Groundhog  Day
2014

Amherst Cinema Amherst, MA

with

Dr. Kannan Jagannathan

Professor of Physics, Amherst College

Groundhog Day— Time Travel, Time Loops, and the Laws of Physics

Time travel has been imagined in many popular works of fiction. With Groundhog Day, Dr. Kannan Jagannathan raised questions as a physicist about time travel, and explored how minimal, elegant, and consistent the violations of physical laws are in the film. The big change in the physicist’s view of time relevant here is what Einstein did in the special theory of relativity in 1905. And there is also the overarching issue of reversing the ‘flow’ of time.

Amherst Cinema Amherst, MA

Film Synopsis

A weatherman finds himself living the same day over and over again.

Director Harold Ramis’s offbeat modern comedy classic tells the story of Phil Connors (Bill Murray), an arrogant, self-centered TV weatherman, assigned to cover the groundhog's annual appearance in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. It's his fourth year waiting on word from the rodent to determine the length of the remaining winter, and Phil couldn't be more open about his disdain for the town, his job, and his co-workers. When he awakens on what should be the following day, he inexplicably finds himself stuck in a time loop, dooming him to repeat his most hated day of the year, over and over again, until he finally gets things right.

About the Speaker

Dr. Kannan Jagannathan, professor of physics, has been teaching at Amherst College since 1981. His background is in theoretical physics, in particular quantum physics and relativity