Dance, physics and energy
Robert Wilson, the first director of Fermilab, was both scientist and artist. There are many anecdotes about his interest in and promotion of art at Fermilab. Over many years I have observed that physical scientists often have a deep interest in the arts. On a recent trip to Flagstaff, Arizona, I encountered the reverse.
 Detail, cover of Studying Dance Cultures around the World by Pegge Vissicaro |
While attending the 75th birthday celebration of noted anthropologist Joann Keali'inohomoku, I was surprised to see a bubble chamber picture on the cover of a book in her library. The title was Studying Dance Cultures around the World.
Upon inquiry, I learned the author, Pegge Vissicaro, was attending the party and I introduced myself. She was delighted to meet someone from Fermilab. She had obtained the picture through the Fermilab Public Affairs office.
In her book, Vissicaro devotes part of a chapter to the relationship of physics and dance. She explains this relationship is both physical and metaphorical. Dance on the physical level is using the physics of energy and mechanics to produce movement. On the metaphorical level, dance connects people of different cultures in the way that elementary particles connect us in the physical universe. She states, "The behavior of elemental particles demonstrates that energy is the fundamental link between all things, all people, and all places."
The bubble chamber picture vividly illustrates this. In our imaginations, we can easily picture the tracks as whirling dancers.
John Urish, Fermilab
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