"Most of our life is spent dealing with ideas that are abstract and cannot be embodied; they can only be held in the mind ... The tools of our trade are also intangible. We have nothing material to clutch or discard, no object that would absorb or reflect our emotions. Theoretical physics is largely a private affair, a life lived out in the mind,"
thinks Sara, wistfully.
It is true that we theorists seldom have a tangible hold on something that represents our intellectual passion, and so the times that we do, are extra special. Today is one such day for me. I just came back from my visit to Roxbury Latin School with gifts that represent ideas that excite me; ideas I have discussed with the bright, fun, students at Roxbury Latin in the past.
I can now hold a Higgs Boson in my hand, and pin Calabi Yau manifolds wherever I want. What more could a girl ask for?
