TaoFest

US/Eastern
Description

This symposium celebrates Tao Han's wide-ranging scientific achievements in particle physics and his many influential contributions to the field and its community.

Dates: May 14-15, 2026
Venue: University of Pittsburgh, Benedum Hall, Room 157

Special Events: 

May 13 at 6:30 PM, Reception at the Allegheny Observatory. Shuttle bus pick up at the Hilton Garden Inn at 6:00 PM. 

May 14 at 6:30 PM, Conference banquet at the William Pitt Union  


Surveys
Welcome reception at Allegheny observatory
    • 08:30
      Breakfast and registration
    • Talks: Day1 Monring1 157 (Benedum Hall)

      157

      Benedum Hall

      • 1
        Welcome
        Speaker: Adam Leibovich (University of Pittsburgh)
      • 2
        The Madison–Pitt Legacy: From Theoretical Beauty to Collider Discovery
        Speaker: Vernon Barger
      • 3
        Doing Particle Physics because It is Fun
        Speakers: Tilman Plehn, Tilman Plehn (Heidelberg University)
      • 4
        The Tao of Leadership
        Speaker: Elizabeth Simmons (University of California, San Diego)
    • 10:20
      Coffee break
    • Talks: Day1 Morning2 157 (Benedum Hall)

      157

      Benedum Hall

    • 12:30
      Lunch break
    • Talks: Day1 Afternoon1 157 (Benedum Hall)

      157

      Benedum Hall

      • 9
        Parton level Monte Carlos, vector boson scattering and other fun work with Tao
        Speakers: Dieter Zeppenfeld, Dieter Zeppenfeld (KIT, Karlsruhe)
      • 10
        The Colorful Life of Tao in the Colorless H Branch
        Speakers: Shufang Su (University of Arizona), Shufang Su (University of Arizona), Shufang Su (University of Arizona)
      • 11
        LNV and VBS in the Tao Sector
        Speaker: Richard Ruiz (Institute of Nuclear Physics Polish Academy of Sciences (IFJ PAN))
    • 15:15
      Coffee break
    • Talks: Day1 Afternoon2 157 (Benedum Hall)

      157

      Benedum Hall

      • 12
        High Energy Physics in the Times of Tao
        Speaker: Carlos E.M. Wagner
      • 13
        From TASI to the CSM
        Speakers: Neil Christensen (Illinois State University), Dr Neil Christensen (Illinois State University)
      • 14
        Dark Matter Scattering: New Signals and Models
        Speakers: Bhaskar Dutta, Bhaskar Dutta, Prof. Bhaskar Dutta
      • 15
        TBD
        Speaker: Jack Gunion
    • Banquet Lower Lounge (William Pitt Union)

      Lower Lounge

      William Pitt Union

    • 08:30
      Breakfast
    • Talks: Day2 Monring1 157 (Benedum Hall)

      157

      Benedum Hall

      • 16
        Electroweak Restoration at the LHC and beyond
        Speaker: Ian Lewis (The University of Kansas)
      • 17
        TAO at future lepton colliders
        Speaker: Dr Yang Ma (UCLouvain)
      • 18
        A Journey Through the Energy Frontier with Tao
        Speaker: Dorival Gonçalves (Oklahoma State University)
    • 10:15
      Coffee break
    • Talks: Day2 Monring2+Remarks 157 (Benedum Hall)

      157

      Benedum Hall

      • 19
        What Can Tao and I Do With High-Energy Neutrinos?
        Speaker: Dan Hooper (University of Wisconsin, Madison)
      • 20
        The Tao (道)of Symmetry: an Information-theoretic Perspective
        Speakers: Ian Low (Argonne National Lab/Northwestern Univ), Ian Low, Ian Low (Argonne National Laboratory (US))
      • 21
        My quantum journey with Tao
        Speakers: Liantao Wang, Liantao Wang