Ultra-relativistic collisions between heavy nuclei produce the quark-gluon plasma (QGP), a unique state of matter that characterized the early universe for the first few microseconds after the Big Bang. Among the most surprising results from the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) was the discovery that the QGP acts like a fluid with remarkable properties. A hydrodynamic treatment is now the standard paradigm in probing the bulk properties of the Strong Force in nuclear collisions. I will discuss a recent discovery by the STAR Collaboration that probes for the first time the vorticity of the fluid produced in these collisions. These unique results provide a clear validation of the hydrodynamic picture, while at the same time opening a new window in the study of Quantum Chromodynamics through nuclear collisions. The story of this discovery involves several interesting connections to the OSU physics department.
