Sommerfeld Theory Colloquium, In February 2016 the LIGO team announced the detection of gravitational

waves (GW) created by the merger of two black holes. In addition

to confirming a major prediction of general relativity, successful

GW detection would provide a powerful new tool for astrophysics.

Given their evident importance, the LIGO results and the methods

which led to them deserve independent critical analysis. This talk

will present the results of one such study in a manner suitable for

non-specialists.