December 1995 Physics Today Contents


Articles:

What Future Will We Choose for Physics?

US physics faculties are aging rapidly and responding far too slowly to new opportunities across the sciences. We must reverse the trends if we are to preserve the historic vitality of the profession -- Sol M. Gruner, James S. Langer, Phil Nelson and Viola Vogel

Scanning Force Microscopy in Biology

A high-resolution instrument that can operate in liquids is making complex biological structures accessible to study in conditions close to those that exist in living organisms -- Carlos Bustamante and David Keller

Eugene Paul Wigner: A Towering Figure of Modern Physics

He was always "reasonable" and believed that physics had a duty to provide a living picture of our world -- Erich Vogt

Symmetry in Physics: Wigner's Legacy

The role of symmetry in physics has evolved greatly during this century. Eugene Wigner made profound contributions to this development -- David J. Gross


Departments:

Search and Discovery

Nobel Prize in Physics goes to Frederick Reines for detection of the neutrino . . . In the 1950s Reines and Cowan sought and found the hypothetical particle postulated by Pauli in 1930. Four decades later (two decades after Cowan's death) Reines is being honored for this feat.

. . . And Martin Perl wins for discovering the tau lepton. The discovery of a third charged lepton, 20 years ago, gave us the first glimpse of a third "generation" of fundamental particles.

Nobel Chemistry Prize gives a stratospheric boost to atmospheric scientists. After identifying mechanisms for atmospheric ozone depletion, Crutzen, Molina and Rowland have continued to strengthen our understanding of such processes.

Links to 1995 Nobel Prize Information.

Career Choices

Bringing physics to the people, Texas style

Washington Reports

Clinton defends nation's R&D against Congress but neglects to offer major science policy

With high-energy physicists jittery, DOE begins talks with LHC leaders

Aggressive reforms and downsizing will improve DOE labs, says panel

Physics Community

Peace Prize shared by physicist of conscience and Pugwash movement founded to avert nuclear war
Links to 1995 Nobel Prize Information.

New order at Bell Labs after AT&T's breakup

Wissbrun is president of Society of Rheology

Journal of Rheology gets a new editor

AVS elects McGuire to be president elect

Books

The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein, Vol. 5: The Swiss Years Writings, 1902--1914, A. Beck, English translation (reviewed by M. Sachs)

Fractal Physiology, J. B. Bassingthwaighte, L. S. Liebovitch and B. J. West (reviewed by H. E. Stanley)

An Interpretive Introduction to Quantum Field Theory, P. Teller (reviewed by E. Merzbacher)

Solid Helium Three, E. R. Dobbs (reviewed by M. Cross)

Introduction to Solid State Physics, C. Kittel;
Introduction to the Physics of Electrons in Solids, B. K. Tanner (reviewed by J. C. Phillips)

Introduction to Mechanics and Symmetry, J. E. Marsden and T. S. Ratiu;
Mechanics: From Newton's Laws to Deterministic Chaos, F. Scheck (reviewed by M. E. Mayer)

Detection of Light: From the Ultraviolet to the Submillimeter, G. H. Rieke (reviewed by L. G. Rubin)

Space Plasmas: Coupling Between Small and Medium Scale Processes, edited by M. Ashour-Abdalla, T. Chang and P. Dusenbery (reviewed by T. E. Eastman)

Plus...

Our regular sections: Physics Update, Letters, New Products, We Hear That, and Information Exchange.

And...

Our Annual Index.


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