Here are my slides for the talk I gave today: Cooling and Compression: Cooling as a Bridge Between Physics and Information Theory.
I hope these will be of use to others. I used Latex Beamer to produce the slides. The latex source for the slides is here.
Some of the results in this talk are new. I am preparing a paper on the subject. I welcome any comments/criticisms/suggestions.
When I flew into Ben Gurion Airport[wikipedia entry] to go to the Safed Workshop on Cooling and Thermodynamics of Quantum Systems, I spent the first night in Jerusalem. I had a chance to see a bit (by running 12.5 miles in the morning) and then I did some walking around in the Old City, which apparently has been going strong since the 11th century BC.
Here’s me in the market:
Some random people:
The market was really interesting. They sold everything there: meat, clothes, electronics, spices, toys, pets, and everything in tiny little shops. The streets (which really aren’t streets, they are more like corridors) are PACKED with people, many tourists, but many really appeared to be living their daily life.
The downside as a runner is that both Jerusalem and Safed are very hilly cities. I’m just sure I’m going to injure myself here, but so far so good. I’ve been meaning to do more hill-work, so maybe it’s a good thing.
I’ll be attending the Safed Workshop on Cooling and Thermodynamics of Quantum Systems starting on August 26th. I’ll be staying on a few days to collaborate with my colleague Tal Mor.
I should be in touch with email, and to a limited degree cell phone, while I’m gone.
I’ll be returning to the US on the morning of September 6th, which is easy to remember (9/6), and also the reversal of by birthday (6/9).
I have just posted the syllabus for EEL4834. If you’re interested in this course, please take a look.
The EEL 4834 course website is on my wiki.
On Saturday, I had the pleasure of escorting Dr. Ungsik Kim at his graduation ceremony. Ungsik is my first student to graduate with a Ph.D. He was originally a student of Jianbo Gao and Jianbo certainly deserves much of the credit for guiding Ungsik’s research.
Ungsik will likely be taking a job in his native South Korea now that he has completed his Ph.D.
Ungsik, it was my pleasure to work with you, and I know everyone here at the University of Florida wishes you great success in your future.
In mathematics and to a large degree in computer programming, one strives for absolute certainty. Unfortunately for those that spend a lot of their professional life in such realms, such certainty it almost never achieved elsewhere in life.
At this point, it’s time for the obligatory reference to quantum mechanics and the uncertainty principle. I guess I need to remember my physics more than my mathematics: the more precision I have about one thing, the less I may have about another*
*This is only true for certain so-called complimentary variables, unfortunately, it would seem real life is full of them.
Update 9/12/2007: Another author argues that programming can ruin your life.