Yasuyuki MATSUDA
Left and Right in the Natural World
Have you ever heard about a puzzle “When a person stands before a mirror, his top and bottom are as they are in the mirror although the left and right of his reflection are conversely mirrored in it. Why does it happen?”. It is the puzzle in the book entitled Yukaina sūgakusha tachi (The Jolly Mathematicians) (written by Kentaro Yano, Shinchō bunko) which I read when I was a junior high school student. Let’s think about this question together and examine the rule of symmetry of left and right in the natural world (parity symmetry) further.
[Instructor]
Associate Professor, University of Tokyo
The Associate Professor Matsuda got his M.Sc and Ph.D in Science from Kyoto University. He has been serving his current position since April 2008, after serving as a science researcher at the Rikagaku Kenkūjo (RIKEN). His message is “An atom, a molecule and an atomic nucleus have a rule of symmetry and selection of their own. They give us a unique research task when we search for the law of nature. I have created an exotic atom, molecule and atomic nucleus consisting of particles which do not normally exist, by using a beam from an accelerator for the purpose of extending my knowledge”.
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