Untrainable circuits, “barren plateaus” and deceptive local minimas may prevent the use of quantum-enhanced optimization, as Pradeep Niroula explains
Read article: Conquering the challenge of quantum optimization
From quantum technology to green jobs, Physics World Careers 2022 showcases the range of career options open to physicists
Read article: Physics World Careers 2022 guide is now out
Alexander Mendelsohn wonders why the mental-health system lacks the quantitative rigour that physics benefits from
Read article: A physicist’s experience of the mental-health system
Akihiro Kojima and Mike Lee, winners of the 2022 Rank Prize for Optoelectronics, on developing new materials for solar cells and switching into different career areas
Read article: Time for a change: what it’s like to win a prize for work you did before switching careers
Sofia Sheikh is one of a handful of postdoctoral researchers who have specialized in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence
Read article: Meet the technosignature researcher on the lookout for exo-civilizations
Markus Buehler and Mario Milazzo explain how they have been able to explore new avenues of research by translating living structures into sound
Read article: Sonifying science: from an amino acid scale to a spider silk symphony
Michael Riordan reveals how physicists and programmers played important roles in shaping the current wave of globalization
Read article: Going global: the world the Web has wrought
Suman Shrestha, who is doing a PhD in medical physics in the US, on why he wants to return to Nepal with his new-found skills and expertise
Read article: Studying physics to improve healthcare systems
Toyota has joined forces with The Electrochemical Society to support young scientists and engineers
Read article: Research fellowships target clean-energy innovation
With the James Webb Space Telescope finally launched, Keith Cooper explores the mission’s troubled past, its technological advances and the exciting future of astronomy
Read article: A new cosmic dawn: peering across the universe with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope
