Pursuing the Tiniest Bits of Matter: The Legacy of Democritus from Quarks to Cancer

Dr. Keppel, a St. John's Annapolis alum, leads the Physics Division at Jefferson Labs, where she and her colleagues study the structure and dynamics of the fundamental building blocks of matter. She is both a nuclear physicist and a cancer researcher, with numerous patents and scientific publications across both fields. 

 

Dr. Keppel offers the following description of her lecture: "Humans for ages have pondered the question 'what is everything made of?' I will discuss why physicists have for centuries been interested in this question and pursue understanding of the tiniest particles known to humankind, and how an understanding of these particles continues to advance a breadth of human knowledge and endeavor."