Nov. 30, 2005 – As the 2005 World Year of Physics nears its end, University of Utah physicists will deliver two free public lectures billed as “An Evening with Einstein” on Tuesday Dec. 6 and Wednesday Dec. 7 at Kingsbury Hall.

Benjamin Bromley, an associate professor of physics, will speak on “Space, Time and the Expanding Universe” during the 7 p.m. Tuesday Dec. 6 lecture.

“Albert Einstein’s ideas on space and time gave us a new way to look at the universe,” according to a summary for Bromley’s lecture. “His theory of gravity predicted curved spacetime and black holes, with gravity so strong not even light could escape. Einstein’s theory also enabled us to build a picture of our Universe as it transformed from a hot Big Bang into the web of galaxies we see today. However, this picture also contains mysteries, for it suggests the presence of dark matter surrounding galaxies, and dark energy, which seems to permeate all of space.”

Orest Symko, a professor of physics, will discuss “The Quest for Energy Using Heat and Sound” during the 7 p.m. Wednesday Dec. 7 lecture.

“Since waste heat is around us, from large machines to microelectronics, its conversion to electrical power can provide an important source of renewable energy,” according to a summary of Symko’s talk. “A new method of doing this will be presented. It deals with the conversion of heat to sound and then directly to electricity. In presenting this approach, fundamental questions dealing with heat, engines, and acoustics will be covered with demonstrations. The role of Brownian motion will be discussed.”

The two lectures are among the final events during the University of Utah’s observance of the 2005 World Year of Physics, which is a global celebration of the centennial of Albert Einstein’s major discoveries in 1905. That was Einstein’s so-called “miracle year” during which he published three fundamental papers that laid the foundation for modern technology and for relativity and scientific understanding of the universe.

The final University of Utah event planned for the World Year of Physics will be the last screening in the Physics Film Festival. That will occur from 7 p.m. to midnight on Saturday Dec. 17, when the films “The Best Mind Since Einstein” and “Planet of the Apes” will be shown in room 101 of the James Fletcher Bldg. Admission is free of charge.