July 2005 NEWS Volume 14, No. 7 A Publication of The American Physical Society http://www.aps.org/apsnews

New APS Open-Access Online Journal Features The Envelope Must be REALLY Big Physics Education Research By Ernie Tretkoff

A new online-only APS in physics departments.” how difficult it is to get things journal, Physical Review Spe- But with the rapid expansion published.” Physics education cial Topics-Physics Education of the field, it has often been researchers need a recognized Research, will provide a place hard to find places to publish journal in which to publish for researchers in the rapidly this type of research, said Beich- their work. growing field of physics educa- ner. “I’ve been working in the Until now, the primary place tion research to publish articles field for a long time, and I know See Online Journal on page 7 on the teaching and learning of physics. The journal began How Green was New Jersey accepting submissions in May. The APS is journal is PhysicsQuest Winners Collect Grand co-sponsored by the American Prize at Institute in Princeton Association of Physics Teach- By Richard M. Todaro Photo credit: Adrienne Klein ers and the APS Forum on May 11 is the birthday of the late Richard Feynman, physicist extraordinaire, Education. What do: the World Year of them figured into the and in his honor on that date the US Post Office issued the stamp pictured here. “Physics education research of Physics 2005 celebration… APS-sponsored PhysicsQuest The scene is the post office in Far Rockaway in the borough of Queens, New York, is a bit outside where our other a contest grand prize trip to contest grand prize trip to the where Feynman grew up, and surrounding the humungous stamp are (l to r), Ralph journals have led, but it is an New Jersey…a teacher and Institute for Advanced Study in Leighton, who co-authored “Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman” and various other important element in the Physi- nine of her 9th grade students Princeton on May 20-22. books with Feynman, Brian Schwartz of the Graduate Center of the City University cal Society,” said Martin Blume, from Iowa…an enormous Julie Mooney and her class of of New York, who worked with Leighton to get the stamp approved, and Feynman’s APS Editor-in-Chief. nine 9th graders from St. Albert sister, physicist Joan Feynman. linden tree in New Jersey…a In 1999 the APS Council passed secret treasure…and an ex- Catholic Schools in Council a statement supporting physics ploding hydrogen-filled Bluffs, Iowa were the grand APS Report Tackles Proliferation education research as a valuable balloon…have in common? All See PhysicsQuest Winners on page 3 topic for research in physics Resistance and Nuclear Power departments. By Ernie Tretkoff PRST-PER will be edited by Robert Beichner, a phys- For the first time in several ‘proliferation proof.’ However, ics education researcher at decades, the US is seriously consid- numerous steps can be taken–and North Carolina State University. ering building new nuclear power must be taken–to make it as ‘pro- Beichner, a recently elected APS plants. This change in attitude to- liferation-resistant’ as reasonably fellow who has worked in phys- wards nuclear power prompted possible. This is an urgent global ics education research for years, the APS Panel on Public Affairs to security problem,” says the report. emphasized how quickly the organize a study group to examine “No single diplomatic, military, field has been growing recently. steps the US can take to enhance the economic, institutional, or techni- For instance, said Beichner, over Photo credit: James Riordon proliferation resistance of nuclear cal initiative alone will be able to the past six years, an average of The winning Physics class meets at the Institute of Advanced Study with John power systems. The Nuclear Energy fully deal with this proliferation ten new faculty hires in physics Bahcall (center), Richard Black Professor of Natural Sciences and the retiring Study Group recently released their challenge.” education research have been President-elect of APS (see election preview item on this page). In the front report, entitled “Nuclear Power and The study group dealt only made per year. “The physics ed- row of the picture are (l to r): Emily Oliver, Lacey Stogdill, Danielle Cain, Proliferation Resistance: Securing with proliferation, not with other ucation research field is growing John Bahcall, Amanda Burkey, Morgan Wickersham and Julie Mooney. In the Benefits, Limiting Risks.” concerns about nuclear power, said very rapidly,” he said, “Most of back row are: John Avey, Zachary Butcher, Kelsey Mooney, bubblegum-chewing Michael Hoffmann, and Randy Schmitz. Global electricity demand is See Proliferation on page 4 this work is done by physicists expected to grow by more than 50% by 2025. Nuclear power could High School Students Measure New Value for Earth’s Radius meet a substantial portion of that demand, without carbon dioxide to Celebrate World Physics Year emissions. Environmentalists, who Has the radius of Earth mysteri- by so many groups, sometimes in same way that the Greek philosopher had the additional knowledge that in the past had opposed nuclear ously grown by about 3%? According less than ideal conditions, came so Eratosthenes did more than 2000 on that day the sun was directly power, are starting to change their to data taken by 183 high-school close to the right answer.” years ago in Alexandria, Egypt–by overhead at a location a known minds because of concerns about classes participating in a World Year The data were submitted by comparing the length of an object to distance south of Alexandria, on the global warming, and the US is of Physics project, “Measure the high school classes all around the the length of its shadow, measured Tropic of Cancer. This enabled him considering building new nuclear Earth with Shadows”, the radius of US, as well as some in Canada and at local noon. See Earth’s Radius on page 3 power plants. Earth is 6563 km, compared to the Mexico, working in pairs. Each pair Eratosthenes made his measure- “For the last few years there has accepted value for the mean radius measured the angle of the sun, in the ment on the summer solstice, and been increasing positive internation- of 6371 km. al and national attitude about the Of course, no one is claiming the APS ELECTION PREVIEW INSIDE future of nuclear energy,” said Roger size of Earth has actually changed. The APS election for Society-wide positions is underway. Voting Hagengruber, chair of the study “Most of the data submitted was opened on June 15 and will close on September 1. Biographies of the group. remarkably good,” said Jennifer candidates appear on pages 6 and 7. The APS has long been in favor Fischer, the APS project leader. “It is This year the election is somewhat unusual, because members are of nuclear energy, and in 1993 nice to see that measurements taken being asked to vote not only for Vice President but also for President the Council passed a statement Elect. John Bahcall, the current President Elect, decided that he would supporting the development of not be able to serve as President in 2006 because his health has put nuclear energy as one alternative to restrictions on his ability to travel widely. He very much regrets this. fossil fuels. Highlights The current APS Vice President, John Hopfield, will serve as President However, the use of nuclear energy in 2006. increases the danger of nuclear weap- Members with valid email addresses should be looking for a mes- The Back Page ons proliferation, because nuclear sage containing their own personal ID that will enable them to vote power technology overlaps with- Making the Case for University Andrew Blum gives some pointers to 8 Research on the web. Paper ballots will be mailed to members without such students in his high-school class in nuclear weapons technology. By Norman R. Augustine addresses, or upon request. Clinton, Mississippi as they work on the “Nuclear power cannot be made Eratosthenes project. 2 July 2005 NEWS

This Month in Physics History

Einstein’s Biggest Blunder “Until we have independent same as gasoline. People might have studies that converge on a single to relax a little bit and refuel a little answer, the doubters will prevail, more often to save the planet.” Once upon a time, physi- sive form of gravity, and such a and the fine structure constant will –Anne Dillon, National Renew- cists believed the cosmos was thing appears to be the driving continue to be regarded as well, able Energy Laboratory, on hydrogen static and unchanging, a ce- force behind cosmic accelera- constant.” power, Wired, May 16, 2005 lestial clockwork mechanism tion: it’s called dark energy. If –Stephen Maran, American Astro- ✶✶✶ that would run forever. But a dark matter gives rise to the nomical Society, on the possibility that “The great thing about being in a puzzling paradox cropped up gravity that holds the universe the fine structure constant has changed male-dominated field is that when when Isaac Newton formulated together, then dark energy is over time, San Francisco Chronicle, you go to a conference, there’s no his law of universal gravita- the counter-force pushing the tion in the 1600s. According universe apart. As the universe May 9, 2005 waiting line at the ladies’ room.” Einstein and de Sitter. ✶✶✶ to Newton, each star in the continued to expand, the dark –Frances Hellman, UC Berkeley, stant. The cosmos was indeed still “We take biodegradable vegeta- on being a woman in physics, San universe ought to be attracted matter density, and hence the towards every other star. They expanding. Einstein denounced gravitational pull, decreased ble matter–paper, twigs, sawdust, Francisco Chronicle, May 17, 2005 lambda as his “greatest blunder.” waste from bakeries, cafeterias and ✶✶✶ should not remain motionless, until it was less than that of at a constant distance from Hubble’s discovery changed the dark energy. So instead of flower shops and supermarkets– “The issue isn’t: Do you support the Big Picture of how the uni- grind it up in water with a little acid nuclear? The issue should be: Do each other, but should all fall the expected slow-down in together to some central point. verse will end. The attractive the expansion rate, the now- and heat, and on the other end we you support massive subsidies to force of gravity would slow down get a product we can sell to industry the tune of billions of dollars for Newton admitted as much in a dominant dark energy began letter to Richard Bentley, a lead- the rate of expansion. Scientists pushing the universe apart at or turn into P-Series fuel.” nuclear power? The answer is no.” spent the next 70 years trying to –Stephen Paul, Princeton Univer- –Thomas Cochran, Natural Re- ing Cambridge philosopher of ever-faster rates. the time. Yet it never occurred measure that rate. If they knew The simplest example of sity, on his garbage-based fuel, the sources Defense Council, on proposed how the rate of expansion was Palm Beach Post, May 8, 2005 subsidies for nuclear power, The New to any scientist from the late repulsive gravity can be found th changing over time, they could ✶✶✶ 1600s through the early 20 in the quantum vacuum, which York Times, May 15, 2005 deduce the shape of the universe. ✶✶✶ century that the universe might is teeming with virtual par- “It has a very smooth ride. And its shape was believed to When the electric engine is on, it’s “The signature of Bose-Einstein be evolving with time. ticles that wink in and out of Shortly after formulating his determine its fate. existence. But the numbers completely silent. And the turning condensation in those images could The more matter there is, radius also is very good.” not be more clear. It’s very unam- theory of general relativity, Ein- don’t add up. The quantum stein collaborated in 1917 with the stronger the pull of gravity, vacuum contains far too much –Olivier Gayou, Jefferson Lab, on biguous. As a scientist, you live to and the more space will curve his car, a Toyota Prius, the Virginian- see those kinds of things.” the Dutch astronomer Willem energy density: roughly de Sitter to demonstrate that – making it more likely that the 10 1 2 0 times too much. So Pilot, May 12, 2005 –Randall Hulet, Rice Uni- current expansion will halt and ✶✶✶ versity, Rocky Mountain News, his equations could be used the universe should be ac- to describe a highly simpli- the universe will be “closed,” celerating much faster than “I’m not absolutely sure that May 28, 2005 i.e. will collapse back in on itself hydrogen will ever be exactly the fied universe. This model was it is. An alternative theory See Members in the Media on page 4 adapted by other scientists to in a “Big Crunch.” If there’s not proposes that the universe describe the actual universe, enough matter, the pull of gravity may be filled with an even but they quickly ran headlong will gradually weaken as galax- more exotic, evolving form of into a version of Bentley’s para- ies move farther apart, and the dark energy dubbed “quintes- INSIDE THE BELTWAY: dox. The calculations indicated universe will be “open,” i.e. will sence.” Washington Analysis and Opinion that the universe was changing expand forever with essentially The dark energy could be with time. no end. Scientists believed the the result of the influence The Sky, The Sky Is Falling. Prevailing scientific opin- universe was flat, i.e. on the bor- of unseen extra dimensions ion held that the universe was der between open and closed, so predicted by string theory. I Must Go Tell the King. static, so Einstein introduced the expansion would slow down Alternatively, in 2004, sci- indefinitely, but without recol- by Michael S. Lubell, APS Director of Public Affairs a mathematical “fudge factor” entists at the University of into his equations, known as lapsing. Washington proposed that Michael S. Lubell Honesty does pay off, even in Washington– the cosmological constant, or Just as physicists were getting the dark energy could be due sometimes. Case in point: the President’s Fiscal Year lambda. It implied the existence comfortable with this idea, the to neutrinos interacting with 2006 budget request for science at the Department of Energy, which Ray of a repulsive force pervad- story took an unexpected turn. hypothetical particles called Orbach, the Director of the DOE Office of Science, was frank enough ing space that counteracts the In 1998, two separate teams of “accelerons.” Or perhaps there to admit last February would wreak havoc with university research gravitational attraction holding physicists measured the change is no such thing as dark energy, programs and facilities operations. matter together. This balanced in the universe’s expansion rate, and general relativity is not an Three months later, the House of Representatives responded by out the “push” and “pull” so using distant supernovae as mile- accurate description of gravity substituting a 1.5 percent increase for the 4.5 percent cut the White that the universe would indeed posts. When Hubble made his after all. House had proposed. And Orbach still has his job. be static. 1929 measurements, the farthest Thanks to cosmic accelera- Three years ago, Mike Parker, who was then Assistant Secretary of Perhaps Einstein should have red-shifted galaxies were roughly tion, the shape of the universe the Army for Civil Works, tried the same gambit with the presidential trusted his instincts. Twelve 6 million light years away. If ex- will no longer determine its budget request for the Army Corps of Engineers. Under questioning by years later, Edwin Hubble was pansion was now slowing under ultimate fate. Instead, its fate the Senate Budget committee, Parker, a former Republican congress- studying distant galaxies and the influence of gravity, superno- rests on whether the dark man from Mississippi, admitted to his ex-colleagues on the Hill that the noticed an intriguing effect in vae in the most distant galaxies energy is constant or changing. White House budget plan for Fiscal Year 2003 would force the Corps the light they emitted: it had a should appear brighter and closer All the observations to date to cancel $190 million in already contracted projects. pronounced “shift” toward the than their red shifts would sug- indicate that the dark energy is Parker not only didn’t get all the money he was seeking, he lost red end of the electromagnetic gest. Instead, at high red shifts, constant. If so, the acceleration his job. Of course, he had to contend with an unsympathetic boss, spectrum. Hubble reasoned the most distant supernovae are will continue indefinitely, and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, no pussycat he, who felt he that this could only be happen- dimmer. The expansion of the matter will grow farther and had been badly undercut. ing if the light were traveling universe is speeding up. farther apart. Within a hundred Ray Orbach was more fortunate–some might argue, more savvy. across space that is expanding. It’s a testament to Einstein’s billion years, we will only be His boss, Sam Bodman, had inherited the DOE science budget when Einstein’s original equations genius that even his blunders able to see a few hundred galax- he took the job of Secretary of Energy in February. As a former MIT had been correct, and there was prove to be significant. Lambda ies, compared to the hundreds professor of chemical engineering and a venture capitalist, he wasn’t no need for a cosmological con- implied the existence of a repul- of billions we can see today. See Inside the Beltway on page 7

Series II, Vol. 14, No. 7 Membership Department, American Physical Society, Treasurer Society), J. H. Eberly (Laser Science), Bunny C. Clark* July 2005 One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740-3844, Thomas McIlrath*, University of Maryland (emeritus) (Nuclear), John Jaros (Particles & Fields), Stephen NEWS ©2005 The American Physical Society [email protected]. Editor-in-Chief Holmes (Physics of Beams), James Drake* (Plasma), For Nonmembers—Circulation and Fulfillment Division, Martin Blume*, Brookhaven National Laboratory Timothy P. Lodge, (Polymer Physics), Gianfranco Vidali, American Institute of Physics, Suite 1NO1, 2 Huntington (emeritus) (New York Section), Paul Wolf (Ohio Section) Coden: ANWSEN ISSN: 1058-8132 Quadrangle, Melville, NY 11747-4502. Allow at least Past-President 6 weeks advance notice. For address changes, please Helen R. Quinn*, Stanford University (SLAC) ADVISORS Editor ...... Alan Chodos send both the old and new addresses, and, if possible, General Councillors Representatives from Other Societies Associate Editor ...... Jennifer Ouellette include a mailing label from a recent issue. Requests Janet Conrad, Frances Houle*, Evelyn Hu, Gerald Richard Peterson, AAPT; Marc Brodsky, AIP Special Publications Manager ...... Kerry G. Johnson from subscribers for missing issues will be honored Mahan, Ann Orel, Arthur Ramirez, Richart Slusher, Design and Production ...... Amera Jones without charge only if received within 6 months of the Laura Smoliar* International Advisors issue’s actual date of publication. Periodical Postage María Esther Ortiz, Mexican Physical Society, Forefronts Editor ...... Craig Davis International Councillor Paid at College Park, MD and at additional mailing Sukekatsu Ushioda Michael R. Morrow, Canadian Association of Physicists Proofreader ...... Edward Lee offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to APS News, Chair, Nominating Committee APS News (ISSN: 1058-8132) is published 11X yearly, length or clarity. All correspondence regarding APS Membership Department, American Physical Society, One Philip Bucksbaum Staff Representatives monthly, except the August/September issue, by the News should be directed to: Editor, APS News, One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740-3844. Chair, Panel on Public Affairs Alan Chodos, Associate Executive Officer; Amy Flatten, American Physical Society, One Physics Ellipse, College Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740-3844, E-mail: Frank Von Hippel Director of International Affairs; Theodore Hodapp, Park, MD 20740-3844, (301) 209-3200. It contains [email protected]. APS COUNCIL 2005 Division, Forum and Section Councillors Director of Education and Outreach; Robert L. Park, news of the Society and of its Divisions, Topical President Edward “Rocky” Kolb (Astrophysics), Kate Kirby (Atomic, Director, Public Information; Michael Lubell, Director, Groups, Sections and Forums; advance information on Subscriptions: APS News is an on-membership Marvin L. Cohen*, University of California, Berkeley Molecular & Optical Physics), Robert Eisenberg* (Chemical), Public Affairs; Stanley Brown, Editorial Director; Charles meetings of the Society; and reports to the Society by its publication delivered by Periodical Mail. Members President-Elect Charles S. Parmenter (Division of Chemical Physics), Moses Muller, Director, Journal Operations; Michael Stephens, committees and task forces, as well as opinions. residing abroad may receive airfreight delivery for a fee John Bahcall*, Institute for Advanced Studies, Princeton H. Chan (Condensed Matter Physics), Richard M. Martin Director of Finance and Controller of $15. Nonmembers: Subscription rates are available at Vice-President (Computational), Harry Swinney* (Fluid Dynamics), Peter Letters to the editor are welcomed from the http://librarians.aps.org/institutional.html. John J. Hopfield*, Princeton University Zimmerman (Forum on Education), Gloria Lubkin (Forum Council Administrator membership. Letters must be signed and should Executive Officer on History of Physics), Patricia Mooney (Forum on Industrial Ken Cole include an address and daytime telephone number. Subscription orders, renewals and address changes Judy R. Franz*, University of Alabama, Huntsville and Applied Physics), James Vary* (Forum on International * Members of the APS Executive Board The APS reserves the right to select and to edit for should be addressed as follows: For APS Members— (on leave) Physics), Philip “Bo” Hammer (Forum on Physics and NEWS July 2005 3

On the Firing Line Job Satisfaction High Among Recent Physics PhD’s By Ernie Tretkoff

A recent American Institute going up in the past few years, employment and training. 88% of Physics study on the initial so it is expected that the number of respondents said they would employment of physics degree of new PhDs will soon begin to still get a PhD in physics if they recipients in 2001 and 2002 found turn around. In 2001 and 2002 were given the opportunity to do that most were satisfied with their about 50% of PhD degrees went it again. “This high satisfaction physics degree and their initial to foreign students, and of those, with their degree choice was true employment situation. The study only about 15% left the US after for respondents in temporary as surveyed bachelor’s, master’s, and receiving their degrees. well as permanent positions, and doctoral degree recipients six In 2002 the proportion of new equally for women as well as men,” months after receiving their de- physics PhDs taking postdoctoral the report states. grees in 2001 and 2002. positions rose for the second con- The AIP study also reported Photo credit: U.S. Department of Energy, Oak Ridge National Laboratory Those two years represented secutive year. Over half (53%) on bachelor’s and masters degree Einstein-in-the-City, a World Year of Physics outreach event, was held on May 18 “the seventh and eighth straight of the new physics PhDs who recipients from 2001 and 2002. at World’s Fair Park in Knoxville in conjunction with the biennial DPB/Particle Accelerator Conference. The panelists, who fielded questions from the audi- year of declining physics doctor- responded to the survey took Unlike PhDs, physics bachelor’s ence, are (seated, l to r) Maury Tigner (Cornell University), Norbert Holtkamp ate production” in this country, postdocs. Another 6% accepted degree production increased sig- (Spallation Neutron Source), Michael Turner (University of Chicago/NSF), and the report says. In 2001, 1157 some other temporary position, nificantly in these years and in Carlo Rubbia (University of Pavia). The moderator (standing) is Bill Madia, physics PhDs were produced, and and 39% were in a potentially fact continued to rise thereafter. In former director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Questions included: “What in 2002, 1095 students earned permanent position six months 2001, 4091 students earned bach- would Einstein ask tonight?”, “What does physics have to say about evolution?”, a physics PhD. More recent data after receiving their degree. Only elor’s degrees and in 2002, 4305 “Was Einstein ever wrong?”, and “What is Bell’s theorem and why should I care indicates that the number of first 2% of these recent PhD recipients students earned bachelor’s degrees. about it?”. year graduate students has been reported being unemployed. About half of physics bachelors Slightly less than 20% of the went directly to graduate school new PhDs with potentially per- (30% in physics or astronomy, PhysicsQuest Winners from page 1 manent positions indicated that 20% in other fields), as had been their employment was not directly the case for many years. prize winners of the PhysicsQuest, and fields, the treasure spot was him to come in early and stay late related to physics. 40% said their According to the report, the a World Year of Physics 2005 beneath an enormous linden tree on the two consecutive days it took employment was “somewhat” re- private sector “continues to be the educational project aimed at 5th near the back of Fuld Hall, the to do the experiments. lated to physics, and 41% said they dominant employer,” but its share to 9th graders across the Unit- Institute’s central building. The group was treated to a were employed primarily in phys- is shrinking, as fewer graduates ed States. They were randomly Revealed at the 2 o’clock hour physics show by David Maiullo ics. Among the non-physics jobs, took computer-related jobs in chosen from among the 87 classes on May 21, the treasure consisted from the physics and astronomy work in areas such as engineering, 2001 and 2002 than during the who submitted correct results of a 5-inch reflecting Meade tele- department of nearby Rutgers computer software, business or high-tech boom of the late 1990s, in time for the April 22 contest scope with automatic drive for the University. finance were the most common. Of and more graduates accepted deadline. class, and iPod Shuffles for each Maiullo’s traveling physics road those employed outside of physics, positions in government and high Mooney, two other chaperones, student. show “Dave’s Dazzling Demo” the most common reason cited school teaching. “On the whole, and her group of nine students This was the first time ever is an hour-long, occasionally was a change of interests, followed people are moving away from the flew to New Jersey to collect the in New Jersey for Mooney, her dramatic presentation of a vari- by pay and promotional oppor- private sector,” said Casey Langer, PhysicsQuest “secret treasure” husband Greg, fellow teacher ety of physical phenomena. The tunities; less than 10% indicated one of the report’s authors. in person at the appointed time Randy Schmitz, and her students, show featured demonstrations of they couldn’t find employment in Most bachelor’s degree re- and location somewhere on the including her daughter Kelsey, buoyancy (with a bowling ball physics. cipients were pleased with their grounds of the Institute for Ad- who has her mom as a teacher in floating in water), sound waves Most respondents, even those decision to study physics. 85% of vanced Study in Princeton, N.J. two classes. (using a series of gas-fed flames employed outside of physics, felt those surveyed said they would Arranged as a treasure hunt, “There are so many trees and in a perforated pipe), air pressure that their physics PhD was an major in physics if they had to do PhysicsQuest was a set of four lots to see,” said 15-year old (pumping air from an oil barrel appropriate background for their it again, even though fewer people experiments designed to promote Michael Hoffmann. He contrasted until it implosively decompressed), position. “While obtaining a PhD (59%) indicated satisfaction with awareness of basic physical prin- the leafy suburban landscape of and conservation of momentum they gain analytical and problem- the job market and their career op- ciples in the areas of harmonic central New Jersey to the open (using a cart, a fire extinguisher, solving abilities, advanced math, tions. This high satisfaction with motion, the diffraction of laser rural spaces around Walnut, Iowa, and Maiullo himself). software and laboratory skills, as their degree in physics is similar light, magnetism, and soap bubble where he lives and where his After exploding a hydrogen- well as a basic understanding of the to what has been found in past configurations on a wire frame. grandfather owns and operates a filled balloon with a flame, Mauillo fundamental principles of science. years, said Langer. “I think it’s the It was made possible by finan- family farm 10 miles outside of pointed out how close Princeton Thus PhD physicists are excellent nature of physics that people who cial support from the National town. is to Lakehurst, N.J., site of the candidates for a broad range of go into it are likely to be happy,” Science Foundation, the Depart- Like his classmates, Hoffmann Hindenburg disaster in 1937. positions,” says the report. said Langer. ment of Energy’s Office of Science, volunteered to do the PhysicsQuest Following the visit to the Overall, physics PhDs who re- The report can be found at and Cadmus Communications. experiments before and after class- Institute, the group spent the sponded were satisfied with their http://www.aip.org/statistics. Though the Institute grounds es. He was seeking extra credit, and afternoon at the Six Flags Great sprawl over 800 acres of forest personal circumstances allowed Adventure amusement park. 2005 US Physics Olympiad EARTH’S RADIUS from page 1 Team Honored to compute the Earth’s radius. In to be part of this experiment and ics really fascinating and I would the current experiment, each pair of were very diligent in their measure- like to have it done in my country Twenty-four of the most end of the training camp, the high schools used the known north- ments. We ran 5 stations; they each too.” As a first step, she has trans- talented physics students from top five highest scoring students south distance between them and used a level to plant their dowel and lated the APS teacher’s guide for the high schools around the country were chosen to represent the US the angle of the sun at each location to level the horizontal when they project into Spanish. came to the nation’s capitol in May. at the 2005 International Phys- to determine the radius. measured the shadow lengths.” Participating students each These students had competed ics Olympiad. The members of For various reasons, about one- The class of physics teacher received a World Year of Physics against hundreds of their peers the traveling Team are: Timothy sixth of the schools were unable to Brent McDonough in Edmonton, pin, and their classes received a to earn a place on the 2005 US Credo, Illinois Math and Science work with their assigned partner Alberta, had two US partners, one commemorative certificate. More Physics Team. Academy, Aurora, IL; Nicko- school, but they did the measure- in Henderson, Nevada and the oth- details of the project, including the While participating in a las Fortino, Phillips Academy, ment anyway, on the vernal equinox, er in Calexico, California. “We had teacher’s guide and a map showing week-long training camp at the Andover, MA, Menyoung Lee, using the knowledge that the sun is a great time working with all three the distribution of participating US University of Maryland, the Team Thomas Jefferson HS for Science directly overhead at the equator on schools and have even exchanged schools, can be found on the World members were honored with a and Technology, Alexandria, that date. email photos of each class and Year of Physics website at http:// “Tribute to the US Physics Team VA; Eric Mecklenburg, Hawken “The Eratosthenes Project really posted them on our school web- www.physics2005.org/events/ 2005” ceremony on Capitol Hill. School, Gates Mills, OH; Dan- gets kids to think in a special way,” site with a report of the project,” eratosthenes/index.html. The May 18 ceremony was spon- iel Whalen, Phillips Academy, Fischer said. “Most kids learn in McDonough said. sored by the American Institute of Andover, MA; Alternate: William school that the Earth is round, but The project’s in- Physics (AIP) and the American Throwe, Shoreham-Wading River they never really picture it in their fluence has spread Association of Physics Teachers HS, Shoreham, NY. heads as if they were in outer space. to the southern (AAPT). It was co-hosted by Reps. Since 1986, AAPT and AIP, This project forces you to imagine hemisphere. An Ar- Vern Ehlers (R-MI) and Rush with support from APS and other the solar system as if looking down gentine physicist, Holt (D-NJ), the two physicists societies, have recruited, selected, on it from the outside. Learning to Silvia Ponce Daw- in Congress. In conjunction with and trained teams to compete in think imaginatively and creatively son, writes “I’ve the ceremony, Ehlers also placed the International Physics Olym- like this is an important part of found the Eratos- a statement in the Congressional piad. The US Team has enjoyed physics.” thenes project that Record congratulating the Team. great success over the years, bring- Rebecca Messer, a physics teacher you’ve launched on This year’s international com- ing home two gold, two silver, and in Northfield, Minnesota, wrote in the occasion of the petition will be held in Salamanca, one bronze medals from the 2004 an email “My students were thrilled World Year of Phys- Spain, from July 3 to 12. At the Olympiad in Pohang, Korea. 4 July 2005 NEWS

CORRECTION The Back Page article of the May APS News, entitled “Einstein, Ethics and the Atomic Bomb” contained an error which was introduced in the editing process, and was not the fault of the Encouraging Women in Physics is Based author, Patricia Rife. on Rudimentary Sense of Fairness A sentence which should have read “Elections in Germany brought Adolf Hitler into the position of Chancellor, approved by By Gary White President Hindenburg, to lead the Third Reich,” appeared in print as Ed. Note: The following Viewpoint or ethnicity, nor can one hide any bias in the MIT School of Science– “Adolf Hitler was elected Chancellor and approved by President is a rebuttal of a letter in the April APS of these traits very easily. http://chronicle.com/colloquy/99/ Kaiser Wilhelm to lead the Third Reich.” News. For those who missed the letter “But wait,” some argue, “by genderbias/background.htm, as well APS News regrets the error, and apologizes both to our readers and when it first appeared, it is available establishing CSWP, one is com- as the subsequent posts. to Dr. Rife. The complete version of Dr. Rife’s article, which was too on the web at http://www.aps.org/ mitting the same kind of violation, In conclusion, gender/racial in- long for the printed version, appears on the web at http://www.aps. apsnews/0405/040508.cfm. discriminating against men instead equities in physics are not remotely org/apsnews/0505/050523.cfm. I read Andrew Warden’s letter of women. Isn’t this an example of analogous to those that might be and laughed out loud, but then felt the pendulum swinging too far in related to political beliefs; in fact, in a little guilty about it. I like off-color the opposite direction?” this context, the Republican/Demo- humor as much as the next guy, and No. crat divide, should it actually exist, appropriately, it was April Fool’s Day, The pendulum has perhaps is more like the great boxers/briefs but still, it seemed ungallant not to slowed down, but it has not even schism of 1994. refute his ridicule of the Committee changed direction, much less come Gary White is Director, Society of The Second Law of Thermodynamics on the Status of Women in Physics anywhere close to returning to equi- Physics Students, Sigma Pi Sigma Direc- (CSWP). librium. In today’s society, conclusive tor, and Assistant Director of Education at Warden’s letter seemed carefully evidence of continued bias against the American Institute of Physics Ed. Note: In its May issue, the maga- what he’s saying. Is the law of entropy crafted not only to entertain, but women and racial/ethnic minorities Andrew Warden replies: Gary zine Physics Today broke new ground derivable from mechanics or is it not? also to disguise the hopelessly weak is easy to obtain. As an illustration, White states that “…unlike being by deliberately printing a work of fiction, Is it a statistical statement, or is it not? logic underpinning the stated case, unintentional and unrecognized bias Republican or Democrat, one does a short story entitled “The Second Law He claims to prove a theorem, but I so I felt compelled to write. is prevalent, even among groups of not generally get to choose one’s of Thermodynamics” by the well-known call it the H-theorem, for “hot air”. With tongue-sort-of-in-cheek, women and racial/ethnic minorities gender…”, and therefore it is wrong writer and physicist Alan Lightman. Not Katherine: Well, I’ll tell you what Warden advocated establishing a themselves and even among groups to discriminate against women. This to be outdone, or at least not to be caught I think. Give me that whisky. I’m go- committee parallel to CSWP, a ‘CSRP,’ that consider themselves immune to implies, however, that it is all right bringing up the rear by more than a ing to pour it into the ocean, and then devoted to luring Republicans into bias (see the work by Greenwald, to discriminate against Republicans, couple of months, APS News is proud see if you can drink any of it. (Pours physics, seeing as how they are so et al, on the Implicit Association because they could have chosen to be to present its own work of total fiction, the whisky into the sea). woefully underrepresented in the Test, for example). As another ex- Democrats. I’m afraid that, in the case a short dramatic piece which, curiously physics community. Lurking among ample, see the 1999 commentary of politics if not of gender, Dr. White enough, is also entitled “The Second Law James: (lunges forward) Katherine! some amusing physics/political hu- by Nancy Hopkins on the admission has allowed his biases to overwhelm of Thermodynamics.” It is based on the My angel! What are you doing? mor about conservative forces and by MIT administration of gender his rudimentary sense of fairness. following, real, quotations: Katherine: (sarcastically) Here’s a parity violation, and some entertain- “The second law has the same degree tumbler, James. See if you can dip it ing stereotypes of Democrats and of truth as the statement that, if you in the ocean and get that evil drink Republicans, is the subversive crux throw a tumblerful of water into the sea, back again. So much for your demon PROLIFERATION RESISTANCE from page 1 of his message. In explaining why you cannot get the same tumblerful of whisky! APS should initiate a Republican Hagengruber, “We felt the great- developed, it is essential to incorpo- water out again.” James: I believe the term is “de- recruitment committee, he trots est risk was not cost or safety, but rate proliferation-resistance into the –James Clerk Maxwell, letter to J. mon rum,” Katherine. But wait a out his main argument–physics best proliferation.” design, the report says. “Processes, W. Strutt minute, my brilliant impetuous not deprive itself of half the pool of Nuclear reactors now provide designs, and initiatives that might “James, you’re beginning to enjoy bride! If I understand right, your potential colleagues just because of about 20% of electric power in the be attractive on the basis of cost, yourself. It is time we go home.” wee experiment here is a perfect their political leanings if it wants to US. Worldwide, 30 new nuclear performance, and other consid- –Katherine Maxwell (attributed) illustration of the second law of survive–the expand-the-pool-or-die plants were under construction erations should not be pursued if

The scene is a seaside resort in the thermodynamics. argument. The fallacious next step in March 2005, with 20 of them they are not proliferation-resistant,” west of Scotland. Walking by the Katherine: I’ll bet you say that to that the silver-tongued Warden in Asia. Many countries have ex- states the report. New reactors shore are the physicist James Clerk all the lassies. would lure you to make is clear–if pressed interest in nuclear power. should be built to continuously Maxwell and his wife Katherine. The you don’t buy this argument for “As evidenced by the current situa- monitor for any misuse. It is also James: No, no. I did say some- time is the early 1870’s, and it is a Republicans, then you shouldn’t buy tion in Iran, technological advances essential to develop and strengthen thing once about the first law of glorious Scottish summer day. it for woman and minorities. and institutional changes are re- international collaborations on key thermodynamics in the heat of the Just because the expand-the- quired to avoid proliferation by proliferation-resistant technologies, Katherine: Och, James, ‘tis a bon- moment, but it didn’t work out. The pool-or-die argument is occasionally countries taking advantage of a the report states. nie day, is it not? I think that bright second law is neither more nor less used to make the case for the exis- global spread of nuclear power,” The report also advises against spot in the clouds is where the sun true than the statement that if I pour a tence of CSWP, it does not mean says the report. It is important to reprocessing spent fuel at the must be, and this morning’s fierce tumblerful of liquid into the sea I can’t that, in physics, the distinction be- make sure safeguards are in place, present time, saying there is no rain has given way to a nice torrential get the same tumblerful out again. tween Republicans and Democrats whether the US pursues nuclear urgent need to do so. The US downpour. Unless, of course, I have a demon is parallel to the distinction between power or not. does not currently reprocess spent James: Yes, it’s too bad the wind is with a quick hand and a sharp eye, female and male. The expand-the- The report therefore recom- nuclear fuel. Reprocessing could so strong, or I’d put up the umbrella. who can let the water go by and only pool-or-die argument has its place, mends, as a high priority in the near reduce waste, and would make Well, a wee dram makes the weather catch the molecules of whisky. especially when talking to those who term, significantly strengthening the it possible to produce more en- fine, I always say. (Reaches into his Katherine: Well I hope you have are not swayed by issues of fairness. federal Technical Safeguards R&D ergy from the original uranium, but pocket for a flask). such a demon, James, because that’s It is certainly not the only argument program. Technical safeguards tech- reprocessing spent fuel has inherent Katherine: James, James, put that the only way you’re going to get for CSWP, though, nor is it the most nology is intended to deter or detect proliferation risks because it leads away. It ill becomes a Christian gentle- yourself any more whisky. compelling in my mind. theft or diversion. Environmental to separated plutonium, which man to drink so early in the day. James: Yes, my sweet. (Gives I would say that the chief argu- sample analysis and surveillance can be used directly for nuclear James: But it’s good to the last a sudden start.) Ooh! The wind is ment for the existence of CSWP analysis have proved effective, but weapons. On the other hand, if not drop, as we Maxwells have it. Be- getting stronger now, and it’s blowing and for the analogous Committee “for technical safeguards to remain reprocessed, stored fuel emits in- sides, I’ve just been reading another up inside my kilt. on Minorities, COM, is based on a functional at containing theft, tense radiation, which deters theft, rudimentary sense of fairness, and diversion, and breakout, they must says the report. In order to make paper by that Austrian fellow, Ludwig Katherine: James, you’re begin- it goes like this: advance at least as quickly as a pro- possible further study, the report Boltzmann. I tell you, Katherine, it’s ning to enjoy yourself. It is time we There have been hundreds of liferator’s techniques and potential recommends delaying any decision enough to drive anyone to drink. go home. He writes these fearful long papers years of worldwide discrimination– opportunities,” the report says. on whether to reprocess fuel. and at the end of it you can’t be sure They exit, arm in arm, stage left. legalized, establishment-approved, The report recommends in- All of the report’s recommenda- and even physicist-sanctioned creasing resources for safeguards tions are intended to be practical discrimination–against females and technology development, identify- suggestions that can realistically MEMBERS IN THE MEDIA from page 2 ethnic/racial minorities entering ing near-term technology goals, be implemented, said Hagengru- most any scholarly endeavor…argu- formulating a technology roadmap, ber. “Our goal was to arrive at a ✶✶✶ ✶✶✶ ably more than a thousand years of and improving interagency coor- consensus that also had reasonable “It was an expedient attempt Massive particles such as affirmative action for white males, dination. “Revitalizing Safeguards and executable actions. Otherwise to solve a problem. What they protons are built of quarks and to loosely quote Debra Rolison’s R&D is the most significant techni- you get great recommendations, but got is ineffective, wasteful and gluons, which have zero mass remarks from her recent invited cal investment that can enhance the nothing will happen. We were very expensive to maintain.” (unless they are moving). Mass talk at the April APS meeting. This proliferation resistance of nuclear careful to select executable options,” –Philip J. Wyatt, on the moni- is far from conserved.” situation has begun to change only power within the next five years,” he said. So far, he said, the report toring equipment for biological –Frank Wilczek, MIT, giving ex- recently, say in the past few decades, the report says. The report lists has met positive response from weapons that was installed in some amples of things taught in basic physics and only in some parts of the world. some specific objectives for devel- policy makers. cities in a hurry after the start of classes that aren’t exactly correct, such And unlike being Republican or opment of safeguards technology. The full report can be found the Iraq war, The New York Times, as conservation of mass, The Wall Democrat, one does not generally In the longer term, as the next at http://www.aps.org/public_ May 8, 2005 Street Journal, June 3, 2005 get to choose one’s gender or race generation of nuclear reactors is affairs/proliferation-resistance. NEWS July 2005 5

Atom Chips, Attosecond Lasers Featured at 2005 DAMOP Meeting

New progress in “atom chips,” The X-Ray Factor. Many been known that photoioniza- studies of X-ray emissions in our objects in our solar system emit tion and photoabsorption play solar system, and a town meeting X-rays, most notably the Sun, a dominant role in determining Publication Déjà vu to discuss the future of the field Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and the state of a gas in such systems, Dear Jordan, were among the highlights of the comets. Thomas Cravens focused but Kallman concluded that these As an APS member, I would like to have your opinion and th 36 annual meeting of the APS on X-ray emissions from the au- processes are also dominant in guidance concerning an apparent misconduct in publication Division of Atomic, Molecular rora of Jupiter, particularly the highly ionized gas near compact practice by one of our physics faculty. and Optical Physics (AMO), held first observations of the planet by objects. APS established publication standard requires that “Proper and May 17-21 in Lincoln, Nebraska. the Chandra X- Ray Observatory, Town Meeting. Ten years complete referencing is an essential part of any physics research Among the special events was which revealed a powerful X-ray after the last comprehensive as- publication. Deliberate omission of a pertinent author or reference an Einstein Centennial Sympo- aurora in the polar caps. He be- sessment of the AMO field, there is unethical and unacceptable.” sium to celebrate the World Year lieves it is explained by energetic have been numerous significant This faculty member has patently published research papers in of Physics, and a performance heavy ion precipitation, either advances that are giving rise to different journals on practically the same experimental data. In some by “storysmith” Susan Marie on open field lines connecting profound changes in AMO phys- cases, one paper has several coauthors. Thus, by rearranging the Frontczak dramatizing the life of to the solar wind, or on closed ics and its applications. A panel title somewhat, there would be another paper by a lesser number Marie Curie. Presidential Science field lines reaching to the planet’s has been formed to conduct a of coauthors or just himself as a single author. Worse yet, there was Advisor Jack Marburger delivered outer magnetosphere. new study, co-chaired by Philip never any cross-referencing among them although some data were the Friday evening banquet key- NASA/GSFC’s Timothy Bucksbaum and Robert A. Eisen- published three times. note address, and several of the Kallman has analyzed recent stein. Both men were on hand at Resume padding by this seasoned physicist has actually University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s observations of X-ray spectra in the DAMOP meeting for Friday resulted in his reaching higher administrative positions and getting laboratories devoted to AMO nebulae surrounding hot stars evening’s Town Meeting open- undeserved rewards. physics were open for tours on and in active galaxies. It has long microphone panel discussion. Sincerely, Thursday evening. Name withheld Interferometer on a Chip. Northwest Section Scientists at the University of Jordan Moiers replies: Colorado and JILA have suc- ceeded in building an atom Holds Spring Meeting Dear Name withheld, Michelson interferometer on a You are absolutely right that it is unethical to intentionally leave The APS Northwest Section single “atom chip,” according to of the Gamma-ray Large Area out relevant citations. It seems pretty clear that the omissions are held its spring meeting on May 13- Dana Z.Anderson. The chip uses Space Telescope (GLAST), to be intentional. It is also unethical to incompletely list coauthors, or to 14 at the University of Victoria. lithographically patterned con- launched into low earth orbit add unqualified authors. Among the technical high- ductors and external magnetic in 2007. It will scan the sky for However, your colleague’s citation and authorship shenanigans lights was a talk by Montana fields to produce and guide a gamma-ray bursts and analyze are overshadowed by a greater transgression. At best, correcting State University’s Neil Cornish on Bose-Einstein condensate. their spectra. citation lists and authorship would lead to a published erratum for recent results from the Wilkinson High-Order Harmonics. Among the education-related each paper in question. Microwave Anisotropy Probe According to Margaret Murnane of topics was Oregon State Univer- The larger issue is publication of duplicate research data. (WMAP). the University of Colorado/JILA, sity’s John Gardner’s presentation Scholarly journals are venues for new and original work. In many Al Meldrum of the University high-order harmonic generation on his experiences teaching phys- cases, it’s appropriate to publish a short synopsis of research and of Alberta discussed the potential (HHG) provides a useful source ics to blind and dyslexic students. results in a journal such as Physical Review Letters or in the rapids of silicon nanoclusters. These of coherent, ultrafast light in the Gardner demonstrated several section of some other journal, and follow it up with the subsequent nanocomposites emit a broad extreme UV region of the spec- new computer technologies that publication of a complete description of the work. The second luminescence spectrum in the trum. In HHG an intense laser permit students with print dis- paper would, of course, include the same data published in the first red to near infrared. Meldrum’s pulse is focused into a medium, abilities direct access to electronic paper. (It would also include a citation for the initial letter or rapid group has been able to “tune” the and the nonlinear interaction materials. paper.) In fact, PRL authors are strongly encouraged to follow up emission spectrum to specific between the laser light and the Finally, to mark the World Year their letters with another paper in one of the full-length Physical colors in the visible and near atoms creates higher-order har- of Physics, Andrea Damascelli of Review journals. infrared. monics, resulting in a coherent, the University of British Columbia As you point out, if your colleague is not citing his own papers Dean Karlen (University of low-divergence beam. discussed the legacy of Einstein’s then it appears that he is not following this accepted practice, but is Victoria and TRIUMF) discussed Murnane and her colleagues Nobel-Prize-winning work on instead hiding the connection between essentially identical papers plans for the International Linear have shown that by combining the photoelectric effect, which in order to pad his resume. Collider, which the worldwide phase matching, quasi-phase marked the beginning of photo- If journal editors learn that a submitted paper has been published particle physics community has matching, and pulse com- electric spectroscopy. somewhere previously it will be rejected out of hand. If they discover agreed should be a linear elec- pression in a single gas-filled A special Friday evening the duplication after the paper has already made it into print, it tron-positron collider operating waveguide, they can shift the reception and banquet featured a could warrant a retraction. at the center-of-mass energy of phase-matching region in large presentation by Inge and Werner You should contact the editors at the journals that have published 500 GeV. atoms to significantly higher Israel on the unwritten letters the duplicate papers and make them aware of the situation. If I were Another talk focused on the energies. The technique has between Einstein and his first you, I would do it anonymously to avoid repercussions within your design and scientific potential useful applications in ultrafast wife, Mileva. department. There’s no reason for you to get involved beyond that atomic and molecular dynam- –the papers should speak for themselves. ics, coherent control of electron APS Joins Other Organizations I’m not sure it’s worth worrying about the authorship issue. If dynamics, lithography, high- there is something amiss, the other authors should be the ones to resolution imaging, site-specific in Calling for Visa Reforms bring it up. No doubt, they will be hearing from journal editors spectroscopy, and bio-micros- soon enough anyway. I’d be willing to bet the omitted authors copy. A group of 40 academic, scien- economy, national security, and will be happy they were left off, if the papers are retracted due to Gravity Probe B. Last April, tific and engineering organizations higher education and scientific duplication of earlier works. The citation problem will take care of the Gravity Probe B satellite have joined together in a newly- enterprises.” The statement, which itself once the duplicates are retracted. was launched, designed to released statement that, while is directed at the White House and perform a high-precision test recommending improvements to the State Department, expresses welcome international students for foreign students and scientists of the general theory of relativ- the visa application process for “gratitude and support for the and scholars. using equipment that is needed “to ity. The instrument is currently foreign students and scientists, changes that have been made” The new statement recom- conduct unclassified, fundamental making measurements of the also acknowledges the reforms and recommends “additional mends extending the validity of research.” precession rates of the four that have already taken place. The improvements, so that America the type of security check entitled The full text of the statement is mechanical gyroscopes relative APS and four other member soci- can continue to compete for and Visas Mantis; allowing students available at http://www.aau.edu/ to the guide star, IM Pegasi. Its eties of the American Institute of welcome the world’s best minds and scientists to at least begin a homeland/05VisaStatement.pdf motion in turn is being mea- Physics–the American Association and talents.” visa revalidation process before –Courtesy of FYI, the American sured relative to extragalactic of Physics Teachers, the American The federal government tight- leaving the country; renegotiat- Institute of Physics Bulletin of Science reference sources. According Astronomical Society, and Ameri- ened restrictions on foreign ing visa reciprocity agreements; Policy News (http://aip.org/fyi). to Stanford University’s G.M. can Geophysical Union, and the students and scientists apply- developing a national strategy to Keiser, combining these two Optical Society of America–all ing for visas in the wake of the promote scientific exchange and signed the May 18 statement. September 11, 2001 terrorist at- study in the US; and emphasiz- references will enable physicists Visit to determine the precession “Despite significant recent im- tacks. These tighter restrictions, ing student applicants’ “academic APS rate of the gyroscopes relative provements to the US visa system,” coupled with insufficient staff intent and financial means to com- to the extragalactic reference the statement says, “considerable and technology to handle the plete a course of study” rather News sources, which can in turn be barriers remain that continue to increased workload, led to se- than “their ability to demonstrate Online compared with the geodetic and fuel the misperception that our vere delays and backlogs in visa evidence of a residence and frame-dragging precession rates country does not welcome these applications, and, according to employment in their home coun- predicted by the general theory international visitors, who con- many reports, have fostered a try.” Additionally, it opposes the http://www. aps.org/apsnews/ of relativity. tribute immensely to our nation’s perception that the US does not requirement of export licenses 6 July 2005 NEWS 2005 APS General Election Preview It’s that time of year again, when APS members have the opportunity to elect next year’s leadership from a slate of candidates selected by the APS Nominating Committee. Brief biographical descriptions for each candidate can be found below. Those elected will begin their terms on 1 January 2006. This year, in addition to electing the usual positions–Vice President, Chair-Elect of the Nominating Committee, two General Councillors and an International Councillor–members will elect a President-Elect, since the current APS President-Elect, John Bahcall, will be unable to fulfill his tenure due to health reasons. The current APS Vice President, John Hopfield, will serve as President in 2006. All votes must be entered by Noon, Central Daylight Time, September 1, 2005. Full biographical information and candidates’ statements can be found at www.aps.org/exec/election2005. FOR PRESIDENT-ELECT FOR CHAIR-ELECT, NOMINATING COMMITTEE

RICHARD HAZELTINE ERIC D. ISAACS University of Texas, Austin Argonne National Laboratory & University of Chicago Hazeltine is a physics professor at the University of Texas Isaacs is the Director of the Center for Nanoscale Materials at at Austin. A graduate of Harvard College (A.B., 1964) and the Argonne National Laboratory and Professor of Physics in the James University of Michigan (Ph.D., 1968), he spent two years at Franck Institute at the University of Chicago. He received his PhD the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton before joining from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1988 in the area of the University of Texas in 1971. In 1980 he helped establish magnetic semiconductors and was a post-doc at Bell Laboratories the Institute for Fusion Studies at Texas, and served for ten (1988-1990) studying magnetism and superconductivity, mostly years, beginning in 1991, as Institute Director. As a theoretical with synchrotron-based x-ray techniques. During his 13-year plasma physicist, Hazeltine has worked in transport theory, tenure at Bell Laboratories he was a Member of Technical Staff plasma stability theory and nonlinear fluid modeling. His scientific interests extend from (1990 – 2000), Director of the Materials Physics Research Department (2000-2001) and basic plasma physics and plasma confinement to such topics as nonlinear dynamics, Director of the Semiconductor Physics Department (2001-2003). He has served on the astrophysics and the theory of fluctuations. He is co-author of the books Plasma Confine- APS Division of Materials Physics (2002-2005). His current research centers on studies ment (1992) and The Framework of Plasma Physics (1999). His teaching has won an of novel electronic and magnetic materials with a particular focus on creating images of Excellence Award from the University of Texas. He has been chair of the APS Division new phenomena in reciprocal and real space at the nanoscale. of Plasma Physics, as well as an APS Divisional Councilor. Previously on the editorial boards of Physical Review and The Physics of Fluids, Hazeltine served some 8 years as an associate editor of Reviews of Modern Physics. MARGARET MURNANE JILA & University of Colorado Murnane is a Fellow of JILA and is a member of the faculty LEO P. KADANOFF University of Chicago in the Department of Physics at the University of Colorado. She received her B.S and M.S. degrees from University College Cork, Kadanoff received his AB, MA, and PhD from Harvard Ireland, and her Ph.D. degree in physics from the University in Physics, and followed up with a postdoc in Copenhagen. of California at Berkeley in 1989. She remained at Berkeley for He taught at the University of Illinois (1962-1969), Brown one year as a postdoctoral fellow, before joining the faculty at University (1969-1978), and then moved to the University Washington State University in 1990. In 1996, Murnane moved of Chicago where he is presently John D. and Catherine T. to the University of Michigan, and in 1999 she moved to the MacArthur Professor of Physics and Mathematics, Emeritus. University of Colorado. Murnane’s research interests have been in ultrafast optical sci- He has served as vice-president of the Urbana Chapter of the ence. She served as Chair of the APS Committee on the Status of Women in Physics in NAACP, as a member of both the Board of Governors of Argonne 2004, and currently coordinates the CSWP Site Visit program. She has served on the National Laboratory and the Board of Physics and Astronomy of the National Research APS Council and Executive Committees, as well as on the Executive Committees of the Council (US), and twice as Director of the University of Chicago Materials Lab. Kadanoff APS Divisions of Laser Science and Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics. has won the APS Buckley and Onsager Prizes, the National Medal of Science (US), and la Grande Médaille d’Or of the French Academy of Sciences. His theoretical work has focused on condensed matter and statistical physics, and he helped establish the scaling FOR GENERAL COUNCILLOR and universality basis of phase transition theory. CHRISTINA BACK General Atomics FOR VICE PRESIDENT Back is an experimental physicist with expertise in the study ARTHUR BIENENSTOCK of radiation in high energy density plasmas. She received her Stanford University B. S. in Physics from Yale in 1984 and earned her Ph.D. in plasma physics from the University of Florida in 1989. Her thesis work Bienenstock received his BS and MS in physics from the Poly- led to the first measurement of resonance fluorescence in a laser- technic Institute of Brooklyn in 1955 and 1957, respectively, produced plasma. Following her Ph.D. she worked in France at and his Ph.D. in applied physics from Harvard in 1962. After the Ecole Polytechnique for two years and was also a visiting an NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship, he joined Harvard’s Division scientist at the UK Rutherford-Appleton Laboratory. In 1992 she of Engineering and Applied Physics in 1963. He joined Stanford joined Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. This year, she became the Center Head University’s Materials Science and Applied Physics Departments of High Energy Density Physics Targets and Research at General Atomics. Her publica- in 1967. In 1978, he took on the Stanford Synchrotron Radia- tions include significant contributions to the study of high efficiency x-ray production, tion Laboratory directorship and held that position through the summer of 1997. In opacity, hohlraum physics, and spectroscopic diagnostics. Back currently serves on the November, 1997 he was confirmed as the Associate Director for Science of the White APS Division of Plasma Physics Executive Committee. House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and remained in that position OLIVER K. BAKER until 2001. Bienenstock’s early research is primarily solid-state theory, focusing on sym- Jefferson Laboratory & Hampton University metry theory, vibrational and electronic states in crystalline solids and order-disorder phenomena. Subsequently, he turned to the physical properties of amorphous materials, Baker is an Endowed University Professor of Physics at with a focus on determining atomic arrangements. Bienenstock served as an APS general Hampton University and, jointly, a Staff Member in the Physics PHOTO NOT councilor, on the APS Committee on Applications of Physics, on the Audit Committee, Division at Jefferson Lab. His current research interests include AVAILABLE on the Panel on Public Affairs, and as chair of the Ethics Committee. studies of proposed Exotic Physics phenomena, specifically extra dimensions, at the energy frontier in ATLAS at the Large Hadron Collider, and precision studies of nuclear and particle systems ROBERTO PECCEI with strangeness degrees of freedom at Jefferson Lab. He is the University of California, Los Angeles Director of the NSF-funded Physics Frontier Center in particle Peccei is the Vice Chancellor for Research at the University and nuclear physics at Hampton University. He has won several awards for his research of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). Peccei obtained a B.S. success, including the APS Edward Bouchet Award. He has served on the Nuclear from MIT in 1962, an M.S. from NYU in 1964 and a Ph.D. Science Advisory Committee and the High Energy Physics Advisory Panel, as well as on from MIT in 1969. After a brief period of postdoctoral work the Quarks to the Cosmos Committee that produced the report “The Quantum Universe” at the University of Washington, he joined the faculty of Stan- in 2004. Baker received his B.S. in Physics from MIT (1981), and his Ph.D. in Physics ford University in 1971. In 1978, he became a staff member from Stanford University (1987). He is a Fellow of the Southeastern Universities Research of the Max Planck Institute in Munich, Germany. He joined Association and the National Society of Black Physicists. the DESY Laboratory in Hamburg, Germany, as the Head of GARY FELDMAN the Theoretical Group in 1984. He returned to the US in 1989, as a faculty member of Harvard University the Department of Physics at UCLA. Soon thereafter, he became Chair of the Depart- ment, a position he held until becoming Dean of the Division of Physical Sciences of the Feldman, Baird Professor of Science at Harvard University, is College of Letters and Sciences in November 1993. Peccei is a theoretical particle physicist an experimental particle physicist with primary current interest in whose principal interests lie in the area of electroweak interactions and in the interface neutrino physics. He was Chair of the Harvard Physics Department between high energy physics and cosmology. He is probably best known for his work from 1994 to 1997. Feldman received his B.S. degree in physics on CP Violation. The so-called, Peccei-Quinn symmetry predicts the existence of axions, from the University of Chicago in 1964 and his Ph.D. degree from which could be the source of the dark matter in the Universe. He is presently interested Harvard University in 1971. After graduating, he joined the staff in neutrino models of dark energy. He chaired the APS Division of Particles and Fields See 2005 Election on page 7 in 1989-90, and served on the APS Council from 1998 to 2001. NEWS July 2005 7

2005 ELECTION from page 6 ANNOUNCEMENTS of the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. His research at SLAC was primarily in the physics of electron-posi- tron annihilation with the Mark I and II experiments, where he was fortunate to be able to participate in the AAPT Executive Officer many discoveries of the “November Revolution.” In 1990, Feldman joined the faculty of Harvard University Applications and Nominations Sought and turned his attention to the study of neutrino oscillations. He is currently the cospokesperson of the NO collaboration, which is proposing a large off-axis detector for the NuMI beamline at Fermilab. Feldman has The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) served on the Department of Energy’s High Energy Advisory Panel. He chaired the APS Division of Particles seeks an experienced physicist to serve as its Executive Of- and Fields in 1992. ficer. The position requires a leader with an entrepreneurial WENDELL T. HILL, III flair and a broad vision of physics education who is also a University of Maryland, College Park skillful manager. The AAPT Executive Officer works in con- cert with the AAPT Executive Board to support the members Hill holds the rank of Professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, with of the organization in improving physics teaching at all levels. appointments in the Institute for Physical Science and Technology and the Department A candidate should have taught physics and be familiar with of Physics. He received a B.A. in physics from the University of California, Irvine, in the physics teaching community and the issues it faces. As an 1974 and a Ph.D. in physics from Stanford University in 1980. He is a guest worker at important representative of this community, the AAPT Execu- NIST, where he was a postdoc before joining the faculty of the University of Maryland in 1982. His current investigations are centered around ultrafast dynamics, coherent tive Officer needs the skills and background to build effective control, strong-field laser-matter interaction, atom optics and quantum information. alliances and to interact productively with physicists of all He leads the first group to combine ultrashort pulses and coincidence imaging with kinds and with leaders of other scientific and educational position-sensitive detectors to extract correlated ejection details previously not possible. Most recently, his organizations, federal government officials, funding agencies, group has demonstrated an all-optical atom switch to transfer atoms between two different guides. Hill was a and the public. The Executive Officer heads the office of the member of the Executive Committee of the APS Division of Laser Science, the APS Committee on Minorities, AAPT located in the American Center for Physics in College and chaired the Nomination Committee for the APS Division of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics. Park, Maryland. The review of applicants will commence on October 1, FOR INTERNATIONAL COUNCILLOR 2005 and continue until the position is filled. Interested persons should send a resume and cover letter by email to ALBRECHT WAGNER the Search Committee at [email protected]. Nominations Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron, DESY, and are welcome and should also be sent to that email address. University of Hamburg Questions and inquiries should be addressed to the chair Wagner did his undergraduate studies in Munich and received his doctoral degree of the search committee, Ken Heller, School of Physics and in physics in 1971 from Heidelberg University with work done at an experiment Astronomy, University of Minnesota, at heller@physics. at CERN. During his scientific career he worked from 1973-1974 at the Lawrence umn.edu. More information about the AAPT can be found Berkeley National Laboratory, USA. He did research from 1975 until 1986 at DESY, at http://www.aapt.org/. AAPT is an Equal Opportunity/ and from 1986 until 1999 at CERN. In 1984 he became full professor at the University Affirmative Action Employer. of Heidelberg. In 1991 he was offered a professorship at the University of Hamburg and at the same time was appointed Director of Research at DESY. He is chair of the board of the TESLA Collaboration which works on superconducting accelerator development. Wagner’s own research is in elementary particle physics, with a main emphasis on the study of the electro-weak and strong New Membership Directory Feature forces. His second field of interest is the development of detectors, with an emphasis on gaseous detectors APS Members may now search the Online Member Direc- and fast electronics. tory by institution. Please visit http://www.aps.org/memb/ AMNON AHARONY enter-directory.cfm to login to the Member Directory. From Tel Aviv & Ben Gurion Universities there you will see the original single member search and the new “Search by Affiliation” option. Aharony is the Moyses Nussenzveig Professor of Statistical physics at Tel Aviv An email request was sent to all members during the last University, Israel, where he has been professor of physics since 1975. He is also a visit- year to verify the accuracy of all affiliation linking that we have ing professor at Ben Gurion University and an adjunct professor at the University of on record. Please note that not all members have provided Oslo, Norway. He received his B.Sc. in physics and mathematics (1963) and his M. Sc. affiliation information and may not be listed in the institutional in nuclear physics (1964) from the Hebrew University and his Ph.D. in high energy physics (1971) from Tel Aviv University. He then switched to statistical physics, and directory. If you have a correction to a listing, please contact a was a post-doc at Cornell (1972-4), Harvard, UCSD, and Bell Labs (1974-5). In 2005 membership representative at [email protected] or 301-209- he will be a visiting professor at the University of Tokyo. He is also a frequent visitor 3280 for assistance. at universities and research institutes in Germany. Aharony is a theoretical condensed matter physicist, with Thank You. contributions to critical phenomena, magnetism, liquid crystals, disordered systems, percolation, electron The APS Membership Department localization, and mesoscopic physics. Aharony was the chairperson of the IUPAP Commission on Statistical Physics and a member of the IUPAP Commission on Magnetism. He has been a member of the editorial board of several international journals, including Physical Review E. was that the presidential budget Little is right to be scared. had provided the NIST labs with a Today, as a percentage of the 10 percent boost. So a small trim- Gross Domestic Product, the ONLINE JOURNAL from page 1 INSIDE THE BELTWAY ming of the request for the labs in federal treasury is collecting less from page 2 order to better fund the Manufac- than at any time in the post World to publish physics education lished online only, and expects turing Extension program that the War II era. The culprit is the 2001 research articles has been the to initially publish about 50 too fond of the proposed spending White House had proposed to cut tax cuts that are about to become American Journal of Physics, articles a year. PRST-PER will plan either. seemed a reasonable approach. It permanent. They have left a $500 which is published by AAPT. But be distributed free of charge, But it didn’t hurt that the House would have been, but for the large billion hole that wishful thinking the AJP, which mainly publishes financed by publication charges. Appropriations Subcommittee for shortfall in the closeout costs for and discretionary budget trim- pedagogical articles, rather than Authors or their institutions will Energy and Water Projects has the Advanced Technology Pro- ming cannot possibly fill. primary research, isn’t large be asked to pay a per-article David Hobson (R-OH) as chair- gram that the Administration had The only solution is to increase enough to handle all the new charge of $700, plus a length- man and Peter Visclosky (D-IN) somehow forgotten to mention. taxes and cut entitlements. But physics education research arti- dependent charge of $80 per as ranking member. Both of them Absent remedial action by the both political parties have learned cles that need to be published. 125 lines. Authors who cannot are big boosters of science. Senate, NIST could wind up in their lessons well. Whoever blinks PRST-PER will have the pay these charges can request a And it probably didn’t hurt that the minus column. first and utters the “T” word loses: same peer review process and fee waiver. As a special incen- APS members had flooded Capitol Let’s be honest, though, Con- the Republicans sacrificed the high standards as the other tive, manuscripts submitted in Hill with more than six thousand gress faces a daunting job, trying Senate in 1986 after the Reagan Physical Review journals. The 2005 will have the $700 charge letters beginning in March, and to fund programs with money it increase and the White House in well-known quality of the Physi- waived. that hundreds of scientists had doesn’t have. The truth is that the 1992 after the Bush increase, and cal Review journals should help This “open-access” model, roamed the corridors of power United States treasury is in des- the Democrats gave up the House enhance the status of the physics in which the author pays the during a series of congressional perate need of disaster relief. and the Senate in 1994 following education research field, said publication charges, makes visits beginning in January. The real budget deficit this the Clinton increase. And whoever Beichner. sense especially when the au- The core programs at the year will be about $600 bil- suggests cutting back on Social The journal will publish a thors and the readers of the National Institute of Standards lion, the balance of trade deficit Security and Medicare will be out range of experimental and theo- journal aren’t necessarily the and Technology didn’t fare as will reach $700 billion, and the of office in an instant. retical research on the teaching same people. For instance, well, even though Frank Wolf, national debt, within four years, So where does that leave and learning of physics, includ- some high school teachers who chairs the new House will climb to about half the gross research? Well, in a $2.4 trillion ing review articles, replication might want to read some of Appropriations Subcommittee domestic product, with China budget, it will only take about $2 studies, descriptions of new the articles in PRST-PER, said for Science, State, Justice and holding a good fraction of the billion of additional spending to assessment tools, presentation Blume. “It is important that it Commerce, is one of the true outstanding IOU’s. Social Security keep the science level of effort of research techniques, and be open access,” he said, “Many research and innovation will be paying out more than it constant. That’s really not too methodology comparisons or educators will want to see this. champions on Capitol Hill. will be bringing in within a dozen much to pay to secure our nation’s critiques. Everyone who needs it should The message Wolf had received years, and Medicare could be on future, even when the sky seems The new journal will be pub- have access.” from the Commerce Department life support even sooner. Chicken to be falling. 8 July 2005 NEWS The Back Page Making the Case for University Research By Norman R. Augustine

The role of research universities in gineers, many educated in the US. so our president could describe our note that when scientists, as a group, Third, spokespersons need to be underpinning our nation’s standard Soon we were being asked to ap- exciting plans in detail. But upon take public positions on contentious enlisted in the cause who are inde- of living is of pivotal importance. prove moving our design teams and completion of his presentation, the subjects having at best marginal rela- pendent of our research universities However, too often it is taken for software production abroad. More audience literally ran from the room tionships to science, it rarely endears and do not suffer the appearance granted that our universities will recently, our research laboratories and sold our stock. them to all members of the political of being self-serving. This accounts more or less automatically continue have joined the exodus. The price of our stock plum- establishment. for the remarkable success groups to generate the breakthroughs that Today, America’s companies find meted the next day and continued I further discovered that relation- of citizens concerned with various have fueled our economy for many themselves in a marketplace without to decline gradually for another 18 ships within the nation’s research diseases have had in doubling the years. Dan Goldin told me when he borders–or, at the very least, with months as we persisted in our strat- community itself in many instances NIH budget in recent years. was administrator of NASA that he borders that are extremely perme- egy. I particularly recall the remarks make last year’s Los Angeles Lak- Fourth, successes achieved from had received a complaint from a dis- able. And it is quite clear that we of one analyst who told us, “Everyone ers appear to be Miss Congeniality. our government’s investment in gruntled citizen who inquired, “Why are unable to compete in this global knows it takes 10 or 15 years for in- On several occasions, after having research need to be broadly pub- do we need meteorological satellites? marketplace on the basis of favorable vestments in research to pay off–but made an impassioned plea for uni- licized and publicly attributed to We have the weather channel.” domestic labor costs. Only one ac- your shareholders, on average, only versity research funding, I would government support. Few people It was my privilege during the ceptable choice remains: to be among own your stock for a little over a year learn that my footsteps had been seem to recognize the important role late 1990s to serve as a member of the world’s foremost innovators. before they sell it. The benefits of followed by groups of scientists physics, chemistry, engineering and the Hart-Rudman Commission on The underpinning of innovation is your research, if there are any, may wherein the physicists argued that mathematics play in underpinning National Security. Our final report research, particularly in science and be of interest to the great-grand- any new money should be spent on health research; for example, the stated, in part, that “ . . . the US technology, which is increasingly children of your shareholders–but physics and certainly not on chem- contribution of robotics, computers government seriously under-funded becoming the relatively exclusive today’s shareholders shouldn’t be istry; but the physicists then argued and mathematics in deciphering the basic science research in recent years province of our nation’s universities. asked to foot the bill for it. Our fund among themselves whether new human genome, or the role of math- . . . If we do not invest heavily and This is where the breakthroughs, doesn’t invest in companies with money should be spent on particle ematics and engineering in modern wisely in rebuilding [research and the “Big Bangs” that have profound such short-sighted (emphasis added) physics or astrophysics; and the ex- non-intrusive imaging techniques. education], America will be incapable impacts, are produced. The conse- management.” perimentalists asserted that new funds Even fewer seem to be aware of stud- of maintaining its global position long quences of neglect, although severe, But if industry is to abdicate its should certainly not be wasted on ies such as the one that concluded into the 20th century.” are often not suffered for a number responsibility to feed the front-end theoreticians. that research conducted at MIT alone The other primary finding stated of years. Further, a trend of neglect of the innovation machine, who then The result of this cacophony was had in recent years generated over that a major direct attack against is not easily reversed–as some great is to do so? A case can be made that that many members of Congress, 4,000 companies and created over a American citizens on American soil scholar once noted, you can’t pro- the support of generic, broadly-ap- perhaps understandably, tended to million jobs. with heretofore unimagined casual- duce pigs by running the sausage plicable, high-payoff and often risky throw up their hands: If the experts Finally, I recommend communicat- ties was likely, and that a National machine backwards. research is an appropriate province can’t agree on how money should ing the old fashioned way: face-to-face Homeland Security Agency should One might reasonably ask why, of our government. This has in fact be spent, and the members don’t contacts with individual members of be established with Cabinet status to if in the last dozen years, inflation- been widely and beneficially recog- have the time, or perhaps even Congress, the administration and the address that threat. Our prediction adjusted research and development nized for many years and has resulted inclination, to learn the difference media. It is also important to visit proved to be all too accurate. Unfor- conducted in America has increased in the creation of such agencies as the between a boson and a lepton, it is the members in their home district, tunately, the tragedy of 9/11 occurred by two-thirds, one should be alarmed NSF, NIH and DARPA and the DOE best that the money simply be spent where they have more time to devote before any of our Commission’s about the health of the nation’s science program. on highways. to longer-term issues. Including re- principal recommendations were research enterprise. Furthermore, The problem resides in the in- It is my belief that were industry spected local citizens in these visits implemented. But it is not too late the industrial sector seems to have adequacy of resources being made and our universities to work more amplifies the impact of the message to address the health of our basic been picking up the slack in R&D available for research in the so-called closely together in explaining the being conveyed. scientific research enterprise, which growth. In fact, industry R&D spend- “hard sciences”. Flat federal funding importance of fundamental research, The bad news is that our nation’s is principally harbored in the nation’s ing surpassed government spending of the physical sciences, in constant a much broader acceptance of the investment in research in the physi- universities. in 1980, and now comprises more dollars, has taken place as we have notion might be realized. Similarly, cal sciences and engineering is only I was responsible for a firm whose than double the amount of funds become increasingly dependent on an increase in industry funding of about one-tenth of one percent of future existence was heavily depen- that the government appropriates to science and technology for jobs, research performed at our universi- the nation’s GDP. But the good news dent upon the competitive margin this purpose. healthcare, energy and national ties would benefit both parties. A is that major proportionate increases that could be generated by the 62,000 However, almost all the increase security. In effect, we have created program of tax credits for companies can therefore be achieved with rela- engineers and scientists with whom in government research spending a huge “inverted pyramid” of jobs, that do so would provide additional tively modest overall impact on the I worked. And I was well aware of has been devoted to the biosciences. corporations and technology which incentives. federal budget. For example, the studies that had shown that over 50% And while pursuing this laudable to a large extent is supported, rather I recognize that it is difficult federal research effort in engineer- of the jobs created in America during course, investment in the physical precariously, at its fulcrum by a pro- to obtain government support in ing, math and the physical sciences the last half century could be directly sciences, mathematics and engineer- gram of university research. today’s challenging funding climate could be doubled by increasing the attributed to investments in science ing has been badly neglected. In the The bottom line is that in the for pursuits that do not produce a gasoline tax by a dime per gallon. and technology. Most of our own physical sciences, federal research last two decades, the US share of rather clear, direct impact on the For perspective, the entire research company’s sales were derived from spending has been roughly flat as global exports has fallen from 30% quality of life of the average citizen. budget in all these fields is less than products that did not even exist a few measured in constant-purchasing to 17%, while those of Asia, exclud- My first suggestion is to adopt, wher- the amount by which healthcare years earlier. In the case of another power, while funding in mathemat- ing Japan, grew from 7% to 27%. ever possible, pragmatic arguments costs in America increase every two firm, Intel, nearly 90% of all the prod- ics and engineering has only slightly For the first time in memory, the US when making the case for increasing months. There is enormous lever- ucts they sell in any given year did not surpassed inflation. Correspondingly, now has a negative trade balance for the nation’s spending on academic age available for research to recover exist a year earlier. Even a consumer the number of Bachelors degrees high-technology products–and the jobs research. Relate such spending to the increased investment. products firm such as Procter and awarded by US universities in these associated therewith are fast becom- creation of jobs, the enhancement I would like to close with a poem Gamble has been described by its fields since 1985 has dropped by ing one of our major exports. of health, the assurance of physical attributed to Richard Hodgetts that, former CEO as fundamentally an 11%, 28% and 21%, respectively. These were some of the consid- security, and so forth. I conclude this to my mind, captures the intense R&D enterprise. Undergraduate students seem to be erations that prompted me to begin with a sense of sadness, because I competitiveness of the global mar- I was deeply troubled that many keenly aware of where the jobs are attempts to call increased attention believe that the search for knowledge ketplace. of the corporate boards on which I to be found. to our nation’s under-investment has merit in its own right. If we can- Every morning in Africa a served were increasingly being called While overall industry-funded in university research. It became not afford to study the origin of the gazelle wakes up. upon to approve proposals to relocate R&D has increased markedly, these abundantly evident in my role as a dinosaur because it may not create It knows it must outrun the factories outside the US. It was almost monies have largely been devoted relatively neutral party that, although jobs, not even for dinosaurs, does fastest lion or it will be killed. certainly in the best interest of our to development activities as opposed I found America’s academe broadly that also suggest that we should not Every morning in Africa a lion shareholders, and, ultimately, of our to research. Even those funds which and highly respected for its schol- take time to watch Shakespeare per- wakes up. remaining employees, to conduct have been devoted to research are arly excellence, its researchers were formed, listen to Beethoven’s works, It knows it must outrun the more and more of our manufactur- increasingly focused upon applied often resented by the very officials or cheer Roger Clemens’ fastball? On slowest gazelle or it will starve. ing operations in such places as Asia, rather than basic research. Current who have a say in the allocation of the other hand, when this connectiv- It doesn’t matter whether you’re a India and Mexico. I recently visited a indicators of this trend include the federal research funds. I also found ity is convincingly demonstrated, the lion or a gazelle–when the sun comes factory in Vietnam where the wrap- diminished status of such renowned a certain unspoken reluctance by nation’s policy makers appear to be up, you’d better be running. rate was about twenty-five cents per institutions as Bell Labs or the closing some legislators to support institu- willing, even eager, to invest. Norman R. Augustine is the retired hour, far less than most American several years ago of Martin Marietta’s tions which they view as elitist; My second suggestion is that Chairman and CEO of the Lockheed firms pay simply for medical insur- corporate research laboratory. institutions whose tuition, even some degree of internal consensus Martin Corporation and former Under ance for their employees. Several years ago, when I was after scholarships, grows at a rate be established within the academic Secretary of the Army. This article The trend to relocate abroad did with Martin Marietta, we concluded considerably exceeding the growth in community as to priorities for al- is adapted from his April 19, 2005 not stop with factories. I soon learned that it had an unusually rich set of income of the general populace–and locating resources. At a minimum lecture before the Association of that we could hire eleven engineers in opportunities that could be reaped which rejects the sons and daughters a “truce” is needed whereby the American Universities. India for the cost of one in the US. We by increased investment in applied of the Washington cognoscenti at a various interested partisans make The full text of the lecture can be could hire even more in Russia–and research. We called a special meeting rate which does not go unobserved. their cases without attacking those found at http://www.aau.edu/resuniv/ these too were highly-qualified en- in New York of Wall Street analysts And, finally, I would gratuitously of others. Augustine–04-19-05.pdf.

APS News welcomes and encourages letters and submissions from its members responding to these and other issues. Responses may be sent to: [email protected].