Are the milky way’s biggest stars made in violent collisions?
Our theory of star formation has a problem: it can’t make big stars. In the standard star-making recipe, stars are formed in the depths of … Read more
We should all be aware of our unconscious biases
As scientists we believe we are rather good at weighing up the evidence and forming judgments appropriately. That is what we are trained to do … Read more
Perform or perish? Guilty confessions of a YouTube physicist
This week is YouTube’s Geek Week so it seems a particularly (in)opportune moment to come clean about some niggling doubts I’ve been having of late about physics … Read more
Curiosity has achieved its goal – what’s next in the search for life on mars?
One year ago this week people around the world held their breaths as Nasa’s Curiosity rover began its landing sequence. The complicated sky crane, which … Read more
The irresistible rise of the standard model
Physicists don’t take summer holidays. Instead, they go to summer conferences. This year’s conference, in Stockholm, made a splash with the announcement that two experiments at … Read more
Can we do more to help academic parents?
The youngest attendee at a conference on the ‘Regulation of Star Formation in Molecular Gas’ this June was Tomas, the one year old son of … Read more
Let’s make the UK a world leader in proton therapy
Why doesn’t the UK have proton therapy? Actually, we do. Back in 1984, when proton therapy was still a research topic in physics labs, the … Read more
The numbers game: where are the women?
This year’s Institute of Physics (IOP) awards were announced a couple of days ago, a list of impressive individuals who have shown mastery of their subject. Heading … Read more