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PHYSICS SOCIETY a Publication of the Forum on Physics And& Society a Forum of the American Physical Society from the Editor Vol. 50, No. 1 January 2021 PHYSICS SOCIETY A Publication of The Forum on Physics and& Society A Forum of The American Physical Society From the Editor am very pleased to announce in the “News” section this financially. It is great to see I issue the winners of the two APS Forum sponsored awards. science and society at large Congratulations to Robert Semper (Burton Award winner) working together so well. and to Steve Fetter (Szilard award). You can read the cita- Praise is due to scientists (and tions below. I hope soon to be Nobel laure- We have also the election results for Forum officers. We ates) Ugur Sahin and Özlem had an excellent slate of candidates. The only thing not to Türeci for developing the like about the election is the low participation, about 15% of mRNA method, and to Boris the Forum membership only. The officers of the Forum play Johnson for helping the United a crucial role in its activities and an important one in the APS Kingdom be the first country in general. Let us do better next time. to administer the vaccine. Once again, this newslet- Oriol T. Valls, the current P&S I am happy to say that the COVID-induced drought in newsletter editor, is a Condensed submissions to this newsletter seems to be easing out. I want ter is dependent on contribu- Matter theorist. to highlight the fascinating article by our 2020 Szilard award tions from its readers and winner, France Córdova, on her extremely broad experiences forum members. Articles on any “physics and society” related in the world of science policy. We have also two more articles, topics, broadly understood, are welcome and I have no restric- including a timely one by one of our own Board of Editors tion on points of view. Articles and suggestions for articles member and our usual book reviews. should be sent to me, and also letters to the editor. Book The last few weeks have revealed what has to be the reviews should go to the reviews editor directly (ahobson@ greatest triumph for science for many years: the development uark.edu). Content is not peer reviewed and opinions given of safe and effective vaccines for the Covid-19 virus in the are the author’s only, not necessarily mine, nor the Forum’s record time of less than a year. This is a great achievement or, a fortiori, not the APS’s either. Oriol T. Valls on the part of the scientists that did the work, and also on the University of Minnesota part of the politicians that backed them and their companies [email protected] IN THIS ISSUE EDITOR'S COMMENTS 13 Were the Polls Wrong? Richard Wiener FORUM NEWS 2 Announcement: From the Media Editor REVIEWS 15 The Precipice: Existential Risk and the Future of Humanity 2 Forum–sponsored 2021 Award winners by Toby Ord, Leonard Finegold 3 FPS Sessions for the 2021 March and April Meetings 16 Losing Earth: A Recent History ARTICLES by Nathaniel Rich, Quinn Campagna 4 The Importance of Science Policy France Córdova 8 Powerlines and America’s Continuing Energy War Rik Gran FORUM NEWS Announcement: From the Media Editor 2020 was a challenging year for all of us as we navigated physicsandsocietyforum.wordpress.com that houses all communications with friends, colleagues and our communi- of our published newsletter articles and allows viewers to ties through a global pandemic. Activities such as “Zoom leave comments or share those individual articles on other birthday parties” or “virtual conferences” have forced many platforms. We also have a Facebook page www.facebook. of us to learn new technologies and be creative when it comes com/APSPhysicsAndSociety where we highlight articles and to staying in touch. would love to expand to highlight other events and stories As our newsletter continues to provide an outlet for this that you’d like to share with us and each other community, we want to make sure we’re reaching you all If you have other ideas on how we can continue to expand where you are and fostering that sense of community and our media presence, please contact our media editor directly interaction. Our media presence is one way to do so and we at [email protected] wanted to encourage you to check out our blog at https:// Tabitha Colter Forum–sponsored 2021 Award winners JOSEPH A. BURTON FORUM AWARD LEO SZILARD LECTURESHIP AWARD Robert Semper Steve Fetter Exploratorium University of Maryland, College Park Citation: “For extraordinary accomplishments exposing edu- Citation: “For seminal contributions to two US administra- cators, policymakers, and the general public to the wonder and tions’ efforts to minimize the threat of nuclear war, for help- joy of scientific exploration, especially in physics, through ing to establish nuclear archeology as a viable and effective the development of Exploratorium exhibits and educational method for supporting arms control and countering prolifera- resources, and assisting in the creation of Exploratorium tion, and for contributing expert analysis leading to the UN spinoffs in many communities.” General Assembly’s adoption of the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty.” Physics and Society is the non-peer-reviewed quarterly newsletter of the Forum on Physics and Society, a division of the American Physical Society. It presents letters, commentary, book reviews and articles on the relations of physics and the physics community to government and society. It also carries news of the Forum and provides a medium for Forum members to exchange ideas. Opinions expressed are those of the authors alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the APS or of the Forum. Articles are not peer reviewed. Contributed articles (up to 2500 words), letters (500 words), commentary (1000 words), reviews (1000 words) and brief news articles are welcome. Send them to the relevant editor by e-mail (preferred) or regular mail. Editor: Oriol T. Valls, [email protected]. Assistant Editor: Laura Berzak Hopkins, [email protected]. Reviews Editor: Art Hobson, [email protected]. Media Editor: Tabitha Colter, [email protected]. Editorial Board: Maury Goodman, maury.goodman@ anl.gov; Richard Wiener, [email protected], Jeremiah Williams, [email protected]. Layout at APS: Leanne Poteet, poteet@ aps.org. Website for APS: [email protected]. Physics and Society can be found on the web at www.aps.org/units/fps. 2 • January 2021 PHYSICS AND SOCIETY, Vol. 50, No.1 FPS Sessions for the 2021 March and April Meetings MARCH MEETING 2021 APRIL MEETING 2021 AI and Humanity: Governance, Design, and Ethics Race, Colonialism, Nuclear Weapons, and Their Testing Chair: Savannah Thais, Princeton University Chair: Cherrill Spencer, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory An Ecological Approach to Data Governance, Design and Ethics (retired) Jasmine McNealy, University of Florida The Intersection of Race and Nuclear Weapons AI and its Computing Landscapes: Water Data, Climate Control, Vincent Intondi, Montgomery College and Agricultural Technology Theodora Dryer, New York University Radiation Measurements in the Marshall Islands, Emlyn Measuring Fairness in Machine Learning Systems Hughes, Columbia University Melissa Hall, Facebook 75 Years and Waiting: the Downwinders Perspective of the A Physics Perspective Trinity Test Savannah Thais, Princeton University Tina Cordova, Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium Panel Discussion The Changing Nuclear World Order Communicating Science to the Public Chair: Stewart Prager, Princeton University Chair: Richard Wiener, Research Corporation Reducing Nuclear Weapons and the Risk of Nuclear War (LEO Science in Popular Culture SZILARD AWARD LECTURE) Ann Merchant, The National Academy of Sciences Steven Fetter, University of Maryland, College Park The Role of News Journalism Nuclear Weapons and Missile Defense Dennis Overbye, The New York Times Fred Lamb, University of Illinois Panel Discussion on Opportunities and Challenges in The Emerging Technologies Arms Race, Nuclear Weapons, and Communicating Science to the Public Global Security Ira Flatow (Science Friday), Dennis Overbye, Ann Merchant Sebastien Philippe, Princeton University Science Diplomacy (joint with the Forum on Awards Session (Jams Burton Forum Award Talks) International Physics) Chair: Juliette Mammel, University of Manitoba Leadership in Fundamental Physics Research in South America Physics, Truth, and the Crisis of Science Denial Nathan Berkovits, Universidade Estadual Paulista Adam Frank, University of Rochester Advancement of Physics and Science in Developing Countries The Exploratorium at 50: Perspectives on the Development of a Fernando Quevedo, University of Cambridge Public Science Learning Laboratory Allegations of Scientific Espionage Rob Semper, The Exploratorium Xiaoxiang Xi, Temple University (2020 Sakharov Prize winner) Peace Engineering and Engineers without Borders The Future of Earth Bernard Amadei, University of Colorado Chair: Joel Primack, The University of California at Santa Cruz LAUNCH: Entrepreneurship for Developing Countries The World in 2050 – and Beyond Todd Khorzein, Second Muse Martin Rees, Cambridge University The Future of Life Anthony Aguirre, The University of California at Santa Cruz Needed Now: A Vision for Earth on Cosmic Time ELECTION RESULTS, FORUM OFFICERS Sandra Faber, The University of California at Santa Cruz The following people have been elected: Ethics in Physics & Science: Remembering John Ahearne (Carryover from 2020) Vice-Chair: Chair: Beverly Hartline, Montana Technological University Frederick Lamb Ethics in policy advice risk assessment, and national security Member-at-Large (two elected): Micah Lowenthal, National Academy of Sciences Jennifer Dailey The survival imperative: critical components of the ethical education of scientists and engineers Tara Drodzenko Stephanie Bird, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (retired) Also bylaws changes were approved. Creation, Charge, and Early Accomplishments of the APS Ethics Committee Michael Marder, University of Texas at Austin PHYSICS AND SOCIETY, Vol. 50, No.1 January 2021 • 3 ARTICLES The Importance of Science Policy France Córdova, former NSF Director, [email protected] This article derives from Dr Córdova’s Luskin Lecture at the turbulent environment of Washington DC? I didn’t even UCLA in November of 2020.
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