Hans Grassmann
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Hans Grassmann (Bamberg, 21 May 1960) is a German physicist, writer and entrepreneur, who teaches and works in
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. Grassmann is the author of four books and more than 250 scientific publications, and is the founder and managing director of the research company Isomorph srl. His main contributions to physics include the development of a (Tl)
calorimeter A calorimeter is an object used for calorimetry, or the process of measuring the heat of chemical reactions or physical changes as well as heat capacity. Differential scanning calorimeters, isothermal micro calorimeters, titration calorimete ...
with a
photodiode A photodiode is a light-sensitive semiconductor diode. It produces current when it absorbs photons. The package of a photodiode allows light (or infrared or ultraviolet radiation, or X-rays) to reach the sensitive part of the device. The packag ...
; developing the analysis of asymmetry in the production of the
W particle In particle physics, the W and Z bosons are vector bosons that are together known as the weak bosons or more generally as the intermediate vector bosons. These elementary particles mediate the weak interaction; the respective symbols are , , and ...
; a contribution to the discovery of the
top quark The top quark, sometimes also referred to as the truth quark, (symbol: t) is the most massive of all observed elementary particles. It derives its mass from its coupling to the Higgs Boson. This coupling y_ is very close to unity; in the Standard ...
, the development of a physics theory of information; the design and development of a
wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. ...
with an external duct; and the realization of the linear mirror for the concentration of solar energy. Grassmann has worked in Italy since 1988.


Life and work


Study of physics

From 1979 to 1984, Grassmann studied physics at the
University of Erlangen A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
and the
University of Hamburg The University of Hamburg (german: link=no, Universität Hamburg, also referred to as UHH) is a public research university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by combining the previous General Lecture System ('' Allgemeines Vor ...
. For his
laurea In Italy, the ''laurea'' is the main post-secondary academic degree. The name originally referred literally to the laurel wreath, since ancient times a sign of honor and now worn by Italian students right after their official graduation ceremony ...
thesis, he developed a detection method for high energy photons using a scintillating crystal (CsI(Tl))
calorimeter A calorimeter is an object used for calorimetry, or the process of measuring the heat of chemical reactions or physical changes as well as heat capacity. Differential scanning calorimeters, isothermal micro calorimeters, titration calorimete ...
with
photodiode A photodiode is a light-sensitive semiconductor diode. It produces current when it absorbs photons. The package of a photodiode allows light (or infrared or ultraviolet radiation, or X-rays) to reach the sensitive part of the device. The packag ...
readout. Advanced scientific experiments make use of this technology, including the Crystal-Barrel, the
BaBar Babar ( ur, ), also variously spelled as Baber, Babur, and Babor is a male given name of Pashto, and Persian language, Persian origin, and a popular male given name in Pakistan. It is generally taken in reference to the Persian language, Persian ...
, the
CLEO Cleo may refer to: Entertainment * ''Cleo'' (magazine), an Australian magazine established in 1972, now active in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand * Cleo (group), a South Korean girl group formed in 1999 * ''Cleo'' (play), by Lawrenc ...
, the
Belle experiment The Belle experiment was a particle physics experiment conducted by the Belle Collaboration, an international collaboration of more than 400 physicists and engineers, at the High Energy Accelerator Research Organisation (KEK) in Tsukuba, Ibarak ...
s and the Glast satellite. From 1984 to 1988, Grassmann was part of the
UA1 experiment The UA1 experiment (an abbreviation of Underground Area 1) was a high-energy physics experiment that ran at CERN's Proton-Antiproton Collider (SpS), a modification of the one-beam Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS). The data was recorded between ...
at
CERN The European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN (; ; ), is an intergovernmental organization that operates the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. Established in 1954, it is based in a northwestern suburb of Gene ...
in Geneva, where he wrote his PhD thesis. From 1987 to 1999, Grassmann worked with the
CDF collaboration The Collider Detector at Fermilab (CDF) experimental collaboration studies high energy particle collisions from the Tevatron, the world's former highest-energy particle accelerator. The goal is to discover the identity and properties of the partic ...
at the
Tevatron collider The Tevatron was a circular particle accelerator (active until 2011) in the United States, at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (also known as ''Fermilab''), east of Batavia, Illinois, and is the second highest energy particle collider ...
in the Fermi National Laboratory (
Fermilab Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), located just outside Batavia, Illinois, near Chicago, is a United States Department of Energy national laboratory specializing in high-energy particle physics. Since 2007, Fermilab has been operat ...
), close to Chicago and at the
Superconducting Super Collider The Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) (also nicknamed the desertron) was a particle accelerator complex under construction in the vicinity of Waxahachie, Texas. Its planned ring circumference was with an energy of 20 TeV per proton and was ...
laboratory (Dallas). In 1988 with his student,
S. Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...
, he developed the study of the asymmetry in production and decay of the
W-boson In particle physics, the W and Z bosons are vector bosons that are together known as the weak bosons or more generally as the intermediate vector bosons. These elementary particles mediate the weak interaction; the respective symbols are , , and ...
at the
Tevatron The Tevatron was a circular particle accelerator (active until 2011) in the United States, at the Fermilab, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (also known as ''Fermilab''), east of Batavia, Illinois, and is the second highest energy particle ...
proton A proton is a stable subatomic particle, symbol , H+, or 1H+ with a positive electric charge of +1 ''e'' elementary charge. Its mass is slightly less than that of a neutron and 1,836 times the mass of an electron (the proton–electron mass ...
antiproton The antiproton, , (pronounced ''p-bar'') is the antiparticle of the proton. Antiprotons are stable, but they are typically short-lived, since any collision with a proton will cause both particles to be annihilated in a burst of energy. The exist ...
collider.
W boson In particle physics, the W and Z bosons are vector bosons that are together known as the weak bosons or more generally as the intermediate vector bosons. These elementary particles mediate the weak interaction; the respective symbols are , , and ...
s are predominantly produced in collisions of
valence quark In particle physics, the quark model is a classification scheme for hadrons in terms of their valence quarks—the quarks and antiquarks which give rise to the quantum numbers of the hadrons. The quark model underlies Flavour (particle physics), ...
s; therefore, one can determine the kinematic properties of the up and down quarks in the
proton A proton is a stable subatomic particle, symbol , H+, or 1H+ with a positive electric charge of +1 ''e'' elementary charge. Its mass is slightly less than that of a neutron and 1,836 times the mass of an electron (the proton–electron mass ...
and
antiproton The antiproton, , (pronounced ''p-bar'') is the antiparticle of the proton. Antiprotons are stable, but they are typically short-lived, since any collision with a proton will cause both particles to be annihilated in a burst of energy. The exist ...
from the observation of W production. By analyzing the relative difference in the production of W+ and W particles, one can substantially reduce the effects of systematic uncertainties in the experimental device. Since 1988, Grassmann has developed a method for detecting the
top quark The top quark, sometimes also referred to as the truth quark, (symbol: t) is the most massive of all observed elementary particles. It derives its mass from its coupling to the Higgs Boson. This coupling y_ is very close to unity; in the Standard ...
. The method makes use of the different kinematic properties of production and decay of top quark particles and background events, such as the production of W particles together with hadronic jets. In 1994, this analysis was successfully applied by Grassmann, G. Bellettini and M. Cobal. The top quark was observed in Tevatron collider data. These results were confirmed when the analysis was repeated on a larger data sample. After the top quark discovery, Grassmann worked on a connection between the classic
information theory Information theory is the scientific study of the quantification (science), quantification, computer data storage, storage, and telecommunication, communication of information. The field was originally established by the works of Harry Nyquist a ...
of
Claude Shannon Claude Elwood Shannon (April 30, 1916 – February 24, 2001) was an American people, American mathematician, electrical engineering, electrical engineer, and cryptography, cryptographer known as a "father of information theory". As a 21-year-o ...
,
Gregory Chaitin Gregory John Chaitin ( ; born 25 June 1947) is an Argentine-American mathematician and computer scientist. Beginning in the late 1960s, Chaitin made contributions to algorithmic information theory and metamathematics, in particular a computer-t ...
and
Andrey Kolmogorov Andrey Nikolaevich Kolmogorov ( rus, Андре́й Никола́евич Колмого́ров, p=ɐnˈdrʲej nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ kəlmɐˈɡorəf, a=Ru-Andrey Nikolaevich Kolmogorov.ogg, 25 April 1903 – 20 October 1987) was a Sovi ...
et al. and physics. From work done by
Leó Szilárd Leo Szilard (; hu, Szilárd Leó, pronounced ; born Leó Spitz; February 11, 1898 – May 30, 1964) was a Hungarian-German-American physicist and inventor. He conceived the nuclear chain reaction in 1933, patented the idea of a nuclear ...
,
Rolf Landauer Rolf William Landauer (February 4, 1927 – April 27, 1999) was a German-American physicist who made important contributions in diverse areas of the thermodynamics of information processing, condensed matter physics, and the conductivity of disor ...
and Charles H. Bennett, there is a connection between physics and
information theory Information theory is the scientific study of the quantification (science), quantification, computer data storage, storage, and telecommunication, communication of information. The field was originally established by the works of Harry Nyquist a ...
. Storing or deleting one bit of information dissipates energy; however, neither classic information theory nor
algorithmic information theory Algorithmic information theory (AIT) is a branch of theoretical computer science that concerns itself with the relationship between computation and information of computably generated objects (as opposed to stochastically generated), such as st ...
contain any physics variables. The variable entropy used in information theory is not a state function; therefore, it is not the thermodynamic entropy used in physics. Grassmann made use of existing and established concepts, such as message, amount of information or complexity, but set them in a new mathematical framework. His approach is based on vector algebra or on
Boolean algebra In mathematics and mathematical logic, Boolean algebra is a branch of algebra. It differs from elementary algebra in two ways. First, the values of the variables are the truth values ''true'' and ''false'', usually denoted 1 and 0, whereas in e ...
instead of probability theory.


Renewable Energies

Grassmann also developed an approach for studying shrouded
wind turbines A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. ...
. In 2006 Isomorph undertook the development of a system of mirrors - the so-called Linear mirror - for the concentration of solar energy. This system is a very simple and therefore inexpensive structure, which allows to create a full-scale prototype without the need of outside partners. In 'October 2008, the Linear mirror received its first award from the
Italian Physical Society The (SIF) or Italian Physical Society was founded in 1897 and is a non-profit organization whose aim is to promote, encourage, protect the study and the progress of physics in Italy and in the world. It is associated with the journal series '' Nuo ...
, which honors Alessandro Prest, an employee of the Isomorph, for the presentation of the project. The mirror came into operation for the first time in autumn 2008, fulfilling all the expectations. In July 2010 the first Linear mirror was installed by the town of Pontebba to provide thermal energy to the local kindergarten. In the same year the town of Pontebba successfully participated to the National contest for the election of the most virtuous municipalities. In April 2011 Hans Grassmann has received the "
Nuclear-Free Future Award Since 1998 the Nuclear-Free Future Award (NFFA) is an award given to anti-nuclear activists, organizations and communities. The award is intended to promote opposition to uranium mining, nuclear weapons and nuclear power. The NFFA is a project of ...
, with the motivation that the Linear mirror can be able to contribute to the replacement of nuclear power. In May 2012 the Linear mirror received the Solar keymark certificate by CERTCO DIN (DIN EN 12795-1:2006-06 and DIN EN 12795-2:2006-06). Tests for the Solar Keymark were carried out by the Fraunhofer Institute ISE Freiburg.


Entrepreneurship

In 2004, Grassmann founded Isomorph, which creates scientific concepts, procedures and devices based on physics research. Isomorph's research is independent of the scientific-administrative complex. Isomorph developed an innovative concentrating mirror system to make economic use of
solar energy Solar energy is radiant light and heat from the Sun that is harnessed using a range of technologies such as solar power to generate electricity, solar thermal energy (including solar water heating), and solar architecture. It is an essenti ...
. It is a simple system and cheap to produce.


Books

Grassmann has explained physics to the general public in books and newspaper articles, noting that "everybody can understand physics. What cannot be understood is not physics."Grassmann, H.: ''Ahnung von der Materie – Physik für alle.'', Dumont, 2008, His books about the relationship between science and society are available in several translations. * Grassmann, H.: ''Das Top Quark, Picasso und Mercedes Benz – oder Was ist Physik?'', Rowohlt Berlin, 1997, . * Grassmann, H.: ''Alles Quark? Ein Physikbuch'', Rowohlt Berlin, Berlin, 2000, . * Grassmann, H.: ''Das Denken und seine Zukunft – von der Eigenart des Menschen'', Hoffman und Campe, Hamburg, 2001, . * Grassmann, H.: ''Ahnung von der Materie – Physik für alle.'', Dumont, 2008, .


References


External links


University of Udine




{{DEFAULTSORT:Grassmann, Hans 21st-century German physicists 1960 births Living people People associated with renewable energy People associated with CERN