International Cosmic Day
The first International Cosmic Day will be held on 26 September this year. During this event, students and teachers worldwide will come together in research institutions, universities and classrooms to learn about cosmic particle research.
The event will celebrate the centenary of Victor Franz Hess’ discovery of cosmic rays – particles which originate in outer space and spread through the whole universe, often at extremely high energies. Through a series of seven high-altitude balloon rides, Hess measured the ionisation of the atmosphere…
Editorial: Widening our 2020 Horizons
Dear Readers,
The European Physical Society [EPS] has been duly responding to various questionnaires from Brussels, to provide significant input to the European Union’s scientific policies, namely in: ‘Areas of untapped potential for the development of the European Research Area’ and ‘Towards a Common Strategic Framework for EU Research and Innovation Funding’.
In particular, the EPS has been repeatedly stressing the importance of investment…
2013 International Nanoelectronics Conference
The 5th International Nanoelectronics Conference [INEC 2013] of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers [IEEE] will be held at the Resorts World Sentosa, in Singapore, on 2-4 January 2013. The theme of the conference will be future and sustainable nanoelectronics, and will aim to explore the connections between fundamental research and practical applications in this field.
The event will be conducted as four parallel symposia…
Cabled Observatory event explores multi-disciplinary synergy
A “Deep Ocean Cabled Observatories” workshop – examining potential synergies between astroparticle physics and marine and earth sciences – was held at NIKHEF, in Amsterdam, on 24-25 May this year.
The conference revealed many areas in which physics can collaborate with other disciplines – with the deep-ocean physics installations providing the perfect opportunity to accommodate such devices as seismometers and hydrophones, to gather data for varied researches…
Higgs? CERN sees new particle consistent with elusive boson
CERN’s ATLAS and CMS experiments have observed a new particle – consistent with the elusive Higgs boson – in the mass region around 125-126 GeV/c2, it was announced during a seminar at the Swiss-based laboratory on 4 July.
“The five sigma signal – at around 125 GeV – we’re seeing is dramatic. This is indeed a new particle. We know it must be a boson and it’s the heaviest boson ever found,” said CMS experiment spokesperson Joe Incandela. “The implications are very significant and it is precisely for this reason that we must be extremely diligent in all of our studies…
New edition of the Review of Particle Physics now online
The latest issue of the Review of Particle Physics has been published online last month. The review – often referred to as the “the Bible of particle physics” – comprehensively covers the fields of high-energy and astroparticle physics.
This current edition contains the latest data on such current research topics as Higgs bosons, supersymmetry, B mesons, neutrinos, dark matter, dark energy, the Big Bang and the early universe. In total, the 2012 publication covers 2,568 new measurements and contains 112 comprehensive review articles…
Chinese Physical Society celebrates 80th Anniversary
The Chinese Physical Society is celebrating its 80th Anniversary on 25 August this year. A commemorate event, which is being held in Beijing, will bring together international physics leaders to discuss the status of physics worldwide. European Physical Society president Luisa Cifarelli will be in attendance.
The celebratory special session will also include a forum on physics education and outreach, workshops in a number of select research fields, and excursions to local laboratories and places of interest…
EPS’s Caterina Biscari to head synchrotron facility
Caterina Biscari is being appointed the director of the Laboratory of Synchrotron Light CELLS-ALBA, in Barcelona, it was announced on 13 July. Biscari, a researcher with the Italian Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, will begin her new duties from September this year. The ALBA laboratory – which has been in operation since March 2012 – uses synchrotron light for a wide variety of experiments.
An internationally renowned expert in particle accelerator technologies, Biscari has…
Marisa Michelini elected new president of GIREP
Marisa Michelini was elected the new president of the Groupe International de Recherche sur l’Enseignement de la Physique [GIREP] during the World Conference on Physics Education, which was held on 1-6 July this year.
Michelini – a professor of Physics Education at the University of Udine’s Faculty of Science of Education – has a long standing relationship with physics education. The founder of the Centre for Teaching Physics Laboratory at the University of Friuli, Michelini has also been a director…
EPS-SIF School on Energy – Course 1
The first course of the Joint EPS-SIF International School on Energy – entitled “New strategies for energy generation, conversion and storage” – will be held at the Villa Monastero, in Varenna, between 30 July and 4 August this year.
The school aims to present all the fields of physics which are relevant to technologies for energy production, conversion, transmission and efficiency. Topics which will be covered during the course include: biomass; climate issues; energy saving technology; fission; fossil fuels; fusion; hydro; solar, photovoltaic and photothermal sources; and wind…
Quantum School
The Advanced School on Quantum Foundations and Open Quantum Systems will be held between 16-28 July this year, at the Tropical Hotel Tambaú, in João Pessoa, Brazil. The event aims to train young researchers and encourage the exchange of knowledge across various research areas.
Topics under discussion at the school will include: beyond the quantum; open quantum systems; philosophy of quantum mechanics; quantum information; quantum statistical physics and quantum solid state…
2012 EPS/ICPP conference
The 39th European Physical Society Conference on Plasma Physics and the 16th International Congress on Plasma Physics will be held at the Stockholm Waterfront Congress Centre in Stockholm, Sweden on 2-6 July this year.
Topics under discussion at the event include: beam plasmas, complex plasmas, dusty and low temperature plasmas, fusion plasmas, fusion research, high energy density plasmas, inertial confinement fusion, laser-plasma interaction, magnetic confinement fusion, plasma applications and technologies plasmas in astrophysics and quantum plasmas…
