美国国家公共电台 NPR Ph.D. Student Breaks Down Electron Physics Into A Swinging Musical

 

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

You know, sometimes a dissertation¹ just isn't enough. A Ph.D. has to get up and dance. This weekend, at The American Association for the Advancement² of Science Convention, they have announced this year's winner of the Dance Your Ph.D. contest, co-sponsored by Science magazine.

We will introduce you to the academic with the most dazzling footwork in a moment. But first, we're going to speak with John Bohannan. He launched the contest, now in its 11th year. Mr. Bohannon, thanks so much for being with us.

JOHN BOHANNON: Hello.

SIMON: So what made you believe dance could illuminate³ science?

BOHANNON: Well, I have to admit it all started with a somewhat drunken party.

SIMON: Keep it scientific here, Mr. Bohannan, OK?

BOHANNON: (Laughter) Well, all the partygoers were scientists. And I wanted to get them to dance. So I tapped into their competitive spirit.

SIMON: And as a generalization⁴, are scientists gifted dancers?

BOHANNON: (Laughter) I think in general, they're exhibitionists. If you're willing to stand up and defend some crazy, obscure research topic that you've devoted⁵ your life to, then there's probably something in you that wants to dance.

SIMON: Well, we don't want to delay anymore. We want to introduce the winning entry, a gentleman who authored a paper - I know you'll all go about your Saturday humming this title - "Impact Of Nonlocal Electrodynamics And Flux⁶ Noise And Inductance Of Superconducting Wires." It has, however, been transformed into "Superconductivity: The Musical!"

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "SUPERCONDUCTIVITY: THE MUSICAL!")

PRAMODH SENARATH YAPA: (Singing) These electrons have a predilection⁷ to shirk that sociable⁸ connection. Some non-interacting loners they can be.

SIMON: Oh, come on, you just can't stay in bed any longer after listening to that, can you? This wonderous tableau⁹ of music and dancing electrons was created by Pramodh Senarath Yapa. Mr. Senarath Yapa is now working on his Ph.D. at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. He joins us from the studios of the CBC in that great city. Thanks so much for being with us, Mr. Senarath Yapa.

SENARATH YAPA: Great to be here. Thank you for having me.

SIMON: Describe this video for us, if you can.

SENARATH YAPA: Yeah. So it is a look at the social lives of electrons in three acts. It starts off with electrons in a normal metal, just being very unsociable as they are.

SIMON: You mean, like, cold to each other, distant, not receptive, that sort of thing.

SENARATH YAPA: Yeah, they just completely ignore each other and don't pay attention to any of their neighbors. As the weather changes and it becomes a little chilly¹⁰ outside, as it is in Edmonton right now, they feel a need for companionship. And they pair up, essentially¹¹.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "SUPERCONDUCTIVITY: THE MUSICAL!")

SENARATH YAPA: (Singing) Super-duper Cooper pairs. (Singing in French).

And they're much happier that way. And they keep dancing throughout the wire. These electrons form something called Cooper pairs. And in the final act, I bring in some final punk impurities¹²...

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "SUPERCONDUCTIVITY: THE MUSICAL!")

SENARATH YAPA: (Singing) The spin impurities come marching in.

SENARATH YAPA: ...Which are just some unhappy little dirt particles that are in superconductors. And they really don't like it when Cooper pairs are near them. And they get very angry and make a lot of noise.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "SUPERCONDUCTIVITY: THE MUSICAL!")

UNIDENTIFIED ACTORS: (Crosstalk, unintelligible).

SENARATH YAPA: By listening to this noise, you can figure out what the Cooper pairs are exactly doing. And that's the topic of my research.

SIMON: You wrote the music?

SENARATH YAPA: I did write the music. So I've been playing guitar and recording¹³ music for something like 13 years now - super into jazz. So yeah, I wrote all of the music and recorded it in my bedroom over the course of six weeks last year.

SIMON: Mr. Bohannon, can we work in another question to you?

BOHANNON: You bet.

SIMON: I know you weren't a judge. But what do you think got to the judges about this routine?

BOHANNON: This year was special because we had not only a great dance. Pramodh really just had a wonderful, wonderful dance that did these two jobs that we're always trying to do at once with the contest - not only explain science but actually entertain you.

SIMON: To be clear, though, Mr. Senarath Yapa, you just can't do this as a dance, right? You have to also, like, come up with papers and that sort of stuff.

SENARATH YAPA: Yeah, I have actually published in an academic journal. So if you want to go read that, the paper should be out in Physical Review Applied¹⁴ soon. But this is also a nice way to think about what's going on at the subatomic level in these really esoteric physics concepts.

SIMON: So you can download the scientific dissertation, or you can download the dance.

SENARATH YAPA: Yeah, or you can do both.

SIMON: John Bohannon is with Science magazine and is the founder¹⁵ of the contest. Thanks so much for being with us.

BOHANNON: Thank you.

SIMON: And Pramodh Senarath Yapa is the winner of this year's Dance Your Ph.D. contest. May your life be filled with dance and good physics.

SENARATH YAPA: Thank you very much.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "SUPERCONDUCTIVITY: THE MUSICAL!")

SENARATH YAPA: (Singing) Now, they say when Cooper pairs flow this way that they stay on the edges, even though it seems to be outrageous¹⁶. If we peek¹⁷, when the Cooper pairs...

1 dissertation   

n.（博士学位）论文，学术演讲，专题论文

参考例句：

• He is currently writing a dissertation on the Somali civil war.他目前正在写一篇关于索马里内战的论文。
• He was involved in writing his doctoral dissertation.他在聚精会神地写他的博士论文。

2 advancement   

n.前进，促进，提升

参考例句：

• His new contribution to the advancement of physiology was well appreciated.他对生理学发展的新贡献获得高度赞赏。
• The aim of a university should be the advancement of learning.大学的目标应是促进学术。

3 illuminate   

vt.照亮，照明；用灯光装饰；说明，阐释

参考例句：

• Dreams kindle a flame to illuminate our dark roads.梦想点燃火炬照亮我们黑暗的道路。
• They use games and drawings to illuminate their subject.他们用游戏和图画来阐明他们的主题。

4 generalization   

n.普遍性，一般性，概括

参考例句：

• This sweeping generalization is the law of conservation of energy.这一透彻的概括就是能量守恒定律。
• The evaluation of conduct involves some amount of generalization.对操行的评价会含有一些泛泛之论。

5 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

6 flux   

n.流动；不断的改变

参考例句：

• The market is in a constant state of flux.市场行情在不断变化。
• In most reactors,there is a significant flux of fast neutrons.在大部分反应堆中都有一定强度的快中子流。

7 predilection   

n.偏好

参考例句：

• He has a predilection for rich food.他偏好油腻的食物。
• Charles has always had a predilection for red-haired women.查尔斯对红头发女人一直有偏爱。

8 sociable   

adj.好交际的，友好的，合群的

参考例句：

• Roger is a very sociable person.罗杰是个非常好交际的人。
• Some children have more sociable personalities than others.有些孩子比其他孩子更善于交际。

9 tableau   

n.画面，活人画（舞台上活人扮的静态画面）

参考例句：

• The movie was a tableau of a soldier's life.这部电影的画面生动地描绘了军人的生活。
• History is nothing more than a tableau of crimes and misfortunes.历史不过是由罪恶和灾难构成的静止舞台造型罢了。

10 chilly   

adj.凉快的，寒冷的

参考例句：

• I feel chilly without a coat.我由于没有穿大衣而感到凉飕飕的。
• I grew chilly when the fire went out.炉火熄灭后，寒气逼人。

11 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

12 impurities   

不纯( impurity的名词复数 )； 不洁； 淫秽； 杂质

参考例句：

• A filter will remove most impurities found in water. 过滤器会滤掉水中的大部分杂质。
• Oil is refined to remove naturally occurring impurities. 油经过提炼去除天然存在的杂质。

13 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

14 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

15 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

16 outrageous   

adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的

参考例句：

• Her outrageous behaviour at the party offended everyone.她在聚会上的无礼行为触怒了每一个人。
• Charges for local telephone calls are particularly outrageous.本地电话资费贵得出奇。

17 peek   

vi.偷看，窥视；n.偷偷的一看，一瞥

参考例句：

• Larry takes a peek out of the window.赖瑞往窗外偷看了一下。
• Cover your eyes and don't peek.捂上眼睛，别偷看。