Editorial – Light is Here!
From an idea hatched back in 2009, the International Year of Light 2015 has now arrived in full force! What an amazing two days it was in Paris at UNESCO HQ at the Opening Ceremony, where the international scientific community came together with diplomats and politicians, architects and designers, leading companies in light technologies, representatives from the European Commission, artists and performers, students, volunteers and many more.
EPS Emmy Noether Distinction Autumn 2014 for Women in Physics
It is a great pleasure to announce that the Autumn 2014 EPS Emmy Noether Distinction for Women in Physics goes to Prof. Anne L’Huillier, Faculty of Engineering, LTH in Lund, Sweden.
Anne is one of the key leaders in a field at the interface of atomic and molecular physics and advanced optics, nonlinear optics and laser physics: high-order harmonic generation [HHG] in gaseous media exposed to intense laser fields and its applications.
LIGHT2015 – Photonics: Discover the Power of Light
The International Year of Light in Europe 2015 [LIGHT2015] – funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme – is a high impact EU-wide outreach and education initiative that aims to promote the importance of photonics to young people, entrepreneurs and the general public during the International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies [IYL 2015]. The project, coordinated by the European Physical Society [EPS], will leverage the tremendous visibility of IYL 2015 to ensure that the public in all member states of the EU understands and appreciates the importance that photonics has for society.
International Year of Light news
The Opening Ceremony of the “Année Internationale de la Lumière 2015 en France” (International Year of Light in France 2015) took place in Paris on 8 January 2015 in the lecture hall of the University of Sorbonne under the patronage of France’s President François Hollande.
This prestigious place saw great names of the physics community such as Noble Prize winner Claude Cohen-Tannoudji and Serge Haroche, as well as Alain Aspect from the Académie des Sciences and Gérard Mourou from the Ecole Polytechnique, deliver brilliant presentations.
GalileoMobile: sharing astronomy in rural areas
Astronomy is a powerful and inspiring tool that can be used to motivate children to learn more about the world beyond their immediate neighbourhood, to encourage critical thinking, and engage them in different scientific disciplines. Although in our modern world there are many outreach programmes that bring astronomy to the classroom, most of them act in cities and rely heavily on internet connections. Thus, pupils and teachers in rural and remote areas rarely benefit from such efforts, making it difficult to know about modern space missions and world interpretations based on modern astronomy.
FPS VI: Improving the image of physics: a challenge
Forty delegates met in Belgrade (RS) on 2 October 2014 in the marvellous surroundings of the University Rector’s Office for the EPS Sixth Forum Physics and Society.
By 16:00 Friday 3 October we were convinced that improving the image of physics will:
• Increase the support for physics research funding through increased appreciation of physics among the public and politicians;
• Increase the contribution of physics to the economy through increasing the number or physicists using their skills …
The L’Aquila sentences – the role and responsibility of scientists
On 10 November 2014 the L’Aquila appellate court cleared Italian scientists of the manslaughter charges after the earthquake of 6 April 2009. The six leading scientists and disaster experts, and the Deputy Head of the Department of Civil Protection [DPC], had been given, in the first instance trial in 2012, a six-year jail sentence. “The credibility of Italy’s entire scientific community has been restored” commented S. Gresta, the president of the INGV.
In the L’Aquila region, an area of high seismic activity, a seismic sequence started in January 2009 and continued in …
EPS Physics Education Division Award for Secondary School Teaching
The European Physical Society, acting through its Physics Education Division, is pleased to announce that nominations for the Award for Secondary School Teaching are now open. This Award is subject to the following criteria: the award should be made to an individual high school teacher (it is not a team award) ; the award should recognize work that directly affects students of physics in one or more European secondary schools (what constitutes a secondary school may be broadly interpreted, but specifically excludes primary schools and universities.)
14th European Solar Physics Meeting in Dublin, Ireland
From 8-12 September 2014, the European Solar Physics Division [ESPD] ran the 14th European Solar Physics Meeting [ESPM-14] in Dublin, Ireland. The meeting was hosted by the active and rapidly growing solar physics team of Trinity College Dublin, led by Professor Peter T Gallagher. Dr Shaun Bloomfield chaired the Local Organising Committee. The Scientific Organising Committee consisted of the members of the ESPD Board and was chaired by its President, Professor Valery M Nakariakov (Warwick, UK). ESPMs are run
An interdisciplinary “pan-European” association
In 2013, the intergovernmental framework for European Cooperation in Science and Technology [COST]1 launched the targeted network TN1301: Next Generation of Young Scientists: Towards a Contemporary Spirit of R&I – Sci-GENERATION. Sci-GENERATION aims to elaborate contemporary scientific thought thereby disseminating a new spirit of research and innovation in Europe.
UK Government to strengthen Science and Innovation
On 17 December 2014, the UK government presented its science and innovation strategy for 2016-2021 in its publication Our plan for growth: science and innovation. This document strongly supports a knowledge based economy, and the UK government is committing £5.9 billion capital to support scientific excellence from 2016 to 2021, the most long term commitment to science capital in decades. Investment in research and other forms of innovation helps businesses to reach higher productivity, create high quality jobs and develop new markets and services. In order to address the challenges ahead, the proposed plan is based on 6 elements: deciding priorities, nurturing scientific …
A breakfast at ESA
On 16 January 2015, ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain met the press to provide an overview of ESA’s achievements in 2014 and the opportunities ahead in 2015. The event took place at ESA headquarters in Paris, France.
After a successful Council meeting at Ministerial level, held on 2 December, 2015 will be another year when ESA launches missions that cover all the domains of the space sector, in partnership and cooperation with other European institutions and industry, demonstrating the strength of the European space programme.
Within human spaceflight, the year will start with the undocking from the International Space Station of ATV Georges …
