January 2021 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 January 2021 Issue
S Is for Science: The Making of 3-2-1 Contact
The beloved after-school show of the 1980s was the product of a then revolutionary idea: asking children what they wanted in a television science series. — Ingrid Ockert
Overlooked Mechanisms behind Seismic Damage
Photographs of aboveground and underground structural failures after earthquakes uncover simple but not widely recognized physics. — Koji Uenishi
Science and Technology of the Casimir Effect
Caused by simple fluctuations in space, the Casimir effect may validate theories of the cosmological constant and allow for measurements of ultrasmall magnetic fields. — Alex Stange, David Campbell, and David Bishop
A Portable Laser System Fills the Terahertz Gap
With the right dimensions, a laser composed of a series of quantum wells emits hard-to-produce terahertz-frequency light without the usual need for cryogenic cooling. — Heather M. Hill
A Galactic Fast Radio Burst Finally Reveals Its Origin
Observations at multiple wavelengths provide compelling evidence that the first example of a fast radio burst detected in our galaxy came from a magnetized neutron star. — Rachel Berkowitz
Canada’s Nuclear Future Brightens
Although the Canadian and US nuclear industries have shared origins in World War II, their paths soon diverged. — David Kramer