[Music]
today we speak of doubt and of
error and I do it starting with one
asks the question I ask everyone
you who have never been wrong are not there
many hands up
and on the other hand sit in good company
here it is one that actually baths it
He made several facts in his life
on the other hand we all do them all
the important thing to recognize them and to draw them
cue to improve
one who recognized it was
enrico stop one of the great physics
he won the Nobel Prize in 1938 ha
given his masterly lesson and after
have given his masterly lesson for
the achievement of the nobel prize has
added an incorrect corrige
if you go online you will find in the lesson
of enrico stop a wrong corrige because
because he realized that the elements
transuranic that he thought he had
that is, discovered heavier elements
of uranium were not actually such
because other physicists a few months later
they had verified that the result was
actually nuclear fission
this takes away something like a teacher
enrico still absolutely not much
of his work for the nobel remained
however just right in some way
it enhances its greatness
because in the end as a great says
writer as gianni rodari
errors are necessary are useful
like bread and often also beautiful for
example the pisa tower
here then I would like today
starting from my experience of things
that in short, I try to know or I hope to
know and start from this cover
this is the cover and in the physics
a rather important newspaper for the
physics that we had the honor on
which we had the honor to write
even to get the cover with the
our research group here in padova
which deals with thermonuclear fusion
in a few words we try with
the rfx experiment to reproduce a piece
of sun on earth to get energy
free from clean CO2 and this result
has shown that a helical shape of the
particularly performance plasma
good and even a little bit for the
his beauty has earned the cover
of the magazine behind this result
of course there was a lot of
work enthusiasm of things done well
but also many mistakes roads that we have
followed and then they are revealed wrong
second thoughts wrong experiments
mistakes of those who preceded us because
all in all to us then at the end
we have denied theories on which we are
we have on the other hand studied the
physics if you think about it but science
in general, more than giving certainties opens
great doors on ignorance and yet line
constructive ignorance and on the other hand
doubt is a very powerful tool
that accompanies those like us who do research
I propose another example this is the
chart that led to the nobel for the
boson of higgs that little hunchback
that you see more or less in the center that you
deviation from the trend is the signature of the
boson think that the physicists colleagues of the
also cern of padova naturally have
worked for years to get that
small gobet and to be sure they have
applied to the theory of errors year
I wanted to be sure that
deviation was real because the
situation was a bit like that of a
photographer who from the top of one
mountain scrutinizes with his car
photographic the valley to try to
see a marmot no that goes out
from his hole, be able to photograph it
here are my colleagues from cern
tried they doubted they followed
wrong roads have been corrected
verified their results and at the end
the marmot has photographed it
boson of higgs won the nobel prize
and then the bo say that doubt
as another great physicist said
Richard Feynman absolutely does not have to
incite fear but must be accepted
as a precious opportunity for the
science and I would say more is not even one
limit the doubt the error but it is one
warranty is a guarantee of reliability
of credibility and what distinguishes the
science the real one from the pseudo sciences
make us pseudo scientists
buffalo stories never have
uncertainties
so it’s always that no
and on the other hand to come too
to link with today’s theme if there
think
doubt, uncertainty , capacity also
to make mistakes and to admit them is
an insurance policy no for per
science because doing science means
basically moving on the ridge
very narrow, not because they are exploring
the unknown requires a large dose of
creativity but also a bit of madness
then the narrow ridge the border between
the banality and the farce really a lot
very steep no very tight chi chi
guarantees the policy
the assurance of science the error
doubt the ability to not be ashamed
precisely the opposite mistake and
we all have to claim our own
our right our freedom to
make mistakes because this makes us grow
of course without it becoming an alibi
for somehow it connects to adapt
not so much on common thought
all wrong even if I’m wrong too
certainly not no, we have to claim
the freedom to make mistakes and the same
time take responsibility for
admit these errors because
then they become also a moment of growth
as we have seen, it was for the grown ups
of physics and on the other hand also from
errors even from the wrong experiments
unexpected fruits can be born
these two gentlemen are called albert
michael sommer edward morley and in 1887
they were desperately looking for luminous letters
I think maybe this weird thought
medium that supported propagation
of our electromagnetic waves
recent work by maxwell e
then they did not find it naturally
because today we know that the waves
electromagnetic ones do not need
some lumini letters were theirs
experiment is considered perhaps the most
great failed experiment of history
the most famous experiment failed in
history of physics because why then a
starting from that negative result
albert einstein will draw for
develop the theory of relativity
then from the documentation of a
negative result
part a new fruit a new tree a
new mistake there is a new a new one
theory and therefore perhaps also new mistakes
and so I would also like to spend one
word on error documentation
we physicists us researchers hardly
I admit we love to document the
wrong because it goes well of course to
documenting the positive results is a
bar much nicer but to document the
mistakes is essential for growth
of science because above all it is one
great gesture of altruism avoids that
someone else makes the same mistakes
for example, and then as we have seen
first it can really open even some
some new and above all
increases the credibility of science the
to know how to recognize
the mistakes from truly one is one
very strong element that differentiates the
science from the buffalo sellers no
from the creators of illusion from those who do not
recognizes the importance
of learning the importance of
facts of the masters of reality but yes
instead based instead on the heard or o
as today is fashionable on the strength of
network no facts the facts the analysis of the
facts and therefore also the credibility that
to say that it derives from all this
and I close with a quote here in Padua
from one of the great of great physics
teacher of this Galilean university
galilei that perhaps better if it had been
here he could not summarize this
chat
I estimate the most to find a real quarrel of
light thing that disputar long
of the highest questions without achieving
truth no thanks
[Applause]
[Music]
today we speak of doubt and of
error and I do it starting with one
asks the question I ask everyone
you who have never been wrong are not there
many hands up
and on the other hand sit in good company
here it is one that actually baths it
He made several facts in his life
on the other hand we all do them all
the important thing to recognize them and to draw them
cue to improve
one who recognized it was
enrico stop one of the great physics
he won the Nobel Prize in 1938 ha
given his masterly lesson and after
have given his masterly lesson for
the achievement of the nobel prize has
added an incorrect corrige
if you go online you will find in the lesson
of enrico stop a wrong corrige because
because he realized that the elements
transuranic that he thought he had
that is, discovered heavier elements
of uranium were not actually such
because other physicists a few months later
they had verified that the result was
actually nuclear fission
this takes away something like a teacher
enrico still absolutely not much
of his work for the nobel remained
however just right in some way
it enhances its greatness
because in the end as a great says
writer as gianni rodari
errors are necessary are useful
like bread and often also beautiful for
example the pisa tower
here then I would like today
starting from my experience of things
that in short, I try to know or I hope to
know and start from this cover
this is the cover and in the physics
a rather important newspaper for the
physics that we had the honor on
which we had the honor to write
even to get the cover with the
our research group here in padova
which deals with thermonuclear fusion
in a few words we try with
the rfx experiment to reproduce a piece
of sun on earth to get energy
free from clean CO2 and this result
has shown that a helical shape of the
particularly performance plasma
good and even a little bit for the
his beauty has earned the cover
of the magazine behind this result
of course there was a lot of
work enthusiasm of things done well
but also many mistakes roads that we have
followed and then they are revealed wrong
second thoughts wrong experiments
mistakes of those who preceded us because
all in all to us then at the end
we have denied theories on which we are
we have on the other hand studied the
physics if you think about it but science
in general, more than giving certainties opens
great doors on ignorance and yet line
constructive ignorance and on the other hand
doubt is a very powerful tool
that accompanies those like us who do research
I propose another example this is the
chart that led to the nobel for the
boson of higgs that little hunchback
that you see more or less in the center that you
deviation from the trend is the signature of the
boson think that the physicists colleagues of the
also cern of padova naturally have
worked for years to get that
small gobet and to be sure they have
applied to the theory of errors year
I wanted to be sure that
deviation was real because the
situation was a bit like that of a
photographer who from the top of one
mountain scrutinizes with his car
photographic the valley to try to
see a marmot no that goes out
from his hole, be able to photograph it
here are my colleagues from cern
tried they doubted they followed
wrong roads have been corrected
verified their results and at the end
the marmot has photographed it
boson of higgs won the nobel prize
and then the bo say that doubt
as another great physicist said
Richard Feynman absolutely does not have to
incite fear but must be accepted
as a precious opportunity for the
science and I would say more is not even one
limit the doubt the error but it is one
warranty is a guarantee of reliability
of credibility and what distinguishes the
science the real one from the pseudo sciences
make us pseudo scientists
buffalo stories never have
uncertainties
so it’s always that no
and on the other hand to come too
to link with today’s theme if there
think
doubt, uncertainty , capacity also
to make mistakes and to admit them is
an insurance policy no for per
science because doing science means
basically moving on the ridge
very narrow, not because they are exploring
the unknown requires a large dose of
creativity but also a bit of madness
then the narrow ridge the border between
the banality and the farce really a lot
very steep no very tight chi chi
guarantees the policy
the assurance of science the error
doubt the ability to not be ashamed
precisely the opposite mistake and
we all have to claim our own
our right our freedom to
make mistakes because this makes us grow
of course without it becoming an alibi
for somehow it connects to adapt
not so much on common thought
all wrong even if I’m wrong too
certainly not no, we have to claim
the freedom to make mistakes and the same
time take responsibility for
admit these errors because
then they become also a moment of growth
as we have seen, it was for the grown ups
of physics and on the other hand also from
errors even from the wrong experiments
unexpected fruits can be born
these two gentlemen are called albert
michael sommer edward morley and in 1887
they were desperately looking for luminous letters
I think maybe this weird thought
medium that supported propagation
of our electromagnetic waves
recent work by maxwell e
then they did not find it naturally
because today we know that the waves
electromagnetic ones do not need
some lumini letters were theirs
experiment is considered perhaps the most
great failed experiment of history
the most famous experiment failed in
history of physics because why then a
starting from that negative result
albert einstein will draw for
develop the theory of relativity
then from the documentation of a
negative result
part a new fruit a new tree a
new mistake there is a new a new one
theory and therefore perhaps also new mistakes
and so I would also like to spend one
word on error documentation
we physicists us researchers hardly
I admit we love to document the
wrong because it goes well of course to
documenting the positive results is a
bar much nicer but to document the
mistakes is essential for growth
of science because above all it is one
great gesture of altruism avoids that
someone else makes the same mistakes
for example, and then as we have seen
first it can really open even some
some new and above all
increases the credibility of science the
to know how to recognize
the mistakes from truly one is one
very strong element that differentiates the
science from the buffalo sellers no
from the creators of illusion from those who do not
recognizes the importance
of learning the importance of
facts of the masters of reality but yes
instead based instead on the heard or o
as today is fashionable on the strength of
network no facts the facts the analysis of the
facts and therefore also the credibility that
to say that it derives from all this
and I close with a quote here in Padua
from one of the great of great physics
teacher of this Galilean university
galilei that perhaps better if it had been
here he could not summarize this
chat
I estimate the most to find a real quarrel of
light thing that disputar long
of the highest questions without achieving
truth no thanks
[Applause]
[Music]
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