February 2018 • Vol. 27, No. 2

A PUBLICATION OF THE AMERICAN PHYSICAL SOCIETY Open Access and Scientific Integrity Page 3 APS.ORG/APSNEWS

OSTP Emphasizes Quantum Computing The Making of PRL: Mission, Material, Method By Gabriel Popkin One year into a presidential administration that has by turns ignored, alienated, and defunded scientists, one scientific commu- nity may have cause to celebrate: physicists in quantum informa- By Hugues Chaté and Reinhardt ing Editor Samuel Goudsmit spun tion science. In mid-December, Schuhmann those Letters off into a separate Jacob Taylor, a physicist at the We at Physical Review Letters journal, Physical Review Letters. National Institute of Standards and The year 2018 thus marks another (PRL) are pleased to celebrate Technology (NIST), took the job anniversary, the 60th of PRL. The the 125th anniversary of our par- of assistant director for quantum Jacob Taylor past 60 years have been very suc- ent journal, The Physical Review information science in the White between the university and NIST. “It cessful and as we begin our next (journals.aps.org/125years). Over House Office of Science and means someone in the administra- 60 years, we look back at how PRL Technology Policy (OSTP). tion still thinks this is a good idea.” the years, that original publica- has evolved and share our vision Though OSTP has had quan- OSTP, formed in 1976 by an act tion has evolved into the APS for the future. tum physics experts on staff in the of Congress, has waxed and waned Physical Review journal collec- Consider PRL’s original mis- past, Taylor’s appointment is the over the decades. Under President tion, and our relationship with sion. Goudsmit conceived of PRL first position dedicated solely to Obama, it swelled to a staff of more these partner journals continues as a way to inform physicists of quantum information, a field that than 100, who advised the admin- to be strong. Every year, our jour- important developments across all many scientists believe could revo- istration on major policy matters nals share the vetting of thousands of physics in a short format acces- lutionize computing, communica- from the response to the Ebola out- of manuscripts and work together sible to a broad readership [1]. It a few in chemistry). We thank our tion, and cryptography. break to efforts to rein in green- to improve the review process and was an immediate success, and authors for their continued submis- “It’s very heartening to hear that house gases. And under Obama, the way papers are disseminated. the model continues to serve PRL sion of excellent results, and our Jake is taking this position,” says OSTP was led by a scientist, John PRL’s origins lie in a section well. Important Letters across all reviewers for their service to us Steve Rolston, a physicist at the Holdren, with both physics and called “Letters to the Editor” that subfields of physics have graced and to the community. University of Maryland, College engineering expertise. debuted in The Physical Review in its pages over the past six decades, Our mission today is still very Park and former director of the Joint But OSTP’s ranks have thinned 1929. In 1958, responding to the including those associated with much the same: to provide a mar- Quantum Institute, a partnership OSTP continued on page 6 growth of the section, then-Manag- many Nobel Prizes in physics (and PRL continued on page 6

2018 APS President Roger Falcone APS Strategic Planning Underway On January 1, 2018, Roger Falcone became the 104th President Throughout 2018, APS leadership will be developing a new Strategic Plan for the coming years. This will of the American Physical Society. update the previous plan (aps.org/about/strategy/) that covered 2013–2017. Input from APS members He is currently a professor of phys- is vital for the success of this effort. ics at the University of California, Berkeley. The interview has been Please attend a Town Hall gathering on Strategic Planning at the 2018 APS March Meeting in Los edited for length and clarity. Angeles on Thursday, March 8, from 1-2:30PM (check the website aps.org/meetings/march/highlights. What would you like mem- cfm for updates on location). Meet with 2018 APS President Roger Falcone and CEO Kate Kirby to learn bers to know about your about the initiative and take this opportunity to provide input and thoughts about the future direction of scientific background and APS. More information on opportunities for member input will appear in future issues of APS News. current research? I was an undergraduate in phys- ics at Princeton, and then went to 2018 APS March Meeting Heads West California for graduate school at Roger Falcone Stanford and a Ph.D. in electrical Around ten thousand attendees engineering. I stayed on at Stanford to a billion atmospheres and tem- peratures measured in millions of are expected to converge on the as a research fellow, working in Los Angeles Convention Center atomic and laser physics for a degrees, and examining the struc- ture and properties of materials (LACC) for the 2018 APS March few years in the applied physics Meeting. Running March 5-9, the department, and then moved to under those conditions. The applications of our work conference will feature more than Berkeley’s physics department in 1000 invited speakers, 10,000 pre- 1983. I was chair of that depart- extend from materials physics to planetary science, plasma physics, sentations, and many workshops ment for 5 years, and for the last and special events. Be sure to 10 years I was the director of and fusion. My experiments now are at x-ray free electron lasers check the meeting website for the the Advanced Light Source at latest times and locations (aps.org/ Lawrence Berkeley Lab. and large laser facilities, including the Linac Coherent Light Source meetings/march). My research has generally Among the highlights is involved the interaction of light at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and the National the Kavli Foundation Special with matter. Currently we study Symposium on Wednesday, March materials under extreme condi- Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. 7, featuring five distinguished tions of pressure and temperature. speakers (2:30–5:30 p.m.). Barry This means creating pressures up FALCONE continued on page 5 Barish (Caltech) will review the (UC Berkeley) talk, and Amir Abo- all are welcome to participate in a latest discoveries from LIGO and Shaeer (Dos Pueblos Engineering roundtable discussion on improv- talk about the new era of multi- Academy) will talk about his insti- ing the climate within physics messenger astronomy. Shoucheng tute’s programs. for gender and sexual minorities. Zhang (Stanford) will discuss one Diversity topics will be cen- The National Society of Black of the hottest topics in condensed tral to a number of sessions in Physicists and National Society matter physics—topological and Los Angeles. On Sunday, March of Hispanic Physicists meetup on quantum matter. Manu Prakash 4, Homeyra Sadaghiani (Cal Poly Wednesday will provide opportuni- (Stanford) takes a wide view with a Pomona) will lead a seminar for ties to gather and network. And the talk on “Frugal Physics and Global undergraduate and graduate women APS Forum on Education is spon- Health.” Novel superconductors on professional skills develop- soring a reception (6:15–7 p.m.) will be the subject of Ming Yi’s ment (4–6 p.m.). On Wednesday, MARCH MEETING continued on page 4

Revised 02/28/18 2 • February 2018

Spotlight on Development This Month in Physics History

APS is pleased to announce the establishment of the Irwin February 11, 1738: Jacques de Vaucanson Oppenheim Award to honor the Exhibits Flute-playing Automaton memory and celebrate the legacy of the founding editor of Physical n 18th century Europe, intricate mechanical huge success, drawing regular crowds for over a Review E (PRE). APS has launched Icreatures were all the rage among nobles and year. The wooden figure was painted white, the a campaign to endow this award commoners alike. The undisputed master of life- better to resemble a sculpture’s marble, with a and invites you to support it. like automatons was a French inventor named corresponding mechanism for every tiny muscle As the first best-paper award Jacques de Vaucanson, whom Voltaire dubbed a involved in the task. Thanks to an intricate set of by a Physical Review journal, “new Prometheus.” pipes and bellows, the automaton could “breathe,” the Oppenheim Award will recog- Vaucanson was born in Grenoble, France, in and the mouth had a movable tongue, the better to nize outstanding contributions to Irwin Oppenheim 1709, the tenth child of a glove maker. Raised in control airflow through the flute. After struggling physics by early career scientists poverty, the young Jacques showed an early inter- with motion of the wooden fingers, he wound who publish in PRE. Conceived nized on the Oppenheim cam- est in mechanical objects, and he was fascinated up covering them in a soft glove-like skin. The by the late David Chandler, a for- paign webpage; gifts of $100 or by the church clock whenever he accompanied his automaton could play 12 different melodies. mer student and long-time friend of more will also be listed in the APS Catholic mother to confession. He built his own His success brought an invitation to present his Oppenheim, this award is a fitting Annual Report. Moreover, gifts of version of the clock at home. When his father died, automaton to the French Academy of Sciences the tribute to the beloved colleague, $1,000 or more will help us get to the seven-year-old boy was following year. The acad- mentor, and friend to many—who our immediate goal of $60,000 by sent to a monastery for emy judged the machine most notably served as a senior edi- February 2018 more quickly— schooling; he brought along “extremely ingenious,” tor of PRE from its inception in thereby allowing us to bestow the a metal box filled with his and praised “both the intel- 1993 until 2002. first Oppenheim Award at the spe- parts and tools, the better ligence of the creator and APS has launched a $90,000 cial joint 2019 APS March/April to build a model boat. It wikimedia commons his extensive knowledge of endowment campaign to allow Meeting in Boston. interfered with his studies, mechanical parts.” However, the Oppenheim Award to be given For more information about the but his math teacher was court musician and flautist in perpetuity. We are enormously Award, what it will consist of, as sufficiently impressed with Johannes Joachim Quanta grateful to family members, well as Irwin Oppenheim’s remark- the boy’s drawings that he found the playing shrill, friends, and close collaborators able legacy, please visit the cam- decided to help his student probably due to the lim- of Irwin Oppenheim who have paign webpage at aps.org/about/ with the project. ited motion of the robot’s already made commitments toward support/campaigns/oppenheim/. Given his financial situ- mechanical lips. As audi- ation, Vaucanson decided a ences grew bored with his this goal, and we are currently Here you can also find details life in the clergy would give flute player, Vaucanson built seeking the balance in the form of on making a gift, or please contact him the freedom to pursue a second automaton, a tam- tax-deductible contributions. Irene I. Lukoff, APS Director of his scientific interests on Jacques de Vaucanson bourine player with a reper- Gifts of any amount will be Development, at 301-209-3224 or the side. So he toire of 20 tunes. greatly appreciated and recog- by email: [email protected] became a novice But the inven- in the Order of the tor’s master- Minims in Lyon, piece was a where he found a gold-plated, life-

patron in a local wikimedia commons sized Defecating nobleman and set Duck automaton up a workshop. that could quack, When the head of rise up on its the order came to legs, and boasted visit, Vaucanson’s what Vaucanson sense of whimsy claimed was a led him to build functioning diges- Mechanical musicians and a defecating duck some rudimen- tive system— tary automata to serve dinner and clear the tables perhaps inspired by its inventor’s own lifelong after the meal. The effort backfired: the visitor struggles with digestive ailments. The duck would denounced the inventor’s mechanical bent as “pro- swallow grain and a “chemical factory” in the fane,” and forced him to shut down his workshop. stomach would decompose the food, excreting the A disappointed Vaucanson abandoned his plan waste in front of a live audience. Decades later, a to become a monk and withdrew from the order, magician named Jean-Eugene Robert-Houdin— running away to Paris instead, where historians who built his own automaton—discovered that believe he took classes in anatomy and medicine Vaucanson had tricked his audiences with a clever at the Jardines du Roi. He definitely found another artifice: the digestion wasn’t real. The waste was patron to finance his dream of building lifelike actually pre-stored bread crumbs dyed green to automata. During an illness, he dreamed of a flute- look like digested grain. playing automaton, which inspired him to design The mechanical duck was a smashing suc- a real-life version, hiring local clockmakers and cess, and Vaucanson would up touring Europe craftsmen to fabricate the intricate parts. with his creations. Voltaire memorably observed He unveiled his flute-playing creation at a pub- in 1741 that “without the voice of le Maure and lic exhibition on February 11, 1738, and it was a DE VAUCANSON continued on page 3

Series II, Vol. 27, No. 2 February 2018 APS COUNCIL OF REPRESENTATIVES 2018 General Councilors on International Physics), Pushpa Bhat* (Forum on © 2018 American Physical Society Gail McLaughlin*, Bonnie Fleming, Andrea Liu*, Viv- Physics and Society), Beverly Berger* (Gravitational President ian Incera Physics), Nicholas Bigelow* (Laser Science), Samuel Roger W. Falcone*, University of California, Berkeley/ Bader (Materials), Akif “Baha” Balantekin (Nuclear Editor...... David Voss LBNL International Councilors Physics), P. Michael Tuts (Particles & Fields), Thomas Eliezer Rabinovici, Johanna Stachel, Marta Losada*, Roser (Physics of Beams), Cary Forest (Plasma Phys- Contributing Correspondent ...... Alaina G. Levine President-Elect Ahmadou Wagué ics), Murugappan Muthukumar (Polymer Physics), Design and Production...... Nancy Bennett-Karasik David J. Gross*, KITP, University of California, Santa Philip Johnson (Mid-Atlantic Section), Carlos Wexler Barbara Chair, Nominating Committee (Prairie Section) Copyeditor and Proofreader...... Edward Lee David Meyerhofer, Los Alamos National Laboratory Vice President Senior Management Team Philip H. Bucksbaum*, Stanford University, SLAC Chair, Panel on Public Affairs Mark Doyle, Chief Information Officer; Jane Hopkins Michael Marder, University of Texas, Austin Gould, Chief Financial Officer; Kate P. Kirby, Chief APS News (ISSN: 1058-8132) is published monthly, Subscriptions: APS News is an on-membership publica- Past-President Executive Officer; Matthew M. Salter, Publisher; Fran- except for a combined August-September issue, 11 times tion delivered by Periodical Mail Postage Paid at Col- Laura H. Greene*, Florida State University, Magnet Editor in Chief cis Slakey, Chief Government Affairs Officer;James W. per year, by the American Physical Society, One Physics lege Park, MD and at additional mailing offices. Laboratory Michael Thoennessen, Michigan State University (on Taylor, Deputy Executive Officer and Chief Operating Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740-3844, (301) 209-3200. leave) Officer; Michael Thoennessen, Editor in Chief It contains news of the Society and of its Divisions, Topi- For address changes, please send both the old and new Chief Executive Officer cal Groups, Sections, and Forums; advance information addresses, and, if possible, include a mailing label from Kate P. Kirby, Harvard Smithsonian (retired) Division, Forum, and Section Councilors * Voting Members of the APS Board of Directors on meetings of the Society; and reports to the Society a recent issue. Changes can be emailed to membership@ Michael Coleman Miller (Astrophysics), Timothy by its committees and task forces, as well as opinions. aps.org. Postmaster: Send address changes to APS Speaker of the Council Gay* (Atomic, Molecular & Optical Physics), William News, Membership Department, American Physical Timothy Gay*, University of Nebraska Bialek (Biological Physics), Robert Continetti (Chemi- Letters to the editor are welcomed from the member- Society, One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740- cal Physics), John Bradley Marston* (Condensed ship. Letters must be signed and should include an ad- 3844. Treasurer Matter Physics), Giulia Galli (Computational Phys- dress and daytime telephone number. APS reserves the James Hollenhorst*, Agilent Technologies ics), Ann Karagozian (Fluid Dynamics), Noah Finkel- right to select and to edit for length and clarity. All cor- stein (Forum on Education), Julia Gonski, (Forum on respondence regarding APS News should be directed to: Coden: ANWSEN ISSN: 1058-8132 Corporate Secretary Graduate Student Affairs), Virginia Trimble (Forum Editor, APS News, One Physics Ellipse, College Park, Ken Cole, APS on History of Physics), John Rumble* (Forum on In- MD 20740-3844, Email: [email protected]. dustrial and Applied Physics), Emanuela Barzi (Forum February 2018 • 3

Special Commentary International News Open Access and the Integrity of Science Human Rights of Scientists – A Matter of Global Concern By Matthew Salter and Michael activities—meetings, education By Robert French Thoennessen programs, and science advocacy The APS Committee for the Sigma Xi, the worldwide honor Another article on open access? to name but a few—that ensure the International Freedom of Scientists society for scientists and engi- After all, what’s left to discuss? health of the physics enterprise. (CIFS), which was established in neers [2]. Surely open access means that all Publishing a high-quality, the mid-1970s, presently comprises The human rights and freedoms research is made freely available rigorously peer reviewed schol- nine members and is chaired by recognized in international human arly article is a complex process, online without pesky paywalls, Shelly Lesher of the University of rights instruments as applicable to involving steps such as selecting right? Well, yes and no. Open Wisconsin, La Crosse. The com- all human beings have particular expert referees, managing the peer access makes things available to mittee is responsible for monitoring importance in their application reviewing process, editing, copy- all, but there are some costs and concerns about the human rights to scientists. Those rights and editing, typesetting, and archiving risks that need to be thoughtfully of scientists and recommends to freedoms were prefigured in the it to make it widely discoverable. addressed. the APS leadership action to be Universal Declaration on Human Beyond those familiar steps, there APS has long supported the taken in particular cases. Recently Rights, promulgated by the United are more than 100 other things that principles of open access and its APS, acting on the recommenda- Nations on December 10, 1948. editors and publishers do. potential benefits for both authors tion of the Committee, approached This year is the 70th anniversary Publishers have traditionally Robert French and readers, as it is entirely consis- the Iranian Government regarding of that Declaration. An important recouped the costs of these steps tells us that there are many ways, tent with APS’s mission to advance the arrest and trial of Ahmadreza sequel to the Declaration was the some crude and direct, some and diffuse the knowledge of phys- by selling journal subscriptions Djalali, a permanent resident of to institutional libraries and other International Covenant on Civil subtle and indirect, in which sci- ics. The Society places a high prior- Sweden who specializes in emer- and Political Rights [3]. The rights entific freedom can be abrogated ity on access to science for the good customers. However, open access gency medicine. He has been sen- eliminates the need for journal and freedoms which it recognizes, or restricted by governments and of society, for example by making tenced to death in Iran for allegedly and which are found in other inter- sectoral interests and by elements its journals free to read at all U.S. subscription by removing the passing state secrets to Mossad article paywall. An alternative is national instruments and national of the scientific community itself. public and high school libraries. (Israel’s secret service) follow- laws, include: There is a long history of sci- APS also takes an uncommonly to replace subscriptions with an ing a deeply flawed and coercive Article Processing Charge (APC), • the right to freedom of thought entists who made discoveries, pro- liberal stance on self-archiving, interrogation and trial. His cause and conscience and religion; pounded theories, and expressed allowing authors to post the final which is paid by authors and/or has been taken up by scientific and • the right to freedom of expres- opinions and then suffered at the published version of their papers their institutional research offices. international non-governmental sion including the right to hands of authorities to whom their on their laboratory and institu- APCs allow for unrestricted organizations as well as govern- seek, receive and impart infor- discoveries, theories, and opin- tional websites. And APS is a proud access, but this system shifts pub- ments around the world. mation and ideas of all kinds ions have proved inconvenient. founding member of CHORUS—a lishing costs directly onto authors CIFS is one of a number of orga- regardless of frontiers; Legendary names whose stories non-profit organization that tracks and their institutions. So, research- nizations actively concerned with ers and their institutions are faced • the right to freedom of associa- are partly obscured by historical publicly funded research articles the human rights and freedoms of uncertainties and subsequent myth- and works to increase their public with the prospect of using money scientists. There has been long-term tion with others. that could support research to pay to There are in addition science- making include Bruno, Copernicus, accessibility. involvement in this field by scien- and Galileo. In more recent times Our view of open access is publish open access. Given already tists in the United States through specific commitments which tight federal science budgets, APS are embraced in the so-called there are accounts of scientists laid out in the APS Statement on bodies such as the Committee of working for government agencies Open Access published in 2009 is concerned that this presents a Concerned Scientists, established “right to science” in Article 15 risk of reducing the nation’s overall of the International Covenant on or other institutions whose expres- which reads “The APS supports in 1972; the Standing Committee sions of opinions on politically sen- the principles of Open Access to research investment. on Scientific Freedom and Economic, Social and Cultural APCs vary considerably from Rights [4]. The “right to science” sitive areas such as climate change the maximum extent possible that Responsibility of the American science have been restricted by the allows the Society to maintain peer- journal to journal and publisher to Association for the Advancement embraces the freedom that is indis- publisher, depending on such fac- pensable to scientific research and invocation of contractual powers or reviewed high-quality journals, of Science, established in 1976; the laws or regulations governing their tors as the selectivity of the journal creativity and the right of everyone secure archiving, and the Society's Committee on Human Rights of employment. and its perceived prestige. One way to enjoy the benefits of scientific long-term financial stability, to the the National Academy of Sciences, Other constraints on scientific of reducing costs and thereby hold- progress and its application. The benefit of the scientific enterprise.” established in 1976; the Committee freedom to share the results of ing down APCs is for journals to on the Human Rights of Scientists parties to the Covenant also agree And there’s the tricky part: how research work may arise out of cut back on the number and extent of the New York Academy of to take steps necessary for the con- to provide open access while still confidentiality clauses imposed of their services by moving to a servation, development and diffu- operating both a scholarly pub- Sciences, founded in 1978; and by contracts or otherwise on those lighter-touch peer-review model. sion of science. lishing program that offers robust, the Committee on Scientific working for industrial or com- One of the dangers of moving in Scientific developments, theo- high-quality peer-review, and a pro- Freedom and Human Rights of mercial enterprises that may or ries, and opinions may challenge fessional science society that runs OPEN ACCESS continued on page 4 the Association for Computing may not be undertaking govern- established order, vested inter- Machinery, founded in 1980 [1]. ment research. The purpose of Also engaged in this area are the ests and entrenched worldviews. American Chemical Society and History, including recent history, RIGHTS continued on page 4 DE VAUCANSON continued from page 2

Vaucanson’s duck, you would have This did not go over well. nothing to remind you of the glory The king came to his inspector’s of France.” It was also immortal- defense and cracked down on the ized in Thomas Pynchon’s novel weavers, forbidding them from Mason and Dixon, in which the public meetings, issuing fines, and duck attains consciousness and imprisoning some of them. Yet they chases a chef across the United persisted in their protests, and the States. Alas, the infamous duck is king relented after a year. Fifty believed to have been destroyed years later, Joseph-Marie Jacquard when the museum in which it was would succeed where Vaucanson purportedly housed burned down failed with an automated loom. in 1879. Vaucanson died in Paris in 1782. Eventually Vaucanson grew His vision of an automaton capable bored with his automata and sold of reproducing digestive functions them off to a trio of businessmen. was finally realized in 2006, when King Louis XV had just appointed a Belgian conceptual artist named him inspector of silk manufacture, Wim Delvoye unveiled his “Cloaca in hopes of making the silk industry Machine,” a mechanical and chem- in France competitive with its rivals ical apparatus that really did digest in England and Scotland. Far ahead food and turn it into waste, care- of his time, in 1745 he invented the fully vacuum-sealed in specially first automated loom, and hoped to branded bags and sold to eager introduce punch cards to the indus- art collectors. (See youtube.com/ try. But the weavers revolted, fear- watch?v=TCSDHWOqvNI) ing for their jobs, and pelted him with stones as he walked through Further Reading: Riskin. J. 2003. “The defecating duck, the streets. Vaucanson retaliated by or, the ambiguous origins of artificial building a loom powered by a don- life,” Critical Inquiry 29:4. 599-633. key, declaring that “a horse, an ox or Wood. G. 2003. Living Dolls: A Magi- an ass can make cloth more beauti- cal History of the Quest for Mechanical ful than the most able silk worker.” Life. London: Faber. 4 • February 2018

MARCH MEETING continued from page 1 where you can learn about current (1:30–5:30 p.m.). The tutorials community. The March Meeting to submit to or review for any of performed by the International City diversity efforts spearheaded by require pre-registration and a fee Welcome Reception (6:45–8 p.m.) the APS journals, as well as any- Theatre of Long Beach, CA, and APS, the Committee on Minorities is charged. will be held in the main exhibit hall one who would like to learn more will be followed by a discussion in Physics, the Committee on the The APS Division of Polymer immediately following the awards about the authoring and refereeing with the actors and a historian of Status of Women in Physics, the Physics will hold a short course session. processes (11:15 a.m.–12:45 p.m.). science. Later that same evening, Committee on Education, and the on gels and elastomers on Saturday The Physical Review editors Wednesday is Industry Day at bring your singing voice to the LGBT+Physicists group. and Sunday, and the Topical Group invite you to their 125th anniver- the meeting, sponsored by the APS Rock-n-Roll Physics Singalong On Sunday before the main ses- on Soft Matter will hold a Sunday sary celebration on Tuesday, March Forum on Industrial and Applied (9–10:30 p.m.) for physics tunes sions get underway there will be short course on machine learning Physics. This year’s theme is and light refreshments. an orientation for new attendees for soft materials research. Both “Big Data and Physics: Bits to Throughout the week, there will (5–6 p.m.) with a crash course on require pre-registration and pay- Knowledge,” which highlights how be a full program of activities for navigating the meeting and using ment of course fees. Big Data impacts our work, our students: Future of Physics Days the mobile conference app, and Two workshops for grad stu- daily lives, and physics research. (FPD) are events just for under- information about how APS can dents and postdocs are scheduled On Wednesday evening (6:30– graduate students. Sponsored by help make the best of your con- for Sunday as well. The APS 7:30 p.m.) James Kakalios will APS and the Society for Physics ference experience. The orienta- Topical Group on Energy Research give a Public Lecture on “The Students, FPD offers undergrads tion will be followed by the APS and Applications and the Forum Physics of Superheroes” in Petree the opportunity to present their Official Tweetup (6–8 p.m.) where for Early Career Scientists are co- Hall of the LACC. This will be research, learn about grad school the mavens of social media will sponsoring a workshop on “The followed by a session on “Federal and career options, and connect gather and refreshments will be Future of Sustainable Approaches & Private Funding Opportunities with the scientific community. served. to Energy” (closed for applica- 6, in the LACC Concourse Foyer in Condensed Matter Physics There will be undergraduate Also on Sunday, attendees can tions). And the Forum for Outreach from 4:30–6:30 p.m. The editors & Materials Science” (7:30– research sessions, career and pro- learn about the state of the art in and Engaging the Public will host will be available to answer ques- 8:30 p.m.). fessional development workshops, several areas. There will be morn- a workshop on “Improving your tions, hear your ideas, and discuss Also on Wednesday, there will an undergrad-only lounge, and a ing tutorial sessions on density Presentation.” The latter requires your comments about the journals. be a staged reading of the play graduate school fair All attend- functional theory, thermoelectric pre-registration and a $20 fee. Light refreshments will be served. “Silent Sky” by Laura Gunderson ees can learn about careers in the materials, spintronics, and quan- The APS Prizes & Awards Then, on Wednesday, March 7, (8–9 p.m.). The play is based on private sector, participate in a job tum information (8:30 a.m.–12:30 Ceremony will take place on editors from Physical Review the life of astronomer Henrietta expo, and register for a Careers in p.m.) and afternoon tutorials on Monday, March 5 (5:45–6:45 Letters and Physical Review will Swan Leavitt and her experiences Physics Workshop. hybrid quantum systems, quan- p.m.) and will honor numerous provide information and tips for as a woman in the male-dominated For more information visit tum critical systems, and the individuals for their research excel- new referees and authors. This ses- culture of the Harvard Observatory the meeting website at aps.org/ Mathematica software program lence and service to the physics sion is aimed at anyone looking in the early 1900s. The play will be meetings/march/

RIGHTS continued from page 3 OPEN ACCESS continued from page 3 such restrictions may be to protect primary human value. freedom generally and as public this direction is a “race to the bot- the disseminated scientific results potential intellectual property or • Science can only flourish and dissidents in repressive societies. tom” in which journals compete on and the overall progress of science. national security interests. The therefore can only confer the Such a role, exemplified by Andrei price, paring back their processes Fortunately, we have time to justification for such restrictions maximum cultural and practi- Sakharov and the Chinese physicist in an effort to deliver ever lower sort this out, since national poli- is always debatable and their ben- cal benefits on society when Fang Lizhi, is a natural product of APCs, putting the quality of the cies are still being developed. In efit always contestable. This is, of research is conducted in an the scientific culture, of skepticism journal in jeopardy. So research- the near term, APS has become a course, an area in which scientists atmosphere of freedom. about unfounded claims and of ers would be placed in a difficult participant in SCOAP3—an inter- to some extent may have a choice • Scientists in countries not commitment to freedom of inquiry position: wanting to be sure that national consortium for the large- about the terms and conditions on under dictatorial rule should and expression. they get the best peer review and scale open access publishing of which they will do their work. It cooperate to maintain the In all of these areas, the scien- services possible, while keeping high-energy physics research, would be unrealistic, however, to freedom necessary for effec- tific community through its orga- their research budgets in the black. coordinated by CERN. This is a pretend the choice is always an tive work and to help fellow- nized bodies including CIFS has Under these circumstances, it’s significant test of open access. By easy one, particularly in a tight job scientists in all parts of the an ongoing and indispensable part only natural that authors will seek participating in SCOAP3, APS will market. out lower cost (or free) open access world to maintain or secure to play. The forces of reaction and be able to continue to evaluate how The existence of constraints journals. However, the risks associ- this freedom [5]. constraint on scientific freedom are open access can be achieved to the on scientific freedom to publish is ated with using ultra-cheap journals The debate between the priority always with us, in our own societ- benefit of the physics community. properly a matter on which the sci- are well documented and there is to be accorded to basic and applied ies in subtle ways and unsubtly in The lively debate around open entific community can organize and a danger that an overemphasis on research respectively, to scientific floridly repressive societies. access will no doubt continue. develop guiding principles rather lowering cost may end up damag- autonomy in the pursuit of lines Robert French is a member That’s entirely as it should be, and than responding to particularly of inquiry on the one hand and of the APS Committee for the ing public confidence in published egregious cases. research and hurting the integrity of APS looks forward to being right in accountability in the use of scarce International Freedom of Scientists. the center of the action—speaking The rights and freedoms of sci- public funds on the other continues the overall scientific process. He was Chief Justice of Australia up for the importance of maintain- entists to pursue their own lines of into the present time. There are, Balancing the benefits and risks from 2008 to 2017 and is presently ing the integrity of the scientific inquiry have frequently intersected of course, many examples of basic isn’t easy. Open access is a vision- Chancellor of the University of record, as well as promoting cost- with the general issue of the role research with little apparent prac- Western Australia, from which he ary concept that in principle allows the free flow of scientific informa- effectiveness and easier access to of science in society—particularly tical application that have had the graduated in Science (Physics) and tion, with numerous potential ben- scientific research. where so much scientific endeav- most profound effects upon tech- Law in 1968 and 1971. our depends upon the allocation of efits for humankind. However, it Matthew Salter is the APS nological development and society. References public resources. An aspect of that It was curiosity that led Faraday to must be implemented in a way that Publisher. Michael Thoennessen 1. Minker, J. Scientific Freedom and is the APS Editor in Chief. general issue is the tension between a relationship between magnetism Human Rights (IEEE Computer ensures the quality and integrity of basic research, whose outcomes are and electricity and Maxwell to a Society Press, 2012) 7-9. uncertain, and applied research and mathematical explanation of elec- 2. Guidotti, T. L. Scientific Freedom development directed to specific tromagnetism. It was curiosity that and Human Rights (2018) 73 Ar- publicly determined problems and led Dirac to propose the existence chives of Environmental and Oc- cupational Health 73:1. priorities. of the positron, a hypothesis not Debate about that tension 3. Opened for signature 19 Decem- vindicated experimentally for four ber 1966, 999 UNTS 171 (entered gave rise, during World War II, years. Positron emission tomogra- into force on 23 March 1976). to the establishment in the United phy, nuclear magnetic resonance Signed by the United States in Kingdom of a Society for Freedom spectroscopy, and magnetic reso- 1977 and ratified in 1992. in Science. The Society was cre- nance imaging may all be seen as 4. Opened for signature 16 Decem- ated in opposition to a movement the outcomes of foundational sci- ber 1966, 993 UNTS 3 (entered Events for Undergrads in the United Kingdom partly entific curiosity, as may the dis- into force on 3 January 1976). Signed by the United States in Join us in 2018 for Future of Physics Days (FPD) inspired by developments in the covery of the maser, which led to 1997 but not yet ratified. at the March and April meetings! Soviet Union, which favored cen- the invention of the laser [6]. There 5. McGucken, W. ‘On Freedom and tral planning of scientific effort. are many such cases. The value of Planning in Science: The Society FPD EVENTS INCLUDE: MAMEETINGRCH2018 Three founding propositions upon scientific freedom to society is a for Freedom in Science 1940- · Undergrad research sessions MARCH 5–9, 2018 1946’ (1978) 16(1) Minerva 42, · Professional development workshops Los Angeles, California which the Society rested were: value which can be founded upon · Networking and social activities 48. • The increase of knowledge countless examples of those kinds. · Free t-shirt APRIL MEETING 2018 6. Thomas,J. M. ‘Intellectual Free- · and more - just for undergrads!! by scientific research of all Perhaps the most challenging quarks cosmos kinds and the maintenance dom in Academic Science Re- Learn More: Q2C issue in relation to scientific free- search under Threat’ (2013) 52 APRIL 14–17, 2018 go.aps.org/fpd2018 Columbus, Ohio and spread of scientific cul- dom is the threat to the freedom Angewandte Chen Int Ed, 5654- ture have an independent and of scientists as spokespersons for 55. February 2018 • 5

FALCONE continued from page 1 Education & Diversity Update What is the role of the nologies, but meetings and scien- complacent. We want to make sure President at APS? tific publications will remain core our activities are sustainable, and PhysTEC Request for proposals I think the role of the president activities for APS. we should be making the case to The Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC) project is soliciting is to ensure that priorities expressed We should advocate for the government agencies or private proposals for new sites. To date, PhysTEC has funded over 40 institutions by our members are addressed enterprise. That means engage- donors for new resources. We to educate greater numbers of highly qualified physics teachers. through APS programs and plans ment with government and private have to articulate the added value for the future. That means working sector entities, and involvement in We expect to fund up to four comprehensive sites to substantially increase of what we want to do. with our volunteers, together with education. We should also enhance the number of physics teachers and address all PhysTEC key components. What do you see as the main APS staff who know our organiza- public understanding of science. Initial proposals will be due mid-April; full proposals (if invited) will be due challenges facing APS? tional history and have the skills to So many people are interested in in July; and funding begins August 2019. The way scientists disseminate implement our missions. By hav- science but don’t practice it profes- their work is evolving. While I If interested, you are encouraged to attend the 2018 PhysTEC Confer- ing elected leadership, we can help sionally. They are excited about our believe that we haven’t seen major ence, where a workshop will be held about the request for proposals. ensure coordination between the work and hungry for insight, and changes in how meetings are han- efforts of staff and members. we can feed that. A webinar will also be held after the 2018 PhysTEC Conference on Feb- dled (people want to get together As our membership and the Because scientific research is so ruary 13, 2018 to answer any questions regarding the request for proposal and talk, and that hasn’t changed broader world change, and as our dependent on government funding, process. for generations), from the length- students become the new profes- we also need to advocate for appro- ening and growing number of sci- sionals, APS will evolve: How priate policies for science. We can Professional Skills Seminar at 2018 APS March Meeting entific papers, to the reduction in Undergraduate and graduate women in physics are welcome to attend a can we improve our meetings? also advocate for science to influ- printed journals, to the expanded 2-hour seminar on Sunday, March 4. The seminar, led by Dr. Homeyra How do we want to structure our ence broader government policies. flow of information and search Sadaghiani, a professor of physics at Cal Poly Pomona, will focus on activities in publishing? How can As examples, we should provide capabilities on the Internet, the way professional skills that students can use to negotiate a position in aca- we advocate for science, with both appropriate scientific background we publish scientific information demia, industry or at a national lab, interact positively on teams and with governments and the public? How to improve international relations has been changing. We need to a mentor or advisor, think tactically, articulate goals, enhance their personal can our outreach be most effective? and energy policy. presence, and develop alliances. Participants will be eligible for one-night The president can help guide APS Next, I want to ensure that APS react to and maybe get out ahead hotel reimbursement. Register at aps.org/meetings/march/diversity.cfm in responding to the consensus on has impact. We should articulate of upcoming changes, including the by February 9. answers to these questions. the value of APS to all of our con- movement to open access. Being in the presidential line stituencies, whether that means Fundamentally, the idea of peer Sites Announced for 2019 Conferences for specifically involves four years of government officials, the univer- review shouldn’t and probably Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) activity, with the president work- sity, national lab and private sector won’t change, as it allows us to The 2019 APS CUWiPs will be hosted January 18–20, 2019 at the fol- ing with a vice president, president communities, or scientists interna- develop consensus, and test under- lowing sites: elect, and past president. This struc- tionally who are involved because standing of what might be right or • College of William and Mary ture helps ensure responsiveness they publish in our journals or wrong. Science is both democratic • Michigan State University and continuity. come to our meetings, or join our and hierarchical, in the sense that There are other structures within universities, labs, and companies. we admire and reward quality from • Northwestern University APS, including membership units Explaining the value we add to anywhere; this implies that peer • Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi and other volunteer groups, the their work is important. review will remain, but logistical aspects of the current system could • The College of New Jersey Council of Representatives, and the Additionally, there are specific Board of Directors. The Council issues that involve economic policy evolve. • The University of Alabama largely deals with the Society’s sci- and security where we can help. We Anticipating the evolving ways • University of California, Davis entific mission and priorities, while can articulate the role of science in we disseminate and review science the Board has responsibility for is very exciting. I want APS to be • University of California, Santa Barbara innovation, economic growth, and overseeing management and fidu- empowering people, as well as in in a leadership role in providing • University of Massachusetts, Amherst ciary responsibilities. These units national and global security. We the services that our communities • University of Washington distill ideas from members, but want to be present for discussions want and need. also make decisions and take deep in these areas. • Utah State University How can APS members get dives into issues that are important Next, we must consider the involved? Also, if your institution is interested in hosting an APS CUWiP in 2020, to APS. future. I’m excited that we will For strategic planning, we will please visit go.aps.org/cuwiphost and submit an Expression of Interest We also have a Board Executive develop a new APS strategic plan be setting up a web portal for sug- by September 1, 2018. Committee (BEC) that includes the this year, and we are doing that in gestions and comments. We will presidential line, Treasurer, CEO, APS Committee on the Status of Women in Physics a careful and professional way. We also be holding town hall meet- and Speaker of the Council; it has are seeking member and staff input ings and interviews with leaders of (CSWP) Updated Effective Practices a weekly video conference. Part of The APS CSWP has just completed a review of their best practices from the very beginning of the pro- units. So, joining and participating the president’s role is to convene documents concerning the recruitment and retention of women in physics. cess, with planning committees to in the many APS units is a way to the BEC, and incorporate input The Committee has updated the recommendations to reflect current tackle individual topics. We’ve help. But even if somebody just received from staff, various units, practice and re-framed them as “effective practices.” You can visit go.aps. hired a consultant to assist us in wants to quietly participate, they and individual members, so we can org/cswppractices for a full list. developing the plan and facilitating could throw in some good ideas, respond in a timely way. interactions, to make sure that all join in a town hall meeting, or at ideas are considered. What are your key priorities least give input via the portal; we I don’t see strategic planning as for the year ahead? expect to have that up and running a tactical exercise, where we only 2018 The APS mission statement can by the time of the APS March say we are going to do X or Y, but be summarized as “being the lead- Meeting in Los Angeles. ing voice for physics.” There are the plan will lay out options, strate- several areas that I see as priori- gies, and rationales for new ideas. Final thoughts? ties for the Society in 2018 that can As we move forward in coming I’ve been an APS member for help ensure we will be that leading years, as resources become avail- decades, having joined as student, voice. able and people want to champion but when I jumped more deeply First, our role in disseminat- certain causes, we will be able to into the work of the Society, I was ing our knowledge of physics has look at the strategic plan and say, surprised by the breadth of our always been in the forefront, and it ok, now is the time for us to do activities, which I didn’t see as a regular member. I knew about my This program from PhysTEC aims to honor must remain strong and be of the this or that. Implementation of pro- highest quality. As I understand grams will be determined by the specific units, and how meetings outstanding high school physics teachers our history, APS was originally desires and efforts of members and and awards were organized. But and their graduating institutions. Nominate formed to coordinate meetings of leadership in the future. when I joined leadership, and saw, a graduate from your department as physicists. A few years later APS Finally, we not only need great for example, the extent of our edu- PhysTEC Teacher of the Year. took over The Physical Review, to programs and ideas, but we have cational activities and advocacy disseminate physics through peer- to ensure fiscal and organizational work, and the complexity of edi- Deadline: April 1, 2018 reviewed publications. Of course, sustainability. Right now the torial activities, etc… it’s really an there will continue to be changes Society is in good financial shape, amazing enterprise you can’t begin in relevant and supporting tech- but that doesn’t mean we can be to understand unless you jump in!

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OSTP continued from page 1 PRL continued from page 1 dramatically under President of Science, which funds quantum ketplace for physics research, web hosting or arXiv preprint repos- Finally, PRL, like the rest of Trump, with staffing levels less research at several national labo- where readers can find the crucial itory, publication speed was more of the Physical Review family and than half of what they were under ratories in hopes it could help dis- results across every subfield, not an issue, and there was little time physics itself, has become very Obama. (The office’s bare-bones cover new materials and address just those that are hot. This requires for detailed peer review. Editors international. About 70% of PRL website does not include a current basic physics questions. a careful balance—we must pub- reviewed papers themselves, or submissions and published Letters staff list or organizational chart, Carl Williams, a deputy director lish many good papers across all obtained minimal input from local now come from outside the U.S. but a spokesperson said the office at NIST who worked at OSTP dur- of physics, but not so many that colleagues. As submissions grew, The composition of our editorial currently employs 50 people.) ing the Bush and Obama adminis- individual papers get lost, and not editors and their local contacts team reflects the broad international Not all has been quiet on the trations, adds that the office could in numbers that become indigest- were overwhelmed, and almost all distribution of authors. Today the science front, however. In August, help in “managing the hype” ible for readers. For this reason we manuscripts were reviewed exter- PRL editors hail from twelve coun- OSTP’s deputy chief technol- around quantum information. The recently pushed again to raise the nally. More recently, the number of tries. We feel that it is important for ogy officer Michael Kratsios and technology is often described as a bar for publication in PRL, and now submissions again grew too large the editors who handle manuscripts Office of Management and Budget game-changer, but both the scope publish about 50 Letters per week. to handle, and we now send about to represent the authors who sub- director Mick Mulvaney released of its most important applications For now this is a good number that three-quarters of submissions out mit them. a policy memo highlighting quan- and the size of the commercial mar- we aim to maintain. for external review. We carefully Over the last 60 years, PRL has tum computing as one of several ket are unclear. Beyond its mission, the mate- select these, often seeking advice become the global, go-to physics emerging technologies they see Large investments by other rial PRL publishes has evolved, from other editors or an Editorial journal, offering a unique com- as key to “American prosperity.” countries make the need for high- and is now quite different from Board member. Other journals bination of breadth, quality, and Taylor will help OSTP ensure the level coordination more urgent, what the early issues offered. The that are very selective seek expert long-term value. We expect the glo- government’s investments—some adds Jason Matheny, director of the original content was more focused input on a much smaller fraction of balization of PRL to continue, and $200 million to $250 million per Intelligence Advanced Research on nuclear and particle physics. submissions. to stay connected to this community, year spread across more than a Projects Activity, which funds Condensed matter physics was then The PRL reviewers have a dif- many of our editors travel around half-dozen agencies, according to quantum computing research with a small component, and many top- ferent role as compared to other the world to attend conferences and various estimates—are guided by cryptography and machine learning ics that are prevalent today, such journals. Of course we ask them give talks. The journal is fortunate “smart federal policy,” Kratsios applications. Recent reports sug- as quantum information, biologi- to comment on the validity of the to have an excellent team of talented says. “Jake’s experience at NIST gest that China may be spending cal physics, and cold atom phys- manuscripts and suggest improve- and experienced professional editors. and work with top QIS [quantum up to $10 billion to build a new ics, did not yet exist. We strive to ments as applicable. In addition, If you see one of us, ask questions, information science] research insti- quantum research center, and the ensure that the scope of the journal we want them to remark on impor- give feedback, and pass along your tutions will help with the important European Union has announced matches the interest of the authors tance, interest, and relevance for thoughts (or email [email protected]). inter-agency coordination and pol- a 10-year, $1-billion “flagship” and readers. We are a physics jour- PRL [3]. One constant throughout We will be happy to respond. Our icy alignment that OSTP manages.” program in quantum technology. nal, but today’s physics research is PRL’s history is that editors take success relies on the whole physics Taylor, a theorist whose research While the U.S. currently holds a much more about interwoven dis- the input from reviewers as advice community. With continued com- spans both basic and applied phys- lead in developing quantum tech- ciplines—physics with chemistry, [4]. Quite often the recommenda- munity support, we foresee a bright ics, has a track record of bringing nology, “I think our advantage is biology, materials science, and oth- tions are not unanimous and the new 60-year cycle for PRL. together disparate sectors of the fragile,” Matheny says. ers. So, we ensure that PRL is also a final decision is then made after References quantum research universe. A NIST Taylor’s hire “is a good sign, home for the best interdisciplinary weighing all available input. 1. S. A. Goudsmit and S. Pasternak, symposium he co-led in October particularly given the impor- work that is significant for physics. Editors of the Physical Review “Editorial,” Phys. Rev. 2, 1 (1959). 2. S. A. Goudsmit and G. L. Trigg, explored how U.S. agencies can tance of quantum computing and Another change in published journals have also introduced vari- “Troubles with Length,” Phys. work with tech giants like Google quantum communications, and material is the format. The origi- ous highlighting mechanisms for Rev. 27, 1 (1971). and IBM and with smaller startups how aggressive China has been nal idea was that Letters be around a selection of published articles. 3. S. A. Goudsmit, “How Wide is to build a quantum industry. And in increasing their investment in 800 words, but this strict length At PRL, the editors choose about Gray?,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 31, 669 (1973). he spearheaded the 2014 found- quantum technologies,” agrees limit was only enforced in 1966. one Letter in six as an Editors’ 4. S. A. Goudsmit and G. L. Trigg, ing of a Joint Center for Quantum Tom Kalil, former deputy director The four-page limit we use today Suggestion. These letters are spe- “Referee Reports,” Phys. Rev. Information and Computer Science, of OSTP in the Obama administra- is similar to that imposed in 1971 cifically marked on the PRL web- Lett. 24, 251 (1970). a partnership between NIST and tion. But he notes a discrepancy [2], even as ink-on-paper has given site and accompanied by a tweet PRL Lead Editor Hugues Chaté Maryland intended to accelerate the with Trump’s 2018 budget pro- way to online publication, and we from @PhysRevLett. Many Letters is a senior scientist at CEA-Saclay, development of quantum computer posal, which would have cut U.S. view it as beneficial: short, self- are also covered by the APS online France, and Chair Professor at science as a research field. research funding by around 17%, contained articles are often better publication Physics, which publi- the Beijing Computational Science “Jake’s a wonderful ambassa- including at agencies that fund written, a plus for busy readers. cizes interesting results for a broad Research Center in China. Editor dor,” says Chris Monroe, a physi- quantum information research. As for method, our principal tool audience, including a large network Reinhardt Schuhmann has been with cist at Maryland and cofounder of “The real question is whether the is peer review. Early on, with no of journalists. PRL full-time for more than 25 years ionQ, a quantum computing startup Administration will follow through based in College Park. “He can with increased funding.” speak to any audience about the Taylor’s position is a two-year potential of quantum.” Monroe also rotation, and he will continue to supports an increased governmen- manage his research group at NIST tal role in quantum research. At an on a part-time basis. He says he MARCH October House Science Committee doesn’t yet have a specific agenda MEETING2018 hearing, he encouraged Congress at OSTP, and declined to explicitly M A R C H 5–9, 2018 to fund a “National Quantum support a federal quantum initia- LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA Initiative” that would substantially tive. But he hopes to help quantum ramp up federal spending; the con- information make the leap from cept recently gained an endorse- university and government labs ment from Walter Copan, who to a commercial industry. “It’s a Registration rates increase on February 24. was confirmed as NIST director in transformative time for the field,” October. Having a quantum expert he says. “There are opportunities to REGISTER NOW in the White House “is not a bad do wonderful things, and there are aps.org/meetings/march thing” for advancing this agenda, opportunities for failures as well. Monroe says. My job to make certain the wonder- Agency representatives also ful things happen.” applaud OSTP’s addition of quan- And he invites physicists and tum expertise. “The level of fed- others to tell him how they think the eral investment is now getting government can help push quantum large enough that some active information science forward. “A form of interagency collaboration large part of what I’m doing in the and coordination is really impor- next few months is listening.” tant,” says Steve Binkley, deputy The author is a freelance sci- director for science programs in ence writer based in Mt. Rainier, the Department of Energy’s Office Maryland.

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BACK PAGE continued from page 8 physicists to claim priority, and for research patrons to gain practices became a systematic peer-review system around Yet the general context now is quite different. It is unlikely prestige for the research activities they supported. 1960, when it became the norm to send submitted papers to that today individual journals will be able to promote the The introduction of page charges did not solve the finan- more than one external referee before they could be accepted same kinds of innovations as those implemented by The cial issues, though. The community of American physicists for publication. In 1970, he oversaw the split of The Physical Physical Review in specific historical periods, because the sci- was rapidly increasing and, as a consequence, the published Review into Physical Review A-D, four separate journals entific community is much more interconnected at the global material continued to grow. And so did the deficit. In 1932, in distinct research areas (Physical Review E came after level. More importantly, publishing norms are nowadays the APS Council decided to cut expenses, and Tate proposed Goudsmit, in 1993). inextricably related to evaluation criteria for the assessment to achieve this by reducing the number of pages. This deci- The innovations I briefly outlined here were all conse- of scientific productivity and creativity of both persons and sion, motivated by pressing financial constraints during the quences of the specific needs of a defined community in institutions. Finally, the relationship between online reposi- Great Depression, had a tremendous effect both on physics particular historical periods. While these needs changed, tories such as arXiv.org (strikingly, administered by the same writing and the practice of refereeing. Papers had to be much most of the abovementioned practices showed an enormous university that initiated The Physical Review) and academic shorter and all nonessential information, like the historical amount of resilience and became standardized at the interna- journals is still very much unsettled. While these repositories evolution of a scientific problem, was considered superfluous. tional level during the second half of the twentieth century, allow for prompt and open publication of scientific results, At the time, refereeing practices at The Physical Review in conjunction with the dominant role American physics highly ranked scientific peer-reviewed journals are the only (and everywhere else) lacked coherence. Tate himself made assumed in the Western world during the Cold War. recognized venues for the certification of the validity and most of the decisions without consulting other experts, and In my view, this story is instructive for three different, but importance of these results. The lack of a clear relationship only some of the submitted papers were sent to another interrelated, reasons. The first is the enormous dynamism between these communication formats does not enable us to referee, who was usually a member of the editorial board. showed by Physical Review journals in the introduction of clarify what the new role of academic journals should be in During the 1930s, however, the referees came to assume a new practices and how these modifications were strongly this evolving scholarly environment. role quite different from that they had before. Now, a referee linked to dramatic changes in the social composition and In the present situation, the production of new standards had to work out ways to reduce the paper length and to deter- scientific interests of the American physics community. It will probably require shared international agreement about mine if the paper was really worth the expense to publish was during a time characterized by a generational change, the best practices, but well established institutions, and APS it, which led to an overall tightening of acceptance criteria. by radical transformations with the advent and development is certainly is one of those, might start experimenting with This change was not provisional. Quite the contrary, it of quantum mechanics and later by the demographic change new modalities that combine the different and sometimes became standardized in 1935, when Tate and his assistant caused by the arrival of a sizeable number of European contrasting needs of openness, speed, and quality assessment editor began sending the referees a questionnaire intended refugees in the 1930s. in the publication of new scientific knowledge. to guide their evaluation of the submitted manuscripts. The The second striking feature is that while all these changes The author is Research Scholar at the Max Planck questionnaire was divided into two three-question parts. The were intimately connected to the needs of a specific national Institute for the History of Science and Visiting Scholar in the Research Program on the History of the Max Planck first asked for the evaluation of the content, while the second community in a particular historical period, some of them Society. After receiving a M.Sc. degree in physics, he earned required a careful judgment about the form. In the question- became shared international standards. This process invites a Ph.D. in international history at the University of Milan naire the length issue appears to be of primary importance, thoughts about the development and evolution of communica- (2011). From 2011 to 2013, he was a postdoctoral fellow as referees were asked to suggest possible ways to reduce tion structures, such as well-defined editorial norms, that are usually taken for granted by working scientists. Not all of the in the Program on Science, Technology, and Society at the the length of the paper in both the content-related and form- history discussed here was the result of explicit discussions Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has published related parts (5). between the scientists themselves. The international process extensively on the history of relativity theories, on the transfer The introduction of the questionnaire was Tate’s last major of standardization, for instance, was also related to social and of quantum theory, and on the evolution of editorial practices. change. By 1935, The Physical Review had acquired a stable political forces that were well beyond scientists’ reach. This position as one of the leading physics journals, and some of References might signal that well-established norms are not necessarily 1. Vleck, J. H. V. American physics comes of age. Physics Today the papers published in the RMP were playing pivotal roles in the best ones and that they might be changed if new needs 17, 21 (1964). furthering research in newborn fields of physics by indicating point toward different directions. 2. Baldwin, M. ‘Keeping in the race’: physics, publication speed promising lines of investigation for the future. This brings us to the last point of relevance, which relates and national publishing strategies in Nature, 1895-1939. Br J Hist Sci 47, 257–279 (2014). The 1950s to the Present to what this story might imply for the current debates on Tate died in 1950, and one year later The Physical Review 3. Lalli, R. A new scientific journal takes the scene : the birth of scientific publishing. For instance, the peer-review system reviews of modern physics. Annalen der Physik 526, A83–A87 entered a new era under the editorial management of Samuel has problems and is far from being the well-defined practice (2014). A. Goudsmit, who also played an influential role in shaping that is sometimes uncritically assumed. And what about the 4. J. T. Tate to R. T. Birge, 23 April 1929, Raymond Thayer Birge the journal’s style, as is carefully discussed by physicist and possibilities and challenges posed by the Internet and the Papers, 1909-1969, Bancroft Library, Folder Tate. historian of science David Kaiser (6). Among Goudsmit’s World Wide Web in terms of open distribution of scientific 5. Lalli, R. ‘Dirty work’, but someone has to do it: Howard P. Rob- innovations were the creation of Physical Review Letters in knowledge, speeding up of publication of novel ideas, and ertson and the refereeing practices of Physical Review in the 1958, which transformed the “Letters to the editor” section solutions for information overload? Many of the concerns 1930s. Notes and Records: the Royal Society journal of the history of science 70, 151–174 (2016). into a separate and extremely influential periodical. At the of the historical actors involved in the editorial decision- 6. Kaiser, D. Booms, busts, and the world of ideas: enrollment same time, under the pressure of an exponential increase making of The Physical Review are very similar to those of pressures and the challenge of specialization. Osiris 27, 276- of submitted papers and of specialization issues, refereeing today’s scientists. 302 (2012).

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Early Editorial Practice at The Physical Review By Roberto Lalli

his year marks the 125th anniversary of the founding Tof The Physical Review. When it was started in 1893 at Cornell University, the journal was the first periodical entirely devoted to physics published in the United States. Its founders sought to support the professionalization of American physics and, at the same time, to increase the role of Cornell in this process. For decades, the international physics community considered the journal an expression of a rather marginal national scientific community. Today, the various descendants of The Physical Review, including Reviews of Modern Physics and Physical Review Letters, are among the most prestigious physics journals in the world. This anniversary provides an occasion to reflect upon the history of APS scientific publications, on the historical transformation from a relatively peripheral publication to a leading physics journal during the 1930s, and to consider the implications this story has for the current debates and chal- lenges of scientific publishing. Usually, the relevance of a Gordon Fulcher (left) was managing editor of The Physical Review from 1923 to 1925. He introduced the systematic use scientific journal is measured by what it contains, which can of abstracts in the journal. John Tate (center) was editor from 1926 to 1950 and had an energetic management style and be judged by the number of scientific breakthroughs that have clear editorial vision. He may have done the most to shape the journal during this time. The first paper published inThe appeared in its pages (see the 125th anniversary timeline at Physical Review was on infrared spectroscopy (right). journals.aps.org/125years). This number is certainly impres- sive for the Physical Review portfolio. he worked initially as an abstractor, in 1921 he joined the to compete with other national communities when these In this article, however, I will focus on the container Editorial Board, and in 1923 he became managing editor. In were still perceived to be far ahead in the production of new rather than on the content, namely, on the scientific policies this period he solidified the norm of the publication of head- knowledge in physics. and editorial practices implemented by APS editors and the ing abstracts written by the authors themselves by providing Tate had an energetic management style and clear editorial historical evolution of these practices. While scientists might the rules that had to be followed to maximize the value of vision. The rationale behind the innovations he introduced be tempted to see this as marginal to what is considered the practice. was of a completely different nature than that behind the the “real” scientific work—producing new knowledge— Fulcher’s meticulous editorial work improved the abstracts policies implemented by Fulcher. Tate was responding to editorial practices and policies strongly shape their daily and the general style of the published papers. This approach authors’ need to get credit more than to the readers’ need to scientific activity. Not only do editorial procedures affect was greatly valued by many members of APS, but did not rapidly find useful information. The first three most important the dissemination of findings, but also the way in which favor rapid publication. In the early 1920s physicists in the changes were all inaugurated in July 1929. The first two were researchers acquire new knowledge by reading their peers’ U.S. felt frustrated that new physics concepts were originat- a consequence of the necessity to speed up the publication of papers, and in some cases these procedures can influence ing in Europe, while American physicists were respected papers: The Physical Review passed from being a monthly the researchers’ own scientific agendas. Scientific publica- solely for their experimental contributions to test theories publication to being issued every two weeks, and a new tions are not neutral receptacles of knowledge produced and formulas developed elsewhere. The first major American section called “Letters to the Editor” was established “for elsewhere. They are active and powerful agents that have a the prompt publication of reports of important discoveries deep impact on the production, certification, and diffusion in physics,” following the success of a similar section in the of scientific knowledge. journal Nature (2). The third change was the publication of Most practices today are taken for granted, such as the a new quarterly periodical, initially called Physical Review peer-review system and the publication of an abstract pre- Supplement, but shortly after renamed Reviews of Modern ceding each article. They are so embedded in scientists’ Physics (RMP)—which was envisaged to be the first sci- daily activity that such practices have acquired an almost entific periodical entirely dedicated to the publication of universal character, but they are the result of specific his- complete critical reviews of the status of research fields in torical contingencies and became standardized only after physics (3). World War II. In the definition and standardization of these contribution to the new physics was the discovery of the As Tate himself declared in a letter to Raymond T. Birge, practices, APS has played a particularly relevant role from Compton effect, named after Arthur Holly Compton, who “with these reforms [APS] will now have under its auspices the late 1920s onward. predicted the effect and confirmed it empirically in 1922. about the most complete mechanism for publication that Early Days While the paper with the detailed report of the breakthrough exists anywhere” (4). The competition with European com- APS was founded in 1899, but it was not until 1913 that was submitted in December 1922, six months elapsed before munities, especially German physicists, in the race for prior- The Physical Review was taken over by the Society. This publication, creating great distress because of the issues with ity was the rationale for the first two reforms, and Tate was change, which was not uncontroversial, was intended to priority this delay could have caused. A paper by Dutch authorized by the APS Council “to incur whatever expense increase the prestige of the journal and attract more publica- physicist Peter Debye on the same topic was in fact published [was] necessary” in order to pursue this goal. RMP arose tions by American physicists of the younger generation who much more rapidly in the German journal Physikalische from the desire of American physicists for an alternative to still preferred to submit their best work to more established Zeitschrift. the excessive compartmentalization of physics. While Tate British journals. From then on, editorial responsibility was At the end of 1925, Fulcher was not re-elected to the posi- was following models and examples from other journals in given to a salaried managing editor and an Editorial Board tion of managing editor and his analytic abstract approach different disciplines, the “mechanism” he created was quite composed of nine APS members, all elected by the Society was abandoned as excessively time-consuming. However, new. It was in fact the realization of a grand vision where for a three-year term. The managing editor was the only fig- the publication of clear and comprehensive heading abstracts APS members, on the one hand, were able to publish (and ure who could be re-elected indefinitely, which implied that written by the authors remained a legacy that still shapes read) quick reports of important results and, on the other, he (always “he” in those days) could, at least in principle, modern scholarship both in terms of writing and reading could have easy access to critical reviews that favored a com- provide strong editorial continuity and realize his vision of practices, well beyond the boundaries of physics. Historians prehensive view of what was going on in various branches the journal. Over time, this structure would provide a very are not exactly sure how this practice became standardized, of physics. fertile ground for the introduction of powerful innovations but we know that in 1924 the Sub-Committee of Bibliography Growing Pains of the Committee of Intellectual Co-operation of the League in physics publishing. These innovations entailed an enormous growth of the of Nations resolved to promote the use of heading abstracts One of the first changes that distinguished The Physical number of papers published by APS. This growth was not and recommended the rules adopted by The Physical Review. Review from European scientific periodicals came soon free of charge. Many more pages had to be printed and the after World War I, along with similar innovations in the The Tate Era costs for publication ballooned, leading to a substantial deficit Astrophysical Journal. Starting in 1919, articles appearing Fulcher was succeeded by John T. “Jack” Tate, who from 1929 onward. The stock market crash of 1929 and the in these two periodicals were required to be preceded by remained in charge from 1926 until his death in 1950. Tate depression that followed prevented APS from increasing the a synopsis. Abstracts were of course not new, but heading was probably the editor who more than anyone else shaped membership dues to cover the deficit of the journal. Because abstracts were uncommon at the time; abstracts were pub- the style of the journal. During his editorship the American of this situation the APS Council decided to introduce a vol- lished apart from the original papers, usually in dedicated physics community passed from a peripheral position to a untary page charge, which was to be covered by the research abstract journals. leading role, and so did The Physical Review. One might patrons of the authors publishing in The Physical Review. The change was due to physicist Gordon S. Fulcher, who say that American physics and The Physical Review “came While the introduction of a page charge was mostly a conse- worked at the Research Information Service of the National of age,” as John van Vleck put it (1), at the same time. No quence of the financial situation, it confirms that in the minds Research Council between 1919 and 1920. His main goal doubt, the two were related, but the increasing prestige of of those who managed the journal its function had changed: was to develop a methodology of analytic abstracting that the journal was not the simple consequence of the change of The journal was now the preferential place for American would allow information to be communicated and cata- status of the American community. Tate’s editorial manage- logued quicker and more effectively. At The Physical Review ment actively helped American physicists in their attempts BACK PAGE continued on page 7

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