Ashley Ross - February 9, 2016

Robust and Precise Physical Measurements using Galaxy Surveys: Successes
from BOSS and Lessons for the Future

Galaxy surveys allow answers to fundamental questions such as: What is the 
nature of Dark Energy? Can we detect deviations from General Relativity (GR)? 
What is the mass of the neutrino(s)? I will explain how using examples of 
measurements made using the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey 
(BOSS). I will describe the BOSS data, the methods we use to measure the 
clustering of BOSS galaxies, and how our most recent clustering measurements 
have allowed us to measure the distance to BOSS galaxies to within 1% precision.
 I will further describe some of the technical challenges and systematic 
concerns in our analysis, and the methods and measurements we have used to 
ameliorate these concerns. I will then discuss the early results from the Dark 
Energy Survey and the extended BOSS (eBOSS), both of which are in the early 
phases of data analysis/operation. I will conclude with a discussion of the 
results that will be afforded by future surveys, such as DESI.