The Trinity Mathematical Society is off to a cracking start to the year with near-record attendance numbers at last Monday’s talk from Prof. Leader; I counted about 270 people in the theatre and two used crates of port! The TMS will be rolling along with our second talk of the year, which will be given by Dr. Jonathan Luk (DPMMS) at 8:30PM Monday 19 October at the Winstanley Lecture Theatre, Trinity College. It will be on the subject of the “Stability of Minkowski spacetime” and promises to an exhilarating foray into the world of mathematical physics and, in particular, general relativity. Dr. Luk is one of the newest members in the Cambridge maths faculty and will hope to impart his vibrant enthusiasm to the TMS audience.

As always, there will be complimentary port and juice served prior to the talk. The talk is for members only, but you will have a chance to become a life member by paying 2 pounds fifty or 250p at the door (probably one of the cheapest society fees in Cambridge). I should also note that, if you are a member and you haven’t joined the TMS Facebook group, then please do so https://www.facebook.com/groups/674599352609435/?fref=ts

Speaker: Dr. Jonathan Luk (DPMMS)
Title: Stability of Minkowski spacetime
Abstract: General relativity is a theory of gravity described by the celebrated Einstein equations, which relate the geometry and matter content of spacetime. The Minkowski spacetime, the spacetime of special relativity, is a special solution to these equations. It depicts a vacuum spacetime with no curvature. A monumental result in mathematical physics, discovered in 1993, is the proof that Minkowski spacetime is dynamically stable in the framework of the evolution problem in general relativity. I will describe the theorem and some of the fascinating ideas behind it.

We hope to see everyone there!