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This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. Did you know that gravity can bend space and time, and that clocks run faster at the top of a skyscraper? Martin Hendry describes how Einstein's theory of gravity shapes our modern world, and how lasers, at the heart of the most sensitive scientific instruments ever built, are opening a whole new way of studying the cosmos. Martin Hendry is Professor of Gravitational Astrophysics and Cosmology at the University of Glasgow. He is part of a global team of more than 900 scientists leading the search to detect gravitational waves, the ripples in space and time predicted by Albert Einstein and produced by some of the most violent events in the cosmos: exploding stars, colliding black holes, perhaps even the Big Bang itself. About TEDx, x = independently organized event In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)