From King Kong to Einstein

From King Kong to Einstein. Physics and Science Fiction.
3 credits.
From 14 to 25 February 2005.

Coordinatorr:

Jesús Navarro (Institut de Física Corpuscular, CSIC-UV)

Lecturers:

Jordi José i Manuel Moreno. Professors in the Physics and Nuclear Engineering Department of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. Authors of the weekly column Sci-Fi of the El País newspaper supplement, Ciberp@ís (from October 1998), awarded with the "Mención Honorífica al mejor artículo de divulgación científica 1999" (Honorable Mention to the best scientific dissemination article of 1999), 12 House of Sciences Awards (A Coruña). In this column, which is still in active, more than 300 articles have been published.

Authors of the books:

De King Kong a Einstein. La física en la ciencia ficción, Ed. UPC, Barcelona (1999); Alfaomega, Bogotà (2000)
Física i ciència ficció, Ed. UPC, Barcelona (1a edició, 1994; 2a edició, 1996). Premi Ignotus al millor llibre d'assaig 1995, Associació Espanyola de Fantasia i Ciència Ficció, Cadis (1995)
Simulacions en Física, Ed.UPC, Barcelona (1994)

Jordi José. He is a Full Professor of the university school of Physics and Nuclear Engineering of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and holds a doctorate in Physic Sciences by the Universitat de Barcelona. He is a member of the IEEC (Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya) and has been a professor visiting the universities of Chicago, Pisa and North Carolina. His research activity focuses on the different aspects of stellar evolution, including nova and supernova explosions, x-ray bursts, gamma emissions of novae, nucleosynthesis, meteors… He is part of various societies and scientific committees such as the Spanish Society of Astronomy, the Catalan Society of Physics and the International Union of Astonomy. He works in the The Astrophysical Journal y Astronomy & Astrophysics magazine. He is the author of more than a hundred investigation works among books, chapters of books and articles and scientific magazines (Physical Review Letters, The Astrophysical Journal, Nuclear Physics A y Astronomy & Astrophysics). He has given more than 700 conferences, seminars and courses and has made a vast work in the scientific dissemination. He has been an scientific adviser of the astronomy encyclopedia El Universo (Ed. Planeta-Agostini), regular collaborator of the Mundo Científico magazine, and he has participated in the new weekly programme of scientific dissemination Radio Vitoria (Euskadi, 1999-2001).

Manuel Moreno. He is a professor of Physics and Nuclear Engineering of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and holds a doctorate in Physic Sciences by the Universitat de Barcelona. He has been deputy director of study plans of the la Escuela Politécnica Superior de Ingeniería de Vilanova i la Geltrú, centre where he is currently affiliated. He develops his investigation activity in the astronomy field, in the stellar kinematics and the local structure of the Galaxy aspects, in particular. He has developed campaigns to the astronomy observatories of Fabra, Calar Alto, Haute-Provence and Besançon (France). He has participated in the satellite mission HIPPARCOS and, currently, he participates in the mission NESGA, both belonging to the European Space Agency. He is integrated in the Technological Development Centre of Remote Acquisition and Data processing Systems (SARTI), a unity associated to CSIC. He is a permanent member of the Spanish Society of Astronomy and the Catalan society of Physics, and the Technoscience, Literature and Art Seminar of the Institute of Technoethics (Epson Foundation). He has received the award of improving experiences of the teaching quality award UPC for "La física a través de la ciencia ficción" (1998), and the first price to the best presentation of a less than 35 years of age person to the "Congreso Innovación Educativa en las Enseñanzas Técnicas" San Sebastián (2000). He usually collaborates in the weekly radio programme about everyday science on Ola Catalana (2004). He is an author of numerous researching works published on different specialized magazines and in congress records. He is the author of the following books:
M.Moreno, D.Castellví, Fem astronomia!, Ed. Departamento de Enseñanza Generalitat Cataluña, Barcelona (1991)
J.Jorge (coordinador), Problemes ambientalitzats de les àrees científiques dels primers cursos, Departamento de Medio ambiente (Generalitat de Catalunya) Barcelona (2000)
J.Font-Agustí (coordinador), Entre la por i l'esperança. Presència de la tecnociència a la literatura i el cinema, Proa, Barcelona (2002)

Description and Objectives:

Sci-Fi constitutes a powerful vehicle which can even exceed the limits of human intelligence. In this course, and using the genre myths such as King Kong, Frankenstein or Terminator, the physic principles that govern the universe will be analysed and the plausibility of the movies, novels and comic plots.
Besides, as a characteristic genre of our time that, in words of Isacc Asimov, tries to analyse the human reply to the techno-scientific changes, the Sci-Fi allows as to go beyond. Thus, te course promotes the reflection and the critic about the social consequences of the techno-scientific progress and the adoption of ethical postures to it. A way of understand and being prepared to deal with the future. The objective of the course is to develop the critic and sceptical spirit, both essential in the technical and scientific field, and to complete the units of a general physics curse, from the perspective of the Sci-Fi. This course will be particularly valuable to third cycle students in the basic science disciplines, health sciences, journalism and audiovisual communication, but it is open to any other student, professional or a person interested on communication and science dissemination.

Programme of the sessions:

King Kong, dwindling men and universes in a drop of water.
From Superman to Batman: idols with feet of clay.
Does Frankenstein dream with electric sheep?
The dream of invisibility and the galactic empires.
Gravity and space travels: an odyssey to space.
Guide to time travellers.
Legends of a planet called the Earth.
Stories of the atom. Radioactivity and nuclear bombs

Places: 40

21 and 22 February: Hall of Degrees of the Faculty of Mathematics (Burjassot Campus)

From 23 to 25 February: Hall of Degrees of the Faculty of Pharmacy (Burjassot Campus)