Since Staci described our most recent research results
in a seminar not too long ago, I'm going to step back from the details and try
to present a very general overview of the field of atomic cooling
and trapping. My goal is to not only cover the techniques themselves,
but also to provide a clear and concise description of why the field
came into existence, where it's going in the future, and what it
has to offer to physics as a whole.