This is a science dialog for high school students in Japan. I did tell some little stories of my academic path: from a small village of Vietnam, to Hanoi as undergraduate student, then to United State for Ph.D degree and went to Japan after graduation. The main message from these stories is that I enjoyed my journey which I could not imagine when I was in high school and I hope that they (students in class) will enjoy their journey as well. That is the most important thing in life. Then I expressed my inspiration toward symmetry, one of the most beautiful and important concepts in physics. I gave examples from classical physics to model physics. Then I brought up a very fundamental question how the universe begin if the symmetry is held everywhere. I went through the concept of symmetry breaking, and introduced neutrino particle from which we could find the answer for this fundamental question. I also mentioned about the Nobel and Breakthrough prize last year for the contributions in the neutrino physics which I am working on. In the final part of this section, I mentioned about the benefit obtained if they choose to be particle physicists and what they need to prepare for this career. In the final section, I introduced a bit about Vietnam culture in the corresponding to Japanese culture. This section is required from the school since their student will come to Vietnam for excursion this December. While I made some comparison which I think students can find useful when they explore Vietnam culture, the main message I delivered is that culture, which is not better or worse, just different and we need to respect the difference.

1. Cao
Van
Son/
カオ バン ソン
(Kyoto
University/
京都大学 )
My
little
stories,
Vietnam
&
Experimental
High
Energy
Physics
7/1/16
Call
me:
Son
(ソン )
Sound
like
孫 悟空
(My
favorite
manga)
In
Vietnamese:
Sơn = mountain (山)

2. What
do
I
tell
today…
² My
little
stories
(Vietnam
– USA
-­‐ Japan)
² My
inspiration:
from
symmetry
to
experimental
high
energy
physics
² Vietnamese
culture
7/1/16 2
o Ask
ANY Question
DURING the
talk
o Noguchi-­‐san
can
translate/
or
better
explain
than
me
o (I
will
try
to
speak
slowly
and
clearly
but
if
you
cannot
understand,
Just
stop
me
and
I
will
try
my
best
to
explain
again)

3. My
little
story
² Born
in
small
village
of
Vietnam
o 5-­‐6
hours
flight
from
Japan
(to
Hanoi,
or
Ho
Chi
Minh
city)
7/1/16 3
As
other
children,
I
had
multiple
“duty”
outside
of
study.
I
didn’t
have
any
complaint,
I
enjoyed
instead.

4. My
little
story
(cont’d)
² Born
in
small
village
of
Vietnam
7/1/16 4
http://www.sondoongcave.org/photos-­‐gallery.html
200m
wide
x
150m
high
x
9km
long
(The
World’s
largest
cave)
Quảng Bình Citadel
Gate
Long,
beautiful
beach Peaceful
countryside

5. My
little
story
(cont’d)
² Born
in
small
village
of
Vietnam
² Went
to
College
of
Natural
Science,
Hanoi
-­‐ Vietnam’s
capital
(2004-­‐2008)
7/1/16 5
Turtle
tower One
Pillar
Pagoda
Delicious
dishes

6. My
little
story
(cont’d)
7/1/16 6
200m
wide
x
150m
high
x
9km
long
(The
World’s
largest
cave)
² Born
in
small
village
of
Vietnam
² Went
to
College
of
Natural
Science,
Hanoi
-­‐ Vietnam’s
capital
(2004-­‐2008)
² Went
to
Univ.
of
Texas
at
Austin
for
Ph.D
(Doctor
of
Philosophy)
(2009-­‐2014)
Fermilab,
Ilinois
Austin,
TX
Univ.
of
Texas,
Austin
What
starts
here
changes
the
world
Really?
I
have
gone
that
far?
I
cannot
imagine
this
when
I
was
in
high
school

7. My
little
story
(cont’d)
7/1/16 7
200m
wide
x
150m
high
x
9km
long
(The
World’s
largest
cave)
² Born
in
small
village
of
Vietnam
² Went
to
College
of
Natural
Science,
Hanoi
-­‐ Vietnam’s
capital
(2004-­‐2008)
² Went
to
Univ.
of
Texas
at
Austin
for
Ph.D
(Doctor
of
Philosophy)
(2009-­‐2014)
² Went
to
Japan
June
2014
(to
present)
Univ.
of
Texas,
Austin
Okayama
Kamioka,
Gifu
Kyoto
J-­‐PARC
Tokai,
Ibaraki

8. Why
did
I
choose
physics?
7/1/16 8
² Question:
all
my
family
members
(except
me)
are
farmers,
my
three
older
brothers
dropped
from
high
school
à Why
was
I
so
different?
² Answers:
o I
found
myself
interested
in
raising
questions
and
looking
for
the
answers.
o I
didn’t
enjoy
playing
game
much,
except
football
which
I
played
almost
everyday
o I
found
that
education
can
be
a
key
to
satisfy
my
curiousness
and
escape
the
poorness
o The
world
is
large
and
this
academic
path
can
help
me
to
explore
the
world
(I
have
been
in
Korea,
USA,
Japan,
Italy)
I’m
not
so
proud,
just
enjoy
my
journey.
I
hope
you
enjoy
your
journey
as
well.
That’s
ALL.

9. My
life
as
researchers
(in
US):
Play
hard,
work
sometime
hard
7/1/16 9
Feb
2012,
Soudan,
MN
Fishing
at
Michigan
lake
Chicago,
IL
Aug.
2011
Oct.
2012
Fermilab
~700m
underground
On
surface

10. My
life
as
researchers
(in
Japan):
Work
hard,
experience
Japanese
culture/beauty
&
family
7/1/16 10
Feb
2012,
Soudan,
MN
Aug.
2011
~70m
undergroundUnder
Kamioka mine
Summer
2014
At
T2K
control
room
In
Christmas
2015
At
home
w/
my
son
~
14
months
Enjoy
Japan
beauty
,culture,
cuisine

11. When
did
my
interest
to
physics
really
begin?
7/1/16 11
² It
was
about
2nd year
at
the
college,
I
was
attracted
by
symmetry
in
nature
and
physics.

12. When
did
my
interest
to
physics
really
begin?
7/1/16 12
² It
was
about
2nd year
at
the
college,
I
was
attracted
by
symmetry
in
nature
and
physics.

13. When
did
my
interest
to
physics
really
begin?
7/1/16 13
² It
was
about
2nd year
at
the
college,
I
was
attracted
by
symmetry
in
nature
and
physics.
Symmetry
is
everywhere

14. When
did
my
interest
to
physics
really
begin?
7/1/16 14
² It
was
about
2nd year
at
the
college,
I
was
attracted
by
symmetry
in
nature
and
physics.
Symmetry
is
everywhere

15. When
did
my
interest
to
physics
really
begin?
7/1/16 15
² It
was
about
2nd year
at
the
college,
I
was
attracted
by
symmetry
in
nature
and
physics.
Symmetry
is
everywhere

16. Symmetry:
Definition
and
examples
7/1/16 16
² The
word
symmetry
comes
from
the
Greek
word
summet ron,
meaning
well
proportioned
,
well
ordered.

17. Symmetry:
Definition
and
examples
7/1/16 17
² The
word
symmetry
comes
from
the
Greek
word
summet ron,
meaning
well
proportioned
,
well
ordered.
² Symmetry
(Oxford
dictionary):
the
quality
of
being
made
up
of
exactly
similar
parts
(Every
face,
every
edge,
and
every
corner
is
just
the
same
as
every
other
face,
edge,
or
corner)
Five
regular
polyhedra

18. Symmetry:
Definition
and
examples
7/1/16 18
² The
word
symmetry
comes
from
the
Greek
word
summet ron,
meaning
well
proportioned
,
well
ordered.
² Symmetry
(Oxford
dictionary):
the
quality
of
being
made
up
of
exactly
similar
parts
Five
regular
polyhedra
Plato
(Timaeus,
360
BC)
Earth
Fire Air Water Cosmos
Classical
elements
(4
faces)
(8
faces)(6
faces) (20
faces) (12
faces)
Am
I
missing
one
element?

19. How
does
symmetry
connect
to
the
law
of
physics?
7/1/16 19
Hint:
Physical
laws
relate
to
conserved quantity,
such
as
energy,
momentum,
or
electric
charge.
Symmetry,
on
the
other
hand,
makes
the
system
unchanged under
some
transformation.
Example:
Angular
Momentum
conservation
We
know
that
the
physical
objects
are
made
of
atoms
which
have
nothing
to
do
with
polyhedra.
However
this
brings
great
example
of
using
symmetry
to
describe
the
nature.
How
are
symmetry
and
physical
laws
connected
each
other?
Rotational
symmetry

20. How
does
symmetry
connect
to
the
law
of
physics?
7/1/16 20
Each
symmetry
is
associated
with
a
conserved
quantity,
such
as
energy,
momentum
or
charge
– Noether’s theorem
Translation
in
space
Rotation
in
space
Reflection
in
space
Translation
in
time
Conservation
of
momentum
Conservation
of
angular
momentum
Conservation
of
energy
Find
answer
yourself
if
you’re
interested
in.

21. How
about
relativity
theory?
7/1/16 21
The
theory
of
relativity
is
also
built
on
a
symmetry
in
spacetime,
so-­‐called
Lorentz
symmetry

22. Symmetry
in
the
Standard
Model
7/1/16 22
Elementary
particle
zoo
“Elementary”
particles:
basic
blocks
to
build
up
matter
Their
substructure
is
unknown.
Standard
Model:
The
most
popular
model
is
used
to
describe
three
types
of
interactions.
The
symmetry
of
Standard
Model
is
U(1) ⇥ SU(2) ⇥ SU(3)
Soon
you
will
forget
it,
but
keep
in
mind,symmetry
is
super
important
in
physics.

23. Is
symmetry
essential
for
life?
7/1/16 23
² Symmetry
is
beautiful.
But
can
life
(this
universe)
exist
if
symmetry
is
everywhere?

24. Is
symmetry
essential
for
life?
7/1/16 24
² Symmetry
is
beautiful.
But
can
life
(this
universe)
exist
if
symmetry
is
everywhere?
à The
answer
is
NO.
² Have
you
heard
about
anti-­‐particle
or
anti-­‐matter?
They
are
symmetric
with
particle
or
matter
respectively.
If
the
symmetry
held,
the
amount
of
matter
and
anti-­‐matter
should
be
the
same.
But
our
universe
contains
mostly
matter
ß Something
BREAKING

25. Is
symmetry
essential
for
life?
7/1/16 25
² Symmetry
is
beautiful.
But
can
life
(this
universe)
exist
if
symmetry
is
everywhere?
à The
answer
is
NO.
² Have
you
heard
about
anti-­‐particle
or
anti-­‐matter?
They
are
symmetric
with
particle
or
matter
respectively.
If
the
symmetry
held,
the
amount
of
matter
and
anti-­‐matter
should
be
the
same.
But
our
universe
contains
mostly
matter
ß Something
BREAKING
1,000,000,001
Matter
1,000,000,001
Anti-­‐Matter
Begin
of
Universe
Matter
and
anti-­‐matter
must
be
equal/symmetric
at
the
beginning
of
Universe

26. Is
symmetry
essential
for
life?
7/1/16 26
² Symmetry
is
beautiful.
But
can
life
(this
universe)
exist
if
symmetry
is
everywhere?
à The
answer
is
NO.
² Have
you
heard
about
anti-­‐particle
or
anti-­‐matter?
They
are
symmetric
with
particle
or
matter
respectively.
If
the
symmetry
held,
the
amount
of
matter
and
anti-­‐matter
should
be
the
same.
But
our
universe
contains
mostly
matter
ß Something
BREAKING
1,000,000,001
Matter
1,000,000,001
Anti-­‐Matter
1,000,000,002
Matter
1,000,000,000
Anti-­‐Matter
Begin
of
Universe Shortly
after
This
is
how
we
survive
or
universe
exist
Matter
and
anti-­‐matter
must
be
equal/symmetric
at
the
beginning
of
Universe

27. Symmetry
breaking
7/1/16 27
² Let
make
it
simpler
I’m
student
and
I
have
number
of
friends,
treat
them
equally
(symmetrically)
One
day,
I
realize
one
is
more
special
than
others.
Symmetrical
treatment
is
breaking

28. Symmetry
breaking
7/1/16 28
² Let
make
it
simpler
“かわいい”
is
very
popular
in
Japan,
like
a
symmetry
But
if
you
go
to
other
countries,
“かわいい”
is
not
popular
any
more
Since
it’s
in
Japan
only,
we
called
it
“local
symmetry”.
Can
you
imagine
a
Japan
without
“かわいい”?
U(1) ⇥ SU(2) ⇥ SU(3)
Remember
this?
It
is
also
local
symmetry.

29. How
does
the
Universe
(or
Life)
begin?
7/1/16 29
² Anti-­‐matter
need
to
convert
to
matter
ß But
how?
We
need
to
find
the
answer
in
the
future.
And
this
is
the
ULTIMATE
goal
of
physics,
find
the
answer
to
question:
How
does
the
Universe
(or
Life)
begin?
1,000,000,001
Matter
1,000,000,001
Anti-­‐Matter
1,000,000,002
Matter
1,000,000,000
Anti-­‐Matter
Begin
of
Universe Shortly
after
This
is
how
we
survive
or
universe
exist
Matter
and
anti-­‐matter
must
be
equal/symmetric
at
the
beginning
of
Universe

30. How
does
the
Universe
(or
Life)
begin?
7/1/16 30
² Anti-­‐matter
need
to
convert
to
matter
ß But
how?
We
need
to
find
the
answer
in
the
future.
And
this
is
the
ULTIMATE
goal
of
physics,
find
the
answer
to
question:
How
does
the
Universe
(or
Life)
begin?
We
might
have
hint
from
very
tiny
particle,
so-­‐called
NEUTRINO
Elementary
particle
zoo
Many
properties
of
this
particle
is
still
in
mysteryà the
hottest
topic
of
the
modern
physics.

31. Neutrinos
7/1/16 31
² Each
second,
1012
neutrinos
from
the
Sun
passing
through
your
body.
In
timeline,
~1022 neutrinos
passing
through
your
body,
but
only
one
interacts
w/
your
body
on
average
You
can
be
super,
but
NEUTRINO
is
actually
the
GHOST
of
nature.
They
can
penetrate
through
anything
without
leaving
a
trace.

32. Neutrinos:
Need
big
detector
7/1/16 32
² That
low
interaction
probability
requires
BIG
detector
to
detect
them;
and
need
to
put
underground
to
reduce
the
noise
(like
you
need
headphone
to
cancel
the
noise)
Super-­‐Kamiokande
(41.4
m
tall
x
39.3m
diameter)
Contain
50,000
tons
of
water
1000m
underground

33. Neutrinos:
How
to
detect?
7/1/16 33
² You
cannot
directly
detect/see
neutrinos.
You
look
at
their
trace
when
they
interacts
with
nucleus
instead.
“Eyes”
A
lot
of
“Eyes”

34. Neutrino
Oscillations
7/1/16 34
There are three types of neutrinos known so far and they can change
their identitywhen traveling, like chameleons change their color
Neutrino
change
their
identity
like
a
MAGIC

35. Neutrino
Oscillations
7/1/16 35
This phenomenon was discovered by the Super-­‐Kamiokande
experiment in 1998à Nobel prize to Prof. Takaaki Kajita in 2015
Why
it’s
so
important:
This
phenomenon
implies
that
neutrinos
have
mass,
which
is
out
of
description
of
the
Standard
Model
à We
need
better
theory.

36. Neutrino
Oscillations
7/1/16 36
This phenomenon was discovered by the Super-­‐Kamiokande
experiment in 1998à Nobel prize to Prof. Takaaki Kajita in 2015
Why
it’s
so
important:
This
phenomenon
implies
that
neutrinos
have
mass,
which
is
out
of
description
of
the
Standard
Model
à We
need
better
theory.
In 2013, T2K experiment has discovered the final oscillation between
two types of neutrinos à Breakthrough prize in 2015
Why
it’s
so
important:
This
opens
the
door
to
search
for
an
super-­‐important
symmetry
breaking:
CP
symmetry,
which
might
be
the
source
of
matter-­‐anti-­‐matter
asymmetry

37. Neutrino
Oscillations
7/1/16 37
This phenomenon was discovered by the Super-­‐Kamiokande
experiment in 1998à Nobel prize to Prof. Takaaki Kajita in 2015
Why
it’s
so
important:
This
phenomenon
implies
that
neutrinos
have
mass,
which
is
out
of
description
of
the
Standard
Model
à We
need
better
theory.
In 2013, T2K experiment has discovered the final oscillation between
two types of neutrinos à Breakthrough prize in 2015
Why
it’s
so
important:
This
opens
the
door
to
search
for
an
super-­‐important
symmetry
breaking:
CP
symmetry,
which
might
be
the
source
of
matter-­‐anti-­‐matter
asymmetry
1,000,000,001
Matter
1,000,000,001
Anti-­‐Matter
1,000,000,002
Matter
1,000,000,000
Anti-­‐Matter
Begin
of
Universe Shortly
after
𝜈?

38. Neutrino
physics
7/1/16 38
You have chance to get Nobel prize and Breakthrough prize as well if
you do neutrino physics in the future!!! à Keep your dreams

39. Why
be
a
particle
physicist?
Beyond
the
academics
7/1/16 39
² Did
I
tell
you
about
BIG
detector?
It
requires
BIG
collaboration
(T2K
experiment
has
~
500
physicists
from
11
countries)
² To
meet
many
interesting
and
intelligent
people
² Travel
to
many
countries
² A
lot
of
useful
skills
to
be
learned,
such
as
programing,
data
analysis.
Many
physicists
can
work
in
finance
and
consulting
companies
² Can
be
friend
with
very
COOL
technology
such
as
superconducting
magnet,
accelerator..
Develop
unique
way
to
think,
to
approach
unknowns,
to
solve
the
problem,
to
design
experiment
by
your
own.

40. On
the
path
to
be
particle
physicists?
7/1/16 40
² Stay
curious
and
enjoy
your
journey
² Physics:
Standard
Model,
quantum
mechanics
(I
recommend
group
theory
if
you
love
symmetry)
² Math:
is
important,
we
should
learn
and
understand
² Statistics:
is
required
since
you
are
working
with
data.
You
need
to
know
what
data
tell
you
and
how
to
extract
information
from
data.
² Programming
and
computing:
computer,
super-­‐computer
are
your
friends,
make
use
of
it,
you
can
go
farther/quicker
than
you
can
imagine.
² Engineering:
Every
complicated
detectors
make
of
basic
elements.
Understand
them
first
and
then
you
can
build
complicate
things.

41. Vietnam
culture
7/1/16 41

42. Vietnam
culture
7/1/16 42
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
² Vietnam
is
a
multiethnic
country,
over
54
ethic
groups
recognized,
the
largest
group
is
Kinh (Viet)
86%
of
population
(I’m
one
of
them)
² Each
ethic
group
has
its
own
cultureà Vietnam
culture
is
fairly
diverse
² The
differences
can
be
seen
from
their
clothing
and
their
languages
I
will
mainly
talk
about
the
culture
of
Kinh group,
the
largest
group
in
Vietnam.
(You
will
mainly
meet
Kinh people
if
you
stay
in
the
city;
other ethich groups typically live in
near to the mountains. )

43. Vietnam
culture
7/1/16 43
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Japan
² Use
family
name
to
call,
like
Vietnam
² Use
first
name
to
call,
like
me
Cao Văn
Sơn Noguchi
Yohei
Family
name First
name
Middle
name
Family
name First
name
Name
to
call

44. Vietnam
culture
7/1/16 44
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Japan
² Three
writing
systems:
Kanji,
hiragana,
katakana
Vietnam
² One
writing
systems:
Vietnamese
alphabet
is
the
Latin
alphabet
with
additional
diacritics
for
tones
and
certain
latters
*
Multiple
language
and
dialects
from
various
ethic
groups

45. Vietnam
culture
(compare
to
Japan)
7/1/16 45
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Japan
² Belief:
50%-­‐80%
pray
and
worship
ancestors
and
gods
Vietnam
² Belief:
worshiping
of
ancestors
is
the
most
important
practice
Vietnam:
Children
learn
that
they
own
everything
to
their
parents
and
their
ancestors.
Doing
well
in
the
school
and
work
hard
honor
their
parent
and
family
name.
Also
younger
people
needs
to
respect
the
elder
because
of
their
life
experience.

46. Vietnam
culture
(compare
to
Japan)
7/1/16 46
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Vietnam:
Children
learn
that
they
own
everything
to
their
parents
and
their
ancestors.
Doing
well
in
the
school
and
work
hard
honor
their
parent
and
family
name.
Also
younger
people
needs
to
respect
the
elder
because
of
their
life
experience.
Seat needs to give up to elderly personShow respect to elderly person on New Year,
and
get gift and wise advice from them.

47. Vietnam
culture
(compare
to
Japan)
7/1/16 47
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Japan
² Asking
“Nan
sai desu ka?”
is
normal
Vietnam
² Avoid to
ask
“how
old
are
you”,
especially
to
young
lady.
It’s
okie
to
children

48. Vietnam
culture:
Marks
7/1/16 48
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Japan
² Correct/wrong
marks
for
answer
Vietnam
² Correct/wrong
marks
for
answer
✓
Don’t
take
any
granted.

49. Vietnam
culture
7/1/16 49
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Japan
² Traditional
clothing
Vietnam
² Traditional
clothing
Áo dài

50. Vietnam
culture
(compare
to
Japan)
7/1/16 50
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Japan
² Drive/walk
on
the
left
Vietnam
² Drive/walk
on
the
right

51. Vietnam
culture
7/1/16 51
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
Japan
² Meal:
Multiple
dishes
with
small
portion
(compare
to
Vietnam)
Vietnam
² Meal:
small
number
of
dishes
but
each
contain
sufficient
portion

52. Additional
things
to
remember
7/1/16 52
² Vending
machine:
It
is
not
popular.
Please
bring
water
with
you
when
leaving
the
hotel
to
somewhere
(Of
course
you
can
buy,
but
the
price
might
be
different
on
the
street)
² Garbage
separation:
Not
like
Japan,
system
of
garbage
separation
is
not
well-­‐founded.
In
most
of
hotel,
the
garbage
is
not
classified.
² People
are
normally
kind
and
friendly
but
it
is
good
to
have
local
people
with
you.
² Party:
Vietnamese
people
are
normally
noisy
in
the
party
(This
style
is
different
from
Japanese
people)

53. 7/1/16 53
Culture,
is
not
better
or
worse,
just
different.
We
should
respect
the
difference.
I
can
list
more
but
time
is
limited.
Also,
it’s
better
if
you
can
learn
by
yourself.
Email
me
if
you
need
help:
cao.v.son@gmail.com
I’m
on
Facebook
too
:)

54. 7/1/16 54
ありがとうございました。
Thank
you
very
much.
Xin chân thành cảm ơn.
*Cute
animate
I
show
can
be
found
at:
http://higgstan.com

55. Symmetry
of
space
and
time
7/1/16 55
² Translational
symmetry:
The
law
of
physics
are
the
same
everywhere
and
at
all
times;
² Rotational
symmetry:
The
law
of
physics
don’t
depend
on
how
we
choose
the
coordinates
² Boost
symmetry:
The
law
of
physics
are
same
for
someone
standing
still
and
for
those
who
is
moving
at
a
constant
velocity
² Poincare
symmetry:

56. CPT
symmetry
7/1/16 56