The Edge of the Universe

No matter how educated or open-minded you might be, we all have
our own individual take on the world and to that extent we all
blinders on that limit our perspective and our ability to see the
reality of our world - -and beyond – for what it really is. But,
if we accept that there's more going on than we know about, and
change the lens we’re looking through, it can open entirely new
vistas and opportunities: from big-picture things like a greater
understanding of our universe to more practical things like
helping businesses more effectively provide services to clients.


If you're looking for open-minded, perspective-changing
revolutions in science and business the first place you think to
look may not be Baton Rouge. Or neighboring Livingston Parish.
What you're about to find out may come as something of a shock.


the Edge of the Universe


Dr. Joseph Giaime is Observatory Head of the Laser Interferometer
Gravitational-Wave Observatory better known as LIGO, arguably one
of the most exciting and best-kept secrets in Louisiana. LIGO is
located in remote Livingston Parish and is a research facility
that was designed to open the field of gravitational-wave
astrophysics through the detection of gravitational waves, which,
as you may remember was predicted by Einstein’s General Theory of
Relativity.


LIGO’s massive and super-sophisticated equipment is able to
detect cosmic gravitational waves and to develop
gravitational-wave observations as an astronomical tool.  It
is one of just two such facilities in the country – it has a
sister facility in Washington State that works in tandem with it
– and is tied in with two research centers in California and at
MIT. And they are unlocking the secrets of our universe.


In 2015, LIGO researchers made international headlines when they
did in fact discover gravitational waves generated by a colliding
pair of black holes some 1.3 billion light years away - a
discovery that earned them a Nobel Prize. Joe is also a professor
of physics and astronomy at LSU, who came here back in the 1990s
to begin working at the LIGO facility here.


While Joe is looking at what’s going on out at the edge of the
into the universe, the rest of us spend the day looking at
YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram. When you’re online you
may have noticed over the last couple of years there’s a greater
prevalence of what’s called “immersive content.” That’s those 360
degree video options that make it look like you you’re actually
walking through a house, and you may have also used it if you’ve
had telemedicine visit. That technology has been developed
locally here in Baton Rouge by a company called Project Zenith
360. The co-owner of Project Zenith 360 is Conner Leblanc.


Conner’s company is developing all sorts of applications for this
technology in the healthcare, hospitality, and real estate
sectors, to name a few. Conner and his co-owners founded the
company in 2019, shortly after they all graduated from LSU and
shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic, which changed everything
and for them, created all sorts of new opportunities.


You can see traditional one-dimensional photos by Jill Lafleur
from this show on our website. And check out other equally
surprising scientific and tech breakthroughs from their home in
Baton Rouge.


 


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