One of the outstanding achievements of 20th Century science was
the realisation that the great diversity of nature is based on a
handful of elementary particles acting under the influence of
only a few fundamental forces. This talk aims to give an
overview of the natural forces that shape everything around us
and outlines current research and what we believe remains to be
discovered. Prof. Peter Kalmus is Emeritus Professor at Queen
Mary, University of London. At various times he has been
President of the Physics Section of the British Association,
Vice President of the Institute of Physics, and Vice President
of the Royal Institution. A distinguished career has seen him
awarded the Rutherford Medal for his outstanding role in the
discovery of the W and Z particles, an OBE for his contributions
to physics and only last week the Kelvin medal for his role in
the public understanding of physics. Dramatic advances in the
study of stem cells - the precursor cells of blood, skin, bone
and nerve cells - could be use