Colloquium: Dr. Demos Kazanas, NASA

Cosmological Inflation has been considered as a critical element of modern cosmology. After a brief introduction of cosmology from a Newtonian perspective (aimed at an understanding by the students), I will focus on the associated problems with its initial conditions and my personal foray in an attempt to resolve the so called Horizon problem. I will then describe the subsequent evolution of the notions of cosmological inflation as developed since and the problems that apparently still plague this picture. I will conclude with my personal views on the meaning of inflation and some problems still open in cosmology and gravitational theory and a personal view on how they might be resolved.