The state of physics in the United Kingdom

The Institute of Physics [IOP] in the United Kingdom [UK] has just released a report detailing a wealth of statistical data about staffing levels in UK physics departments between 2003-2004 and 2011-2012. Higher education in the UK has expanded enormously in the last 20 years or so and this data captures some of that expansion in the growth of staff numbers. The headline figures show that staffing levels in higher education have increased by 21% since 2003-2004 with physics staff increasing by 20%. This is quite impressive given that a lot of expansion has occurred in the newer universities that do not teach physics and at the same time a number of physics departments have closed…

ASEPS 3: a successful international meeting of physics experts and laboratory leaders

The 3rd Asia-Europe Physics Summit [ASEPS 3] took place in Chiba, Japan, from 16 to 19 July 2013. The meeting was part of the APPC12, the 12th conference of the Association of Asian Pacific Physical Societies [AAPPS].

Jointly organised by the AAPPS and the EPS, ASEPS 3 was meant to continue the work to reinforce cooperation in physics research between Asia and Europe started in the two previous editions: ASEPS 1, Tsukuba, Japan (2010) and ASEPS 2, Wroclaw, Poland (2011)…