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- Returns to his alma mater
Before he was a 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis professor studying the subatomic particles underlying the universe, was an engineering physics student at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM) in Mexico. There, he learned about quantum mechanics 鈥 that there were physicists around the globe smashing particles together to learn about the origin of the universe.
Nearly 30 years later, Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez returned to his alma mater to host screenings of Secrets of the Universe, an IMAX film that explores the formation of the universe through the eyes of Aggie researchers. Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez stars in the film and serves as its narrator. The 42-minute documentary follows the research team as they prepare to collect data from an experiment at the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland.
鈥淚鈥檓 an alumnus who was once in their shoes, in the same classroom, sitting at the same desk. What I鈥檓 doing is what they can do.鈥 鈥 Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez
The film was shown this week in Monterrey at Papalote Museo del Ni帽o Monterrey to over 2,000 high school students from ITESM's Prepa Tec and to the public. Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez hopes the film will inspire students to pursue STEM education and careers.
鈥淚鈥檓 an alumnus who was once in their shoes, in the same classroom, sitting at the same desk,鈥 said Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez. 鈥淲hat I鈥檓 doing is what they can do.鈥
Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez poses with students at a recent screening of 鈥楽ecrets of the Universe鈥 at the Tijuana Cultural Center in Mexico. (Courtesy of Manuel Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez)
Recreating the early universe
As a physics professor in the College of Letters and Science at 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis, Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez studies the behavior of subatomic particles, such as quarks and gluons. His research reaches back to the origins of the universe with experiments focused on recreating high-temperature environments like the one that occurred one-millionth of a second after the Big Bang.
By creating a space 100,000 times hotter than the sun鈥檚 core, Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez and his colleagues can strip atoms of their electrical ties.
鈥淚n the sun, atoms melt,鈥 Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez said. 鈥淏ut when we smash nuclei in our experiments, the nucleus of the atom 鈥 its even tinier and much denser core 鈥 melts.鈥
At these temperatures, electrons, protons and neutrons 鈥 the ingredients of the atom 鈥 melt away, revealing information about the nuclear force that binds their most elementary subatomic particles. These particles, the earliest known in the universe, made up the first state of matter after the Big Bang: the quark-gluon plasma.
Doing such research requires heavy equipment, like the Large Hadron Collider, the world鈥檚 most powerful particle accelerator; an imaginative mind to visualize the invisible; and a love for the natural world.
Origins of a physicist
Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez鈥檚 drive to share and democratize science stems from his upbringing in Mexico City. His parents encouraged intellectual exploration from an early age, instilling in him a love for reading that eventually led to an interest in etymology, the study of the origin of words.
(Courtesy of Manuel Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez)
But Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez was also passionate about video games and computer science, writing programs on the Commodore 64 his parents bought him. Initially, he wanted to study computer science in college, but as he learned more about mathematics and physics, he discovered that the subjects weren鈥檛 just a means to solve problems on a test. They were ways to describe nature.
鈥淲e can understand how the planets move around the sun using the same ideas that you use to understand how we throw a ball,鈥 Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez said.
The universality of these concepts fascinated him and led him to study engineering physics. While studying at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education and through an opportunity with the Mexican Physical Society, he participated in a summer internship at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), home to the Large Hadron Collider.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 what really opened the doors for me,鈥 said Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez, who went on to earn a doctorate from Yale University. 鈥淎ll of a sudden, I鈥檓 at the biggest laboratory for particle physics in the world and talking with faculty from all sorts of different schools.鈥
Inspiring the next generation of Aggies
At 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis, Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez emphasizes the importance of undergraduate research experiences, like his own at CERN, to his students.
鈥淭hat just completely changed the panorama and allowed me to come to the United States,鈥 he said. 鈥淚鈥檝e been doing research here ever since.鈥
Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez hopes that screenings of 鈥楽ecrets of the Universe鈥 will inspire students to pursue STEM education and careers. (Courtesy of Manuel Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez)
By screening Secrets of the Universe, Calder贸n de la Barca S谩nchez hopes to incite student interest in the unique research opportunities at 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis, inspiring them to pursue their studies as an Aggie.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 really important for undergraduates or prospective students to realize,鈥 he said. 鈥淲hether you鈥檙e coming from the U.S. or outside the U.S., that undergrad research experience component is available to 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis students.鈥
is a content strategist & writer for the College of Letters and Science at 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis