YQI/Franke Program Nontechnical Talk Series

When I meet new people, I usually get asked what I do for a living. “I manage the Yale Quantum Institute and I work with quantum physicists”. Almost every time, regardless of the level of education, I am met with blank stares and awkward silences. Quantum physics seems so abstract and foreign that it paralyzes my interlocutors, forcing them out of this fascinating subject. When I think about quantum physics, I get excited about cats being dead and alive at the same time, spooky actions at a distance, entanglements…

The lack of exposure to quantum physics and the cultural assumption it is one of the most complex subjects in physics might be the reasons why people  are so reluctant to discuss  this topic.

Leveraging the Intersectionality of science and the humanities, YQI launched in Spring 2017 a new series of non-technical talks to combat quantum physics phobia, and, in a more general way, science phobia. The goal of these talks is to bring a new regard to quantum physics and science by having experts cast new light on often-overlooked aspects of scientific work. Using music, art, dance and crochet as an attention grabber, we engaged the audience to talk about quantum physics, science, physics and mathematics… The complete list of events is available below.

By attending these events, accessible to a large audience made of diverse population distributed from undergraduates to professors and staff as well as New Haven residents, we are all invited to reflect on how the contribution of science plays a role in our daily life.

I hope these events will have a lasting impression on young attendees, and encouraging them to consider a career in STEM.

Florian Carle

Events held in this series

Michael Berry - How quantum physics democratized music - Feb 9, 2017

Martha Lewis - So close I can almost taste it - Apr 4, 2017

Adele Myers & Emily Coates - Einstein’s happiest dance - Sept 28, 2017

Daina Taimina - Crocheting adventures with the hyperbolic places - Dec 5, 2017

Dante Lauretta - OSIRIS Rex and the XTRONAUTS - Mar 29, 2018

Philip Ball - The heretical idea of making people artificially - Sept 26, 2018

Doug Stone - Einstein and the Quantum - Nov 8, 2018

Spencer Topel - Immaterial Waves, Light, Sound and Architecture - Feb 28, 2019

Rowan Jacobsen - The Nature of Nature - Sept 5, 2019

Werner Sun - Taking a Random Walk - Jan 28, 2020

Ben Okri - Alternative Realities for the Living - Feb 12, 2021

Paul Miller aka DJ SPooky - Particle Plateaux - An informal history of invisible things - Oct 7, 2021

Stephone Alexander - Fear of a black universe: an outsider’s guide to the future of physics - May 12, 2022

Stewart Smith - For The Hapless Dreamers: Digital Art meets Quantum Simulations - June 30, 2022

Karen Barad - Spooky Objects: The particle wave duality nature of light - Nov 3, 2022 (collaboration with CCAM)

Klem Jankiewicz - Quantum is in. Code is out! - Designing no-code experiences for user-interactions with quantum technology - Oct 4, 2023