ENROLLED
2017 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 33
BY REPRESENTATIVE DAVIS
A RESOLUTION
To commend Gabriela González for her work in the recent groundbreaking scientific
discovery of gravitational waves.
WHEREAS, Gabriela González is an experimental physicist with the Laser
Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) in Livingston, Louisiana, and a
professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Louisiana State University; and
WHEREAS, years of research and hard work came to fruition with the detection of
a single ripple in the fabric of space and time on September 14, 2015. At 4:50:45 a.m.,
LIGO detected a signal of a gravitational wave, and nearly seven milliseconds later, another
identical signal reached the LIGO Hanford facility in Hanford, Washington, confirming the
signal and the presence of gravitational waves in the universe; and
WHEREAS, this particular wave occurred as a result of two black holes colliding
with each other nearly 1.3 billion years ago, and in the final fraction of a second of the
collision, a large amount of energy was emitted in the form of gravitational waves and
spread out through the universe and reached Earth on that fateful September morning; and
WHEREAS, not only did González and her collaborators confirm the general theory
of relativity that Albert Einstein predicted a century ago, but they also have opened up
countless opportunities for a new age of scientific discovery; and
WHEREAS, this discovery is so groundbreaking, Einstein himself doubted scientists
would ever be able to physically measure and record these waves; but with dedication and
passion for understanding the universe, González and the team of LIGO scientists did just
that; and
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WHEREAS, Gabriela González has been named one of the top ten scientists in the
world by the scientific journal Nature, adding to an impressive list of accolades that include
Scientist of the Year by Great Minds in STEM and one of the top 100 Leading Global
Thinkers by Foreign Policy magazine; and
WHEREAS, on behalf of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration, she received the 2016
Breakthrough of the Year from Physics World for "their revolutionary, first ever direct
observations of gravitational waves"; and
WHEREAS, in addition, González, who was born in Córdoba, Argentina, was also
awarded the highest distinction from the Senate of Argentina, the Honorable Domingo
Faustino Sarmiento award.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby commend Gabriela González for her work in the recent
groundbreaking scientific discovery of gravitational waves and wish her continued success
in her career.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be transmitted
to Gabriela González.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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