May 2020 Issue of Physics Today Now Available
Hua Liu American Astronomical Society (AAS)
Physics Today, the flagship publication of the American Institute of Physics (AIP), is the most influential and closely followed physics magazine in the world. With authoritative features, full news coverage and analysis, and fresh perspectives on technological advances and groundbreaking research, Physics Today informs readers about science and its role in society. Members of the AAS, an AIP Member Society, automatically receive free print and online subscriptions to the magazine. Physics Today Online, the magazine’s internet home, presents an enhanced digital edition and provides a valuable online archive.
In the May 2020 Issue
An Atomic Physics Perspective on the Kilogram’s New Definition
A fixed value for Planck’s constant connects the kilogram to frequency measurements. — Wolfgang Ketterle & Alan Jamison
World’s Physics Instruments Turn Their Focus to COVID-19
Scientists are employing x rays, electrons, and neutrons to decipher and disable the molecular machinery of the novel coronavirus. — David Kramer
Tying Celestial Mechanics to Earth’s Ice Ages
Gradual falls and sharp rises in temperature for millions of years have profoundly affected living conditions on the planet and, consequently, our own evolution. — Mark Maslin
NSF and Postwar US Science
In the early days of NSF, its leaders dreamed of large-scale federal investment in basic science but had to carve out a place for the new foundation in the complicated landscape of US science funding. — Emily Gibson
Radar Points the Way to Detecting Cosmic Neutrinos
A laboratory experiment at SLAC offers the first observations of radio-wave reflections from ionization trails of particle showers in a transparent solid. — R. Mark Wilson
Spongy Hydrogels Clean Textured Paintings
Washing away the dirt from an artistic masterpiece is especially tricky when the surface is not flat. New materials can help. — Johanna L. Miller