Physics

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Andrew Jordan

[short_description] Are lossless power transmission and magnetically levitated trains in our future? Only after we understand high-temperature superconductivity. Andrew Jordan reviews results by Sven Badoux et al.

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A Hot Mess

John Norton

[short_description] Rolf Landauer proposed a principle that is still used for calculating the minimum heat generated by a computing device. John Norton argues that these propositions are either unfounded or refutable.

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Einstein’s Entanglements

Jeremy Bernstein

[short_description] In three short pieces, Jeremy Bernstein explores Einstein’s views on quantum theory, Einstein and Oppenheimer’s contrasting views on black holes, and Einstein’s long friendship with Michele Besso.

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Mass Appeal

Álvaro De Rújula

[short_description] The Origin of Mass: Elementary Particles and Fundamental Symmetries was written by John Iliopoulos in response to the discovery of the Higgs boson. Álvaro De Rújula considers the book a triumph.

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In Memoriam

Sheldon Lee Glashow

[short_description] The great theoretical physicist Murray Gell-Mann passed away on May 24, 2019. Sheldon Lee Glashow pays tribute to his mentor, champion, and friend.

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Long Lost Love

Sheldon Lee Glashow

[short_description] In Lost in Math, Sabine Hossenfelder claims physics has been led astray. Sheldon Lee Glashow replies that if physics has indeed been derailed, beauty, although it may be at issue, is not at fault.

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Charged Interactions

Jeremy Bernstein

[short_description] In a seven-year period, Jeremy Bernstein had three memorable interactions with the physicist Wendell Furry. In one instance, Bernstein was present when Furry testified before Senator Joseph McCarthy.

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Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking

Édouard Brézin

[short_description] Broken symmetries encompass a large number of different phenomena occurring at different scales. Édouard Brézin examines how symmetry has become central to understanding the organization of the universe.

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Quantum Leaps

Jeremy Bernstein

[short_description] There is, thoughtful students agree, no entirely satisfactory interpretation of quantum mechanics. Jeremy Bernstein examines John Bell’s discontent with the standard formulations of quantum mechanics.

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Not So Real

Sheldon Lee Glashow

[short_description] On the interpretation of quantum mechanics: Sheldon Lee Glashow reviews What Is Real? The Unfinished Quest for the Meaning of Quantum Physics by Adam Becker.

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The Standard Model

Sheldon Lee Glashow

[short_description] The third and final installment in Sheldon Lee Glashow’s history of physics. In this essay Glashow examines a development in which he played a key role, the formulation of the Standard Model.

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Quantum Critical Proteins

Stuart Lindsay

[short_description] Hydrogen atoms are explained by quantum mechanics; cats are not. Stuart Lindsay argues proteins may be closer to hydrogen atoms than cats and details new work on the electrical properties of proteins.

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