Symmetry Association.

National organizers: National Museum “Earth and Man”; Bulgarian Academy of Sciences; Bulgarian Mineralogical Society (Symmetry Festival national coordinator: Ruslan I. Kostov, rikostov@yahoo.com).

Scientific and Art Program (oral and poster presentations):

Program for online participants (introduction)

02.07.2021 10.00-11.00 (for online participants in Europe and Asia) and 17.00-18.00 (for online participants in USA)
Optional introductory Zoom meetings for testing system compatibility, internet connection and audio settings (Eastern European Summer Time Zone).

SYMMETRY FESTIVAL CONFERENCE AND ART PROGRAM

09.07.2021

09.00-10.00 Registration

10.00-10.30 Official opening of SF2021 (Central Hall)

10.30-12.30 Oral session (20+5 min.)

Darvas, György (Hungary): What is hypersymmetry? (online)

Smolenov, Hristo (Bulgaria): Ancient measures as codes in a creative space

Kuroda, Reiko (Japan): Cutting edge science reveals the secrets of chiromorphogenesis in snails (online)

Miyazaki, Koji (Japan): Orthographic projections of hyperconics (online)

Petoukhov, Sergey V. (Russia): Symmetries, genetic languages and algebraic harmony in genomes

12.30-13.30 Lunch at the museum

13.30-15.30 Oral session (Art Hall; 12+3 min.)

Javorszky, Karl (Austria). Almost symmetrical subspaces resulting from sequencing natural numbers

Weil, Stephen (France): A timeline of symmetry 1800-2000

Petitjean, Michel (France): Chirality defined: The end of the even/odd paradigm (online)

Everitt, Dave, Fania Raczinski (United Kingdom): Magic square pattern homologies (online)

Gielis, Johan (Belgium), Simone Brasili (Italy): The apeirogon and dual numbers (online)

Chapman, Dominik (Switzerland), Johan Gielis (Belgium): Gielis transformations for the audiovisual geometry database (online)

Bakoev, Valentin (Bulgaria): On symmetry in mathematical identities

Koleva, Kamelia (Bulgaria): The beautiful symmetry of numbers

15.30-16.00 Coffee break

16.00-18.00 Oral/poster session (Art Hall; 12+3 min.)

Gould, Laurence I. (USA): Reflections on similarity and symmetry in poetry & music (online)

Lalvani, Haresh (USA): Pentiles: Discovery and concepts (online)

Fenyvesi, Kristóf (Finland): Lalvani’s pentiles tessellation system at experience workshop’s educational events (online)

He, Matthew (USA): Symmetry and asymmetry in bioinformatics: from genetic code to life (online)

Olsen, Scott (USA): Golden proportional symmetry and the Divided Line: solving the Platonic puzzles in one fell swoop (online)

Dunham, Douglas, Lisa Shier (USA): Creating symmetric art using craft technologies (online)

Dewar, Robert Earl (USA): New members for the class of Penrose nonperiodic tilings of the plane (online)

Chen, Nina (USA): Constructing harmony without a sound – Plato’s Timeaus (online; poster)

Chen, Nina (USA): The beauty of quantized form – Euclid’s irrational lines in the construction of the Platonic solids (online; poster)

18.00-18.30 Conference Hall

Smolenov, Hristo (Bulgaria): The Aurolithic Varna Civilization (29 min.; film on ancient measurements and proportions)

19.00 Welcome Party (Central Hall)

10.07.2021

10.00-12.15 Oral session (Art Hall, 12+3 min.)

Sugimoto, Takeshi (Japan): The structure of the Solution Space in the direct and inverse Kepler problems (online)

Vladimirova, Genoveva (Bulgaria): Relation between the Golden Ratio and colours

Gailiunas, Paul (United Kingdom): Asymmetrical motifs in tooled book-bindings (online)

Protokhristova, Cleo, Hristo Protohristov (Bulgaria): Catoptric symmetries and asymmetries – cultural and scientific implications

Yavahchova, Mariya, Dimitar Tonev (Bulgaria): Example for symmetry in nuclear physics

Erbudak, Mehmet (Switzerland/Turkey): Symmetry of planar ornaments in Hellenic through Seljuk Ages (online)

Qureshi, Rabia Ahmed (Pakistan), Sarah Javed Shah (Pakistan), Gary J. Coates (USA): The Baba Hasan Din Shrine by architect Kamil Khan Mumtaz as an archetype of deep symmetry in architecture (online)

Kostov, Ruslan I. (Bulgaria): Symmetry patterns of images on megalithic T-shaped pillars from the prehistoric site Göbekli Tepe in Turkey

Spassova, Zdravka (Bulgaria): Symmetry of stone tile flooring from the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, Israel

12.15-13.45 Lunch at the museum

13.45-15.00 Oral/poster session (12+3 min.)

Doncheva, Stella (Bulgaria): The “Golden Section” in the Medieval Bulgarian architecture (online)

Vladimirova, Genoveva, Ognyan Dimitrov (Bulgaria): The code of the Bulgarian embroidery script

Stefanides, Panagiotis (Greece): Generator polyhedron geometry and relationships with Plato’s Timaeus and Epinomis (online)

Vlahov, Alexander (Bulgaria): Information significance of the volume/surface ratio of the simple forms of the hexoctahedral crystallographic class (poster)

Atanassova, Radostina (Bulgaria): Overview of the types of symmetry in the Bulgarian embroidery (poster)

Boeva, Julia (Bulgaria): Types of symmetry in the embroidery from Sofia Region, Bulgaria (poster)

Stoilov, Dimitar, Genoveva Vladimirova (Bulgaria): Innovative sports car design inspired by the model Manta (poster)

15.00-15.30 Coffee break

15.30-17.30 Symmetry and Music (12+3 min.)

Zenkin, Konstantin V. (Russia): Symmetry as a carrier and keeper of musical information

Petoukhov, Sergey, Elena Petoukhova, Vitaly Svirin, Vladimir Verevkin (Russia): Symmetries, the genetic basis of organisms and musical harmony

Rovenko, Elena (Russia): Translatory symmetry as a constructive basis of the “cyclic principle” in music and architecture in interpretation of Vincent d’Indy

Stanishevskiy, Yaroslav (Russia): Harmonic organization in music: symmetry or asymmetry?

Gaulhiac, Manuel (France): Symmetry of resonance in Almeida Prado’s Cartas Celestas I

Koblyakov, Alexander A. (Russia): Symmetry in the context of transdimensional relations (online)

Stepanyan, Ivan V. (Russia): The genometrica concept (online)

18.00-19.15 Concert (Central Hall)

Zenkin, Konstantin V. (Russia): Piano concert

Mozart, Haydn, Chopin, Liszt, Scriabin, Prokofiev

Bekirska, Boryana (Bulgaria): Viola concert

Music that Brings You to Different Dimensions and Densities – Einaudi, Djavadi, Gundry, Pallett, Britell

20.00 Official Dinner (Restaurant “Hemus”)

11.07.2021

10.00-11.00 Symmetry in Education and Computer Applications (Art Hall; 12+3 min.)

Chehlarova, Toni (Bulgaria): Game with center of central symmetry in the plane

Chehlarova, Neda, Toni Chehlarova (Bulgaria): Computer model for self-preparation for playing with dominoes “Axes of Symmetry”

Chehlarova, Toni, Mladen Valkov (Bulgaria): Game with vertical axis of symmetry in a rectangular board

Jones, Kate (USA): Sweet symmetries – A gallery of gamepuzzles – “math as art” (online)

11.00-11.30 Closing of the Scientific Program

Smolenov, Hristo (Bulgaria): Codes in Space (27 min.; film on ancient measurements and proportions)

11.00-17.00 “Family Day” (Central Hall)
Symmetry: Crystals, geometry and more… structures, puzzles and games for children, students and curious adults

– Children’s corner with crystals and mineral games
– Symmetry in crystals and other solids
– Mosaics, games and puzzles
– Sacred geometry
– The graphic art of M. C. Escher

14.00-15.00 ISA General Assembly (Art Hall)

12.07.2021

09.00-17.00 Excursion to the Rila Monastery
Harmony between architecture and natural scenery

The Rila Monastery is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It was founded in the 10th century by the heavenly protector of the Bulgarians Saint John of Rila after the official adoption of the Christian religion in Bulgaria in 865. During the centuries the monastery was destroyed and abandoned several times. The monastery and its church were rebuilt in the beginning of the 19th century. It became a center of spiritual and cultural life during the Bulgarian National Revival Period. The Hrelyu’s tower is the oldest preserved monument dating from 1335. The main church is decorated with mural paintings and exquisite wood carvings by the best representative of the Samokov, Debar and Bansko-Razlog schools. Since 1983 the Rila Monastery is listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site.

ART AND CULTURAL EVENTS

9-12.07.2021

Special Exhibitions at the National Museum “Earth and Man”

Crystals shine with their symmetry! (“Course in Crystallography”, 1891)
E. S. Fedorov (1853-1919)

Symmetry in Crystallography and Mineralogy (1 floor; left)

Minerals in Contemporary Literature (1 floor; left)

Minerals and Gemstones on Stamps (1 floor; right)

Poetry and Gemstones (2 floor; right)

Photo Gallery: Bulgarian Minerals (2 floor; right)

“Secrets of Earth”: natural forms as personal vision for future innovative professional activity (watercolors of students from the National Academy of Art) (1 floor)

Prehistoric Treasures, the Golden Ratio and Units for Measurement: First Gold of Mankind; First Copper Mines in Europe; Standardization of Mineral, Gemstone and Metallic Artifacts (posters; 1 floor; entrance)

Festival Art Exhibitions
At the National Museum “Earth and Man” (Central Hall)

Chehlarova, Koya (Bulgaria): Glassworks “Planet Cuboctahedron” (Central Hall, right)

Michailov, Hristo (Bulgaria): Sculptures (bronze, crystal) “Symmetry” (Central Hall, right)

Mircheva, Svetlana (Bulgaria): “Palm Trees” (Central Hall, right)

Stoilov, Dimitar, Genoveva Vladimirova (Bulgaria): Design “Manta” Model (Central Hall, right)

At the National Gallery Sofia Arsenal – Museum of Contemporary Art (next door)

Mircheva, Svetlana (Bulgaria): “Possible Exhibitions”

Planned sessions:

• Symmetry and natural history
• Symmetry in physics, chemistry and material science
• Symmetry in mathematics and informatics
• Symmetry in architecture, design and visual arts
• Symmetry in biosciences and medicine
• Symmetry and culture (archaeology; history; mythology; ethnology; fashion; psychology; linguistics; economics)
• Symmetry in music, dance, folklore, literature and other arts
• Symmetry in education and computer applications

Festival information can be downloaded in PDF file.

The organising committee of the Symmetry Festival 2019 regrets to announce a shift of conducting this Festival from 2019 to 2020.

The organising committee sincerely apologizes for the postponement of the Festival.

ISA will announce the place and the precise dates of the Symmetry Festival 2020 soon!

Advisory member of ISA, Leon Max Lederman (96)  passed away on 3 October, 2018.

He used to be a member of ISA since its foundation. He received the Wolf Prize in Physics in 1982 (shared), for the research on quarks and leptons, and the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1988 (shared),” for the neutrino beam method and the demonstration of the doublet structure of the leptons through the discovery of the muon neutrino“. He was awarded (2012) the Vannevar Bush Award “for his extraordinary contributions to understanding the basic forces and particles of nature”.

I met him in Washington, D.C. (1983), and beyond his deep knowledge in (and outside) physics, I admired his smart personality. In the recent decades (1979-), he was director, and spiritus rector for long, of the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) in Illinois up to his formal retirement, although he has not closed his contacts with that institution until his health allowed.

His distinguished interest in the role that symmetries play in particle physics was a leading principle of his discoveries, experimental methods, and can be traced in his writings. The most outstanding among his achievements are the discovery of the muon neutrino in 1962 and the bottom quark in 1977. His most popular book, The God Particle, brought him publicity even among non-physicists, where, among others, he explained the relationship between spontaneous symmetry breaking and the mysterious Higgs boson. That book explains many secrets of symmetries in contemporary particle physics for laymen in physics. This made him so much acknowledged by many members of the Symmetry Association. ISA keeps his memory.