Fair Haven Physicist to Talk Chaos at TEDxAsburyPark

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By Chris Rotolo

FAIR HAVEN – If a butterfly in Brazil flaps its wings hard enough, could it cause a hurricane in Texas?

Such is the notion associated with chaos theory, a mathematical concept focusing on the behavior of dynamic systems that are sensitive to the most minute exterior conditions.

It’s an idea that was brought to the big screen in the 1994 film “Jurassic Park,” when Dr. Ian Malcolm, played by Jeff Goldblum, uses two droplets of water on the same surface maneuvering in opposite directions as an illustration of the concept.

Andrew Maris, a quantum researcher, will present his own interpretation of the theory when he takes the stage May 18 at TEDxAsburyPark, where the theme of the conference is none other than CHAOS.

An alumnus of Sickles School and Knollwood School, and a 2015 graduate of Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School, Maris said he is looking forward to the opportunity to discuss the idea in the Shore community he grew up in, especially when it can be so appropriately applied to one of the area’s most devastating weather events on record.

“Chaos is a limit on our ability to predict the future, but there are some ways we can still talk about systems that are chaotic,” Maris explained. “The idea of chaos hits particularly close to home for people of the Jersey Shore, because Super Storm Sandy was such a destructive event.”

Maris said he’ll never forget the chaos that ensued when the storm left so much destruction across the bridge in nearby Sea Bright and severe damage in his own community near the Navesink and Shrewsbury rivers.

“Sandy was so devastating because we didn’t know ahead of time how bad it was going to be,” Maris said. “If we had a month, or a year, we could have prepared. But one of the consequences of chaos is that we can’t predict the weather.”

“For many residents of the Shore, they’ll look at chaos in a negative way because it impacted their lives in such a negative way. But it’s important to look on the flip side of chaos, too. Though that storm did hit our community, chaos is also the reason why so many others don’t,” he said.

In many ways, the study of chaos theory is a retrospective endeavor, one in which we all partake from time-to-time.

The internal question, “How did I get into this mess?” and the ensuing practice of retracing steps that led to the predicament is a prime example of the theory at work.

Alternatively, a review of the positive relationships in your life with significant others, friends and pets, as well as the various twists and turns in life that led to the point of first contact, is also the study of chaos theory at work.

It’s these everyday moments that piqued the interest of Maris and prompted him to continue his research while majoring in physics at Carleton College, a private liberal arts institute in Northfield, Minnesota.

“What interests me is how this science can be applied to our world and how the world can gain understanding of the science. Everyone recognizes that the world is a chaotic system. And it can be frightening at times, especially when you think about it in terms of ‘Jurassic Park,’ where everything goes wrong and dinosaurs start eating people,” said Maris. “But it’s something we should really welcome into our lives.”

Maris said the integration of chaos has already started, as engineers have started to design new machinery with elements of chaos built in, which allows the equipment to react to a volatile and unpredictable environment without skipping a beat.

Speaking of beats, the human heart is now being viewed by the medical field as an example of a positive chaotic system, in the sense that our heart rate is able to fluctuate in certain situations, slowing in the evening to allow one to sleep and surging in stressful situations as a warning sign of an unsettling circumstance.

Maris said his own entry into the field of chaos research was itself an exercise in the theory.

“The reason I joined a chaos research group at college was because I had no idea what I wanted to do. So I emailed every professor in the physics department to learn more about their work. I got one response back to come to a meeting about chaos theory. The opportunity presented itself,” said Maris.

“I found something I’m passionate about and now I’m speaking at TEDxAsburyPark. What if some small factor had changed? Maybe I’m not here right now.”

For more information on Maris and the conference visit tedxasburypark.com.