Southern California Strings Seminar

23rd-24th September 2005

Location: University of California, Los Angeles

Join us as we (members of several of the local groups with interest in string theory and related topics) sit together to discuss new ideas and developments (both general and technical) in the field. The presentations will be accompanied by plenty of discussion and in the first part of each talk the speaker will take special care to set the scene and context of the work in a pedagogical manner so as to encourage participation by younger members of the field.

Please send an email to gutperle [at] physics.ucla.edu with the subject line: Southern California Strings Seminar if you're coming, or call 310 206 3471. This will help us make sure that there's enough room in the lecture hall, and enough coffee!

Schedule:

Friday 23rd

Time Event/Speaker/Topic Location
9:00am Introductory Remarks PAB 2-434
9:15am Zvi Bern (UCLA) Twistors, Unitarity, N=4 super-Yang-Mills and Supergravity PAB 2-434
10:15am: Discussion PAB 2-434
10:45am: Break PAB 2-434
11:15am Jonthan Feng (UCI): Cosmology at Colliders PAB 2-434
12:15pm Discussion PAB 2-434
12:45pm Lunch PAB 2-434
2:15pm Clifford Johnson (USC): D-Branes and Fluxes in the Type 0A Minimal String PAB 2-434
3:15pm Discussion PAB 2-434
3:30pm Petr Horava (Berkeley): "Noncritical M-theory in Three Dimensions" PAB 2-434
4:30pm Discussion PAB 2-434
4:45pm Break PAB 2-434
5:00pm Matthias Staudacher (AEI, Golm): Integrability in AdS/CFT PAB 2-434
6:00pm Discussion PAB 2-434
6:30pm End of Day: Explore/talk/seek food/etc LA

Saturday 24th

Time Event/Speaker/Topic Location
9:15am Samir Mathur (Ohio State): TBA

Jan Louis (Hamburg): "Compactification on Generalized Geometries"

 PAB 2-434
10:15am: Discussion PAB 2-434
10:45am: Break PAB 2-434
11:15am Jerome Gauntlett (Imperial) TBA PAB 2-434
12:15pm Discussion PAB 2-434
12:45pm End of Day: Explore/talk/seek food/etc LA

Travel Information:

All events will be at UCLA.There is a campus map at this link. The physics building where we have the seminar is PAB (Physics and Astronomy building) on the map.

Public Transport:

Note that (despite popular opinion) there are very good public transport links between some points. Have a look at this link. Get schedules here. For example, there are regular buses which cross town and go from downtown and other transit centres such as the Wilshire/Vermont junction. So for example travelling (say by train) to Union Station from outside the city is an option worth exploring.

Suggestion from USC: Take the 754 Metro Rapid bus from campus (Exposition/Vermont or Jefferson/Vermont or Adams/Vermont...etc) up to Wilshire. You can also go up Hoover and Alvarado on the 200 local bus and also get to Wilshire. Then take the 720 Metro Rapid bus all the way along Wilshire to Westwood and th UCLA campus. A day pass costs $3!

Suggestion from Caltech: Take the Gold line to Union Station. Then either take the Red line over to Wilshire/Vermont and change to the Metro Rapid bus 720, or pick that bus up from Wilshire in downtown at Pershing Square (not as efficient). The 720 Metro Rapid bus takes you all the way along Wilshire to Westwood and the UCLA campus. A day pass costs $3!

Do look at the schedule to get a sense of the time involved (720 can take a while to cross town, so bring something to read) although the buses run very regularly at that time.

Driving information:

The closest parking is P2; enter at Westholme Ave (to get a $8 ticket). On Saturday this parking booth might be closed and one has to enter on Westwood. Then you get the ticket at the Westwood booth, turn right on Charles Young Drive South, Follow the road to Charles Young Drive east and P2 is on the right.

For speakers who drive we'll make arrangements for parking.

General Driving: From the 405: Take Wilshire exit East, turn left on Westwood, go into the campus all the way to the parking booth. Alternatively, from the 405, take Sunset Blvd exit east. Turn right on Hilgard, turn right on Westholme.

Especially if coming from within LA: Unless you really have to, don't take the 405. It is not a sensible way to get to UCLA from most places in LA at that time of day.

Lunch and Dinner:

We may have lunch at various places on or near campus on Friday and Saturday. Arrangements are still being made, so check back for an update. Sorry, but only speakers can be reimbursed for lunch and dinner. Budget constraints.