Scientists are beginning to understand the extent to which the evolution of our planet has been shaped by collisions, bombardments and catastrophes. John Baez tells the violent hist...
Read article: The Earth – for physicists
Chris Walker looks at some of the uses of a novel amorphous diamond material
Read article: Diamond coatings are branching out
Born 200 years ago, Charles Darwin is rightly celebrated for his work explaining the origin of species. But in setting a new standard for what an explanation of nature should be like, he also had a hu...
Read article: Darwin’s legacy
Some instruments in teaching laboratories may look old-fashioned, but those wooden boxes can hold surprisingly advanced equipment. George Herold describes his career designing exper...
Read article: Tools for learning
The idea that quantum mechanics can explain many fundamental aspects of life is resurging, as Paul Davies reveals
Read article: The quantum life
The job market for new graduates and career-changers in 2009 is not great, but physicists may be better equipped than most, as Margaret Harris explains
Read article: Don’t panic
Many cosmological theories not only see our universe as one of many but also claim that time does not exist. Lee Smolin argues against the timeless multiverse
Read article: The unique universe
Hamish Johnston explains how software born in an accelerator lab is now being used for everything from medical physics to invisibility cloaks
Read article: Electromagnetic software accelerates ahead
Adam Kollin and John Keem of RHK Technology explain how their firm is helping physicists get the most from scanning probe microscopy
Siân Harris talks to Barry MacKichan the founder of MacKichan Software about why the company is bringing XML-based processing to its traditional LaTeX-based soft...
Read article: Mathematical typesetting gets XML makeover
