News from the worldwide physics community

Get Involved in SET for Britain

The Institute of Physics (IOP) has welcomed the launch of the SET for Britain competition and encourages all early career research physicists to take part in the exhibition

EU’s threat to MRI scanners still looms large

Urgent action and public pressure is still required to stop the European Union adopting legislation which will restrict the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners in the UK and throughout Europe

HEFCE picks Birmingham to roll-out STEM agenda

The Institute of Physics and the Royal Academy of Engineering have responded to the University of Birmingham’s announcement that it has been chosen to host the National Higher Education Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Programme

Research Assessment Exercise shows physics in good health

Today’s announcement by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) of the results of the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise confirms the good health of physics departments in the UK

EPSRC’s £250 million investment to spur physics for the future

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) has today announced a £250 million investment in 44 new training centres to generate over 2000 PhD students, all researching and tackling some of the biggest problems currently facing Britain such as climate change, energy and digital security

Don’t leave physics behind – response to DIUS Innovation Report

The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) has today published its first innovation report to track the progress made by the UK government in making the UK the best place in the world to run an innovative business

A picture paints more than a petabyte of data

In the age of the petabyte, we all need help digesting and understanding massive amounts of information. In this month’s Physics World, a series of features celebrates the ascendance of visual methods that are being used to make meaning of the mountains of scientific data

Using invisibility to increase visibility

Research into the development of invisibility devices has spurred two physicists’ thought on the behaviour of light to overcome the seemingly intractable problem of optical singularities which could soon lead to the manufacturing of a perfect cat’s eye

2009’s Woman in Science speaks at Frontiers of Physics event

Hot on the trail of Professor Athene Donald’s success in the 2009 L’Oreal UNESCO Women in Science Awards, she took part in the Institute of Physics (IOP)’s Frontiers of Physics Event in Liverpool

“It’s reality that’s at stake” – Zeilinger on film

Anton Zeilinger’s Newton Lecture, along with an exclusive interview about his scientific and personal life, can now be streamed directly from the Institute of Physics (IOP)’s website

Free telescope at Glasgow Science Centre

1,000 telescopes for UK schools

From next year pupils in 1 in 4 secondary schools will get close up views of the Moon, planets and the stars, in one of the largest astronomy outreach projects ever seen in the UK. The Society for Popular Astronomy (SPA), Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) and Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) have teamed up to give free telescopes to 1000 secondary schools from early in 2009

Dancing droplets

Our blood, sweat and tears are three precious fluids that can answer lots of questions about the state of our health but testing small amounts of bodily fluids, without contaminating them through contact with solid surfaces or other fluids, is something that fluid mechanics have long pondered

New spaceship force field makes Mars trip possible

According to the international space agencies, “Space Weather” is the single greatest obstacle to deep space travel. Radiation from the sun and cosmic rays pose a deadly threat to astronauts in space

What to do with 15 million gigabytes of data

When it is fully up and running, the four massive detectors on the new Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at the CERN particle-physics lab near Geneva are expected to produce up to 15 million gigabytes, aka 15 petabytes, of data every year. Andreas Hirstius, manager of CERN Openlab and the CERN School of Computing, explains in November’s Physics World how computer scientists have risen to the challenge of dealing with this unprecedented volume of data

RCUK Review of UK Physics meeting

Professor Bill Wakeham, chair of the RCUK Review UK Physics review panel, presented the findings of the report which was commissioned to ascertain what actions might be taken to ensure the continued health of physics research and postgraduate training in the UK

Listening to dark matter

A team of researchers in Canada have made a bold stride in the struggle to detect dark matter. The PICASSO collaboration has documented the discovery of a significant difference between the acoustic signals induced by neutrons and alpha particles in a detector based on superheated liquids

Freaky physics at Butlins

Spooky science is the order of the day at Butlins. From today, Tuesday, 14 October, for three weeks, family fun at Butlins will be taking a turn for the eerie as Redcoats get active with thunder cans, cackling caps and spooky balloons.

Three Japanese physicists take the Nobel Prize

The Institute of Physics congratulates the three physicists who have received this year’s Nobel Prize for Physics

Physics World celebrates 20th birthday

Physics World - the international monthly magazine published by the Institute of Physics - this month celebrates 20 years of news, features and opinion about the world of physics

Institute of Physics new President responds to the publication of RCUK’s Physics Review

The Institute of Physics (IOP) welcomed today’s publication of the Physics Review, commissioned earlier this year by Research Councils UK (RCUK) and conducted by a panel chaired by Professor Bill Wakeham of the University of Southampton

Flexi display technology is now

Rigid television screens, bulky laptops and still image posters are to be a thing of the past as new research, published today, Thursday, 2 October, in the New Journal of Physics, heralds the beginning of a technological revolution for screen displays

Professor Jocelyn Bell Burnell DBE becomes President

Today, Wednesday, 1 October, Professor Jocelyn Bell Burnell begins her two year term as President of the Institute of Physics (IOP)

Newly launched members network promotes debate

The Institute of Physics (IOP) is launching its members’ network ‘MyIOP’ today. The network will provide an up-to-the-minute means for all those interested in physics to communicate with one another

Make some noise for the Big Bang

As the world waits for the start of the biggest physics experiment ever undertaken, the Institute of Physics (IOP)’s Chief Executive has spoken out about the experiment and what he hopes to see after switch-on.

BA Festival of Science – Quantum Physics on TV

Communicating the concepts of quantum physics to the general public is not an easy task But one physics professor tackled this challenging subject successfully by presenting a BBC documentary aimed at explaining this mysterious and subatomic world to a national audience

BA Festival of Science – Lab in a Lorry

It’s back! Bringing slime, sludge and science, Lab in a Lorry once more hits the streets, this time in Liverpool as part of the BA Festival of Science

LHC switch-on fears are completely unfounded

A new report published on Friday, 5 September, provides the most comprehensive evidence available to confirm that the Large Hadron Collider (LHC)’s switch-on, due on Wednesday next week, poses no threat to mankind

Galaxy Zoo – an internet superstar

Since Galaxy Zoo’s launch in July 2007, some 150,000 members of the public, inspired by the opportunity to be the first to see and classify a galaxy, have helped professional astronomers via this on-line mass-participation project to carry out real scientific research.

Physics A-level entrant numbers on the rise

Year on year increase of physics A-level entrants

This morning, Thursday, 14 August, 2008, the Joint Council for Qualifications published results for 2008’s cohort of 827,737 A-level students and announced some good news for the health of physics in the UK. The number of physics A-level entrants continues to increase

Scottish physics Highers on the increase

Success for the health of physics in Scotland today, Tuesday, 5 August, as the Scottish Qualifications Authority issues results for national courses in 2008. After a period of steady decline since the beginning of the century, there has been a 2.1 per cent increase in the number of Scottish students taking physics Highers this year

China becomes a physics powerhouse

Judged by the astonishing increase in journal papers written by scientists in China, there can be little doubt that China is finding its place as one of the world’s scientific power houses. Michael Banks, Physics World’s News Editor, quantifies this surge in scientific output from China and asks whether quality matches quantity in August’s Physics World

No longer splitting hairs over splitting atoms?

As public opinion shifts and many more governments around the world consider nuclear energy as a solution to climate concerns and energy security, it is time to ask why it has become a more attractive option. The Institute of Physics (IOP) ran two sessions at this year’s Euroscience Open Forum (ESOF 2008) to hold a public discussion about the future for both nuclear fission and fusion as sources of electricity

Cow power could generate electricity for millions

Converting livestock manure into a domestic renewable fuel source could generate enough electricity to meet up to three per cent of North America’s entire consumption needs and lead to a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs), according to US research published today, Thursday, 24 July, in the Institute of Physics’ Environmental Research Letters

An ‘orderly progression’ towards decarbonised cars

From improved vehicle efficiency through hybrid cars and, possibly in due course, fully electric or hydrogen cars, the automobile industry faces a huge challenge to decarbonise road transport

Revolutionary chefs? Not likely, shows physics research

However much the likes of Jamie Oliver or Gordon Ramsay might want to shake up our diets, culinary evolution dictates that our cultural cuisines remain little changed as generations move on, shows new research, published today, Thursday, 10 July, 2008, in the Institute of Physics (IOP)’s New Journal of Physics

STFC completes its Programmatic Review

The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) has completed and published the results of its Programmatic Review. Three months of consultation resulted in more than 1,400 submissions being made to STFC from members of the research community

A bright future for plastics – robot ‘skin’, flexible laptops and electric posters

With market analysts predicting a ten fold increase in the value of the organic light emitting display industry, from £1.5 billion to £15.5 billion, by 2014, it is no wonder that scientists and governments alike are keen to advance research into "plastic electronics"

Difficulty report tarnishes A-level gold standard, the Institute of Physics and the Royal Society respond

A-level grades and the UCAS point-scoring system, which treats all subjects as equally difficult, have been tarnished by new research, published today, Tuesday, 1 July, which shows that some subjects at A-level are more difficult than others, says the Institute of Physics and the Royal Society

“Kids aren’t intimidated by cutting edge physics,” says physics rock star on tour

As Dr Mark Lewney, presenter of the Institute of Physics (IOP)’s 2008 Schools and College Lecture, prepares to pass the half-year mark in his 35-venue tour of the country with a lecture at the Royal Institution on Tuesday, 1 July, he has reflected upon the success of the tour so far.

Nanotechnology Journal provides 10 millionth article for Inspec

Inspec, the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET)’s bibliographic database, now has more than 10 million records and it was a journal article from IOP Publishing’s Nanotechnology that pushed the database over the 10 million mark

Newton Medal Winner challenges our understanding of nature

On Tuesday, 17 June, 2008, The Institute of Physics (IOP) held the Newton Lecture, given by the first ever Newton Medal Award winner, Anton Zeilinger

Four members of the Institute of Physics receive Queen’s Birthday Honours

Four members of the Institute of Physics (IOP) received Birthday Honours from the Queen in recognition of their services to industry, contribution to the advancement of sciences and physics, and for outstanding services to science education

Institute of Physics responds to the publication of the Government’s response to the Innovation, Universities, Science and Skills Committee’s Report into Science Budget Allocations

The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) has now responded to the Innovation, Universities, Science and Skills (IUSS) Select Committee’s Report into science budget allocations for 2008-11

Physics buskers enjoy a busy weekend

The Institute of Physics (IOP)’s team of physics buskers attended both the Bradford Mela and the East of England Show over the weekend (13-15 June), where visitors of all ages had a go at their physics tricks

Nuisance noise silenced by an acoustic cloak

Researchers in Spain have proven that metamaterials, materials defined by their unusual man-made cellular structure, can be designed to produce an acoustic cloak - a cloak that can make objects impervious to sound waves, literally diverting sound waves around an object

Institute of Physics submits to the Wakeham Review

The Institute of Physics (IOP) has now submitted its response to the RCUK Review of UK Physics

Synergy between biology and physics drives cell-imaging technology

A new interdisciplinary zeal has seen a number of exciting advances in super-resolution imaging technologies

Publishing team climbing because they CARE

A group of staff from IOP Publishing in Bristol are taking part in the CARE 3 Peaks Challenge supported by Computer Weekly to raise at least £6,000 for the leading overseas aid and development agency, CARE International UK

UK Robotics can lead the world

Britain’s robotics experts visited the House of Commons on Wednesday, 23 April to show MPs how the UK could become a world leader in ‘professional service robotics’.

Institute of Physics responds to launch of innovation strategy

8 May, 2008 sees the launch of the Technology Strategy Board’s (TSB) ‘Connect and Catalyse’ strategy for business innovation in the UK

Searching the Heavens

A new space mission, due to launch this month, is going to shed light on some of the most extreme astrophysical processes in nature - including pulsars, remnants of supernovae, and supermassive black holes

STFC completes its Programmatic Review

The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) has completed and published the results of its Programmatic Review. Three months of consultation resulted in more than 1,400 submissions being made to STFC from members of the research community

Physics gets top billing at Rio Cinema

The Institute of Physics and Rio Cinema in Dalston, London, have teamed up to highlight the importance of physics with Physics on Film. The cinema is screening a series of five top physics-themed films, like the groundbreaking Sunshine and the retro classic Back to the Future.

UK tabloids contributing to climate complacency

As scientific consensus around human contributions to climate change has grown, it has been misrepresented in our most widely-read UK tabloid newspapers, according to an Institute of Physics Environmental Research Letters’ journal paper, released today, Monday, 28 April.

Editor-in-Chief of Nanotechnology appointed new government chief scientific adviser

The Prime Minister yesterday named Professor Mark Welland FRS FREng as the new Chief Scientific Adviser at the Ministry of Defence.

Testing the link between cosmic rays and cloud cover

Climate change – research suggests it is not a swindle

New research has dealt a blow to the skeptics who argue that climate change is all due to cosmic rays rather than to man-made greenhouse gases.

The bombardier beetle, power venom, and spray technologies

The bombardier beetle is inspiring designers of engines, drug-delivery devices and fire extinguishers to improve spray technologies.

The future of computing – carbon nanotubes and superconductors to replace the silicon chip

The future of computing is under the spotlight at the Institute of Physics’ Condensed Matter and Materials Physics conference at the Royal Holloway College of the University of London on 26-28 March.

Firing photons makes advance in space communication

For the first time, physicists have been able to identify individual returning photons after firing and reflecting them off of a space satellite in orbit almost 1,500 kilometres above the earth. The experiment has proven the possibility of constructing a quantum channel between Space and Earth.

Largest physics experiment ever involves Cambridge pupils

Students from Netherhall School, Cambridge, have teamed up with particle physicists at the University of Cambridge for a programme of practical investigations and research to mark the start of the world’s biggest ever physics experiment - the switch-on of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC)