Letters by Niels Bohr that have been kept secret since his death could explain the mystery of why Werner Heisenberg visited him in Copenhagen in 1941
Read article: Secret letters cast light on Copenhagen
It seems unlikely that we will ever lose our fascination for the man whom David Berlinski calls “the largest figure in the history of Western science” and the author of “the greatest...
Read article: Isaac Newton: the gifted genius
Almost 40 years later, as the International Space Station takes shape, history is repeating itself. Of course, the space station has never been a scientific mission – its main purpose has always...
Read article: Not the right stuff
I was recently 60 feet underground in the museum attached to the old operations room of 11 group at Uxbridge, one of the nerve centres of the Battle of Britain, staring at pictures of senior Royal Air...
Our greatest endeavour in basic science over the past century has, undoubtedly, been the study of the electromagnetic, strong and weak forces. Although the general theory of relativity was formulated ...
Read article: Dirac, Einstein and physics
What happens when you ask some of the world's leading physicists seven questions about the past, present and future of physics?
Read article: Physics: past, present, future
Almost everyone has heard of the “Oppenheimer affair”. It took place between 1953-54 when the father of the atomic bomb, Robert Oppenheimer, was subjected to a humiliating show trial by th...
Read article: Atomic secrets and the red scare
Outside it is a warm May evening, as two friends sit deep in discussion in a coffee house in Berne. “Besso, you must help me, I think I am going mad. How is it even thinkable that a light ray co...
The Dirac equation, published 70 years ago, is one of the most important equations in physics – argues Michael Berry
Read article: Paul Dirac: the purest soul in physics
Reviewed by John Maddox If war is too important to be left to the generals, then surely the research community should be on its guard against leaving the history of discovery to the historians of scie...
