Explore a comprehensive lecture on heavy ion physics at high energies, delivered by Rob Pisarski from Brookhaven National Laboratory. Delve into the modern theory of nuclear forces, Quantum Chromo Dynamics (QCD), and the fascinating world of quarks and gluons. Discover the history and results of ultra-relativistic heavy ion collisions, which have potentially created a new phase of matter called the Quark-Gluon Plasma. Learn about the four states of matter, gauge theories, and the principles of QED and QCD. Examine the concept of asymptotic freedom, confinement in QCD, and the use of lattice QCD for computations. Explore the phase transition to QGP, the history of the universe, and the hunt for QGP in heavy ion collisions. Gain insights into experiments at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), and understand phenomena like elliptic flow and jet quenching. Conclude with an exploration of the QCD phase diagram and the potential for a new golden age in low-energy heavy ion physics. Read more