It has been a year since I started blogging. It did not go quite as well as I hoped it would but also not as badly as I was afraid it might. I started full of determination with a clear plan, wrote posts… and then stopped. It took me seven months to start again and… Continue reading What I learned (and didn’t) from a year of blogging
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The end is nigh. Well, not really
It is beginning. Earlier this week, I downloaded Scrivener and yesterday, I started outlining my dissertation. I still have a lot of time to finish -- I am currently planning to submit early next year and defend in spring, though that might change -- but I think it is a good idea to start now.… Continue reading The end is nigh. Well, not really
Good scientists publish, shitty ones blog. Or do they?
As scientists, we are in a very privileged position compared to the rest of population. Not only do we really enjoy what we do but we also get to choose what to work on ourselves. Sure, there is the dark world of academic bureaucracy and the perpetual fight for grant money but I still think that… Continue reading Good scientists publish, shitty ones blog. Or do they?
How well can we measure position?
It is a well-known fact in quantum physics that the position and momentum of an object (e.g., a single atom or a vibrating mirror) cannot be known with an arbitrary precision. The more we know about the position of a mirror, the less we know about how fast it is moving and vice versa. This… Continue reading How well can we measure position?
Seeing ripples in spacetime
One hundred years after Albert Einstein shared it with the world, the general relativity is waiting for its last confirmation: direct observation of gravitational waves. These ripples in the curvature of spacetime are created when a massive object accelerates. Typical examples of such systems are binary neutron stars or black holes; as the two stars (or… Continue reading Seeing ripples in spacetime
Connecting superconducting quantum computers with light
Entanglement is a peculiar feature of quantum systems that makes them behave as if they were sitting directly next to each other even if they are kilometres away. Such behaviour does not occur in classical physics. Classical particles can affect each other through fields -- such as the gravitational or electromagnetic field -- but these fields propagate with… Continue reading Connecting superconducting quantum computers with light
Through the looking glass
One of the things I love about physics is how it changes the way one sees the world. As one starts to think about some basic things very differently. Then even such a simple act as measurement is a complicated process which can even be used to manipulate physical systems.
A new start
I am at the point in my PhD where I am truly becoming a researcher and am no longer just a student. How can I tell? I just finished a project I worked on basically since I started my studies more than two years ago. It was my supervisor's idea to study this particular problem,… Continue reading A new start
The joys of theoretical physics
Have you always thought mathematics is dull and complicated? You are certainly not alone. But there is a lot of beauty hidden in it and in the way it describes our world. Theoretical physics is all about using maths to describe nature. As the universe we live in is vast and filled with myriads of… Continue reading The joys of theoretical physics
How to measure time
Precise timekeeping is crucial for many of our daily activities. High-speed communication (on the internet or in a mobile phone network), satellite navigation, and many other tasks require time synchronisation over long distances to work properly. But how is time measured? And can quantum physics help reach better accuracies? The basic idea behind measuring time is… Continue reading How to measure time
Ondřej Černotík 