Finding ways to reduce, track and recycle the mountains of plastic waste consumed and disposed of each year is the theme of the May 2020 special issue of Physics World, which is now out in print and via the Physics World digital apps for iOS, Android and Web browsers.

The issue was timed to coincide with the start of a new era, in which print copies of Physics World were no longer going to be sent out wrapped in plastic, but in paper (sadly the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has put those plans on hold).

Paper magazine wrapping is not a perfect solution environmentally, but it has certain advantages, as you can discover in the feature “Physics World unwrapped”, which explores the science of magazine wrapping. You can also read it online here.

Remember that if you’re a member of the Institute of Physics, you can read the whole of Physics World magazine every month via our digital apps for iOS, Android and Web browsers. Let us know what you think about the issue on Twitter, Facebook or by e-mailing us at pwld@ioppublishing.org.

For the record, here’s a rundown of what else is in the issue.

• Critical research hit by COVID-19 – Major labs have shut their doors in response to the worldwide lockdown, but a few remain open and in some cases are carrying out critical work related to the COVID-19 pandemic, as Peter Gwynne and Michael Banks report

• Physics in the pandemic – Highlights from your experiences around the world

• Philip Anderson: a legend is lost – The Nobel laureate Philip Anderson was a giant of condensed-matter physics, who was unafraid to speak out against what he saw as the excesses of particle physics. Michael Banks looks back

• That’s a wrap! – Physics World will be switching to a paper wrapper, when the COVID-19 pandemic allows, explains Matin Durrani

• Learning from Black Swan events – With COVID-19 causing thousands of deaths worldwide and a global economic crash, Christopher Lavers says that we should have learned from previous crises

• This is the Critical Point – Having written the Critical Point column in Physics World for 20 years, Robert P Crease still worries that physicists don’t realize why the humanities are so important

• Serendipity inaction – Accidental discoveries lie at the heart of many technological innovations. James McKenzie runs through his favourites

• Physics World unwrapped – Ever wondered why your print copy of  Physics World is still delivered wrapped in plastic? That’s about to change, but as Susan Curtis finds out, abandoning single-use-plastic magazine wrappers is not as straightforward as it sounds

• The search for the missing plastic – There is a huge amount of plastic waste polluting our oceans – but we don’t know where it is. Marric Stephens investigates what scientists are doing to find the missing plastic

Read more

Beating COVID-19: the April 2020 issue of Physics World is now out

• Plastic that doesn’t cost the Earth – The vast increase in unwanted plastic pollution has galvanized scientists and innovators around the world to develop ingenious approaches to reuse, retrieve and recycle plastic. But significant challenges remain, as Anna Demming reveals

• Money from maths – David Appell reviews The Man Who Solved the Market: How Jim Simons Launched the Quant Revolution by Gregory Zuckerman

• Quantum inheritance and the ongoing quest for meaning – Philip Ball reviews Quantum Legacies: Dispatches from an Uncertain World by David Kaiser

• Shedding light on the interfaces – Joe McEntee talks to surface scientist Karen Syres about striking a balance between teaching and research while also building visibility and connection with the scientific community

• Ask me anything – Careers advice from Carole Mundell, Bath University, UK

• Ministry of Recovery and Discovery – Peter Wright on if he ruled the world