Connecting Physics with Faith at St Mary's

The BSc Applied Physics programme at St Mary’s University, Twickenham is hosting a series of three events to explore the relationship between physics and theology. The series will begin on 29^th October with an event entitled Fr Dr G Lemaître and Rev Dr J Polkinghorne: Their lives at the intersection between physics and theology. This event will explore the lives and scientific journeys of priests and physicists, Fr Dr G Lemaitre, cosmologist and one of the first proponents of the Big Bang theory, and Rev Dr J Polkinghorne, particle physicist and early proponent of the Quark model, whose contributions to physics and theology are outstanding. The second event, entitled The Big Bang Theory and the creation of the Universe: The cosmological and biblical viewpoints, on the 20^th November will explore the relationship between scientific and theological views on creation through an engaging and interactive discussion. Both events will take place at 6.30pm at the University’s Strawberry Hill campus. The final event in the series entitled Quantum superposition and human consciousness: Anything in Common? will explore, in a simple and intuitive manner, the physical concepts of wave function, an “object” storing all the information about a system, be it a human being or a flower, and how it behaves. The way it could explain human consciousness will be explored through an interactive discussion. This event will take place in the Holy Ghost Church, Balham on the 30^th November at 8pm. Each evening will start with an easy to access interactive introduction to physics; no prior knowledge of physics is needed. The second part will be a discussion between physicists and theologians, philosophers and bioethicists where you will also have opportunities to ask questions and actively engage with the discussions. For further information about the series please contact Programme Director for Physics Elisabetta Canetta at elisabetta.canetta@stmarys.ac.uk.