Events During the Week of September 6th through September 13th, 2026
Monday, September 7th, 2026
- Academic Calendar
- Labor Day
- Abstract: *Note: actual end time may vary.* CONTACT: admin@secfac.wisc.edu
Tuesday, September 8th, 2026
- No events scheduled
Wednesday, September 9th, 2026
- Preliminary Exam
- TBD
- Time: 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
- Place: Chamberlin 5310
- Speaker: Gustav Romare
- Abstract: TBD
- Host: Ilya Esterlis
Thursday, September 10th, 2026
- R. G. Herb Condensed Matter Seminar
- Title to be announced
- Time: 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
- Place: 5310 Chamberlin Hall
- Speaker: Daniel Kaplan, Rutgers
- Host: Elio Köenig
- Astronomy Colloquium
- Astronomy Colloquium: Show and Tell
- Time: 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm
- Place: 4421 Sterling Hall
- Abstract: The first two Thursday colloquia of the year will be held on September 3rd and September 10th, and will be our annual department orientation (also known as the "show and tell"). During these sessions, everyone will have 1.5 minutes to introduce themselves and provide a brief overview of their work. This is a great chance to get to know the diversity of research within our department, the faces behind the names, and everyone's favorite hobbies and interests.
- Host: Nicholas Stone
Friday, September 11th, 2026
- Physics Department Colloquium
- Standard Quantum Field Theory is incompatible with the Higgs boson
- Time: 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm
- Place: Chamberlin 2241
- Speaker: James Wells, University of Michigan
- Abstract: I argue that the existence of the Higgs boson, discovered at CERN in 2012, implies the ultimate death of Standard (Wilsonian) Quantum Field Theory as the core theoretical framework for all of fundamental physics. The hints were already there before, witnessed in part, for example, by the string theory effort, but the Higgs boson seals it.