Resource Letter Research Articles

Resource Letter: Synthesis of the elements in stars

This Resource Letter provides a guide to the literature on the field of nuclear astrophysics, and particularly the origin of the elements. Nuclear astrophysics is a multidisciplinary field that aims at understanding where everything we see around us comes from and how it came to be. Astronomical observations, astrophysics modeling, and nuclear physics experiment and theory come together to answer important questions like: Where and how are the elements created? How do stars evolve? What drives the different types of stellar explosions? What is left behind after the cataclysmic death of a star? This Resource Letter presents our current understanding of the origin of the various chemical elements, together with modern research and new developments in the field, with a particular focus on the measurement of nuclear properties for astrophysical applications.

Resource Letter DM1: Dark matter: An overview of theory and experiment

Dark matter remains one of the most significant scientific mysteries of our time. This Resource Letter provides an overview of the astrophysical evidence for dark matter and describes the broad set of theoretical dark matter candidates that have been proposed. Results from dark matter searches are discussed, with a focus on direct detection experiments.

Resource Letter MP-4: The Manhattan Project and related nuclear research

This fourth Resource Letter on the Manhattan Project comprises over 140 new sources to complement the 390 listed in the first three on this topic. Books, review papers, and journal articles are cited for the categories of general works; specific topics within the Manhattan Project; technical and historical works; biographies and autobiographies; international wartime programs, allied intelligence, and the use of the bombs; postwar developments; and educational materials. A separate section lists videos and websites.

Resource Letter CP-3: Computational physics

This Resource Letter provides information and guidance for those looking to incorporate computation into their courses or to refine their own computational practice. We begin with general resources, including policy documents and supportive organizations. We then survey efforts to integrate computation across the curriculum as well as provide information for instructors looking to teach a computational physics course specifically. An overview of education research into computation in physics, including materials from beyond Physics Education Research, is then provided, followed by suggestions for tools, languages, and environments. We conclude with some emerging topics for which only preliminary resources exist but represent important topics for future innovation.

The Anthropic (and Mis-) Principle revisited, Steven Weinberg in memoriam

I review the role and meaning of the Anthropic Principle, particularly in its relevance to particle physics as that subject evolves. This is neither a technical paper nor a resource letter, but rather an easy introduction.

Resource Letter MDS-1: Mobile devices and sensors for physics teaching

This Resource Letter provides a guide to the literature on teaching experimental physics using sensors in tablets, smartphones, and some specialized devices. After a general discussion of hardware (sensors) and software (apps), we present resources for experiments using mobile-device sensors in many areas of physics education: mechanics, oscillations and waves, optics, electromagnetism, matter, modern physics, and astronomy.

Resource Letter BP-1: Biological physics

This Resource Letter provides an overview of the literature in biological physics, a vast, active, and expanding field that links the phenomena of the living world to the tools and perspectives of physics. While no survey of this area could be complete, this list and commentary are intended to help provide an entry point for upper-level undergraduates, graduate students, researchers new to biophysics, or workers in subfields of biophysics who wish to expand their horizons. Topics covered include subcellular structure and function, cell-scale mechanics and organization, collective behaviors and embryogenesis, genetic networks, and ecological dynamics.

Resource Letter RP-1: Race and physics

This Resource Letter introduces theory, frameworks, research, and historical information that connect the experiences of people from ethnic/racial groups that have been minoritized and marginalized in science with a focus on physics. This resource is intended for all physicists who teach, advise, work in research groups with, and interact with other people. We start this report with an introduction to orient the audience and situate the resources to follow. We hope this Resource Letter will not only provide resources for the audience to review, but additionally generate conversation and discussions that can serve as a catalyst for making needed changes in physics and physics education.

Sex and Gender as Non-binary: What Does this Mean for Physics Teachers?

Gender bias and inequity are pervasive in physics, but teachers can help. A recent Resource Letter digs into the history, current status, and classroom implications of gender and physics. However, one finding from that work was the tendency for “gender in physics” research to treat sex and gender as the same thing and to neglect the perspective of LGBTQIA+ scientists. In this special issue of The Physics Teacher we want to further discuss the non-binary nature of sex and gender, and why physics teachers should care. Our main goal is to collect information and resources for teachers who wish to know more about these issues. For readers who are members or close allies of the LGBTQIA+ community, much of the introductory material will not be news, but we hope the resource list at the end will be useful.

Resource Letter: GP-1: Gender and Physics

This Resource Letter introduces issues which influence the representation and participation of women in physics. It is intended for all physicists, regardless of subfield, who teach, advise, or work in research groups with other people. We start with reports, statistics, and literature reviews, give a theoretical framework, and address the intersection of gender with additional identities. Then, we review several factors that impact the participation of women at all levels. We continue with the literature about scientific careers and then talk about “what works” and how women can be supported as physics students and as physicists. We conclude with a call to action.

Resource Letter TEP-1: Resources for Teaching Environmental Physics

The references in this Resource Letter provide an introduction to global environmental problems from a physics perspective. Books, journal articles, and websites are listed that examine the physics of fossil fuel consumption, renewable energy, nuclear power, biofuels, wind energy, photovoltaics, other solar energy, geothermal energy, energy storage, energy efficiency, energy returned on energy invested (ERORI), energy harvesting, embodied energy, and global warming. Additional references touch on scientific risk, environmental economics, political issues, food supply, water supply, social (gender and race) aspects of pollution, and fairness and equity in global environmental problems.

Resource Letter RBAI-2: Research-based assessment instruments: Beyond physics topics

This Resource Letter provides a guide to research-based assessment instruments (RBAIs) that can be used in physics classes to assess attitudes and beliefs about physics, epistemologies and expectations, the nature of physics, problem solving, self-efficacy, reasoning skills, and lab skills. We also discuss RBAIs in physics cognate fields, such as mathematics, and observation protocols for standardized observation of teaching. In this Resource Letter, we present an overview of these assessments and surveys including research validation, instructional level, format, and themes, to help faculty find the assessment that most closely matches their goals. This Resource Letter is a companion to “RBAI-1: Research-based Assessment Instruments in Physics and Astronomy,” which explicitly dealt with physics and astronomy topics. More details about each RBAI discussed in this paper are available at PhysPort: www.physport.org/assessments.

Letter to board prospects who don't have time to serve

Board & Administrator for Administrators OnlyVolume 35, Issue 6 p. 6-6 Resource Letter to board prospects who don't have time to serve First published: 17 January 2019 https://doi.org/10.1002/ban.30837Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume35, Issue6February 2019Pages 6-6 RelatedInformation

Resource Letter PB-1: The Physics of the Brain

This Resource Letter provides an overview of the literature relating physicists' past, present, and future contributions to our understanding of the brain. It is intended as a starting point for upper-level physics students and physicists who are interested in learning about and/or investigating the brain. Topics include the biophysics of individual neurons, models of learning and memory, structure and dynamics of brain networks, brain-inspired computing hardware, and the possible role that quantum mechanics may play in brain function.

Resource Letter GECC-2: The Greenhouse Effect and Climate Change: The Intensified Greenhouse Effect

Human activities over the past 200 years have increased Earth's greenhouse effect by about 1% relative to the radiative fluxes that drive the climate system. This Resource Letter introduces the physics of this intensified greenhouse effect and of the processes that govern resultant change in climate and provides resources for further study. Context for this examination is provided in a companion Resource Letter (GECC-1) that examined the radiative fluxes that comprise Earth's climate system and the present-day greenhouse effect. The increase in global temperature and other changes in climate resulting from the intensified greenhouse effect are of great societal concern. Developing prognostic capability to determine these responses to the small perturbations that constitute the intensified greenhouse effect to an accuracy that would be useful to inform policymaking is the major challenge facing climate scientists today.

Resource Letter GECC-1: The Greenhouse Effect and Climate Change: Earth's Natural Greenhouse Effect

Earth's greenhouse effect is manifested as the difference between thermal infrared radiation emitted at the Earth surface and that emitted to space at the top of the atmosphere. This difference, which is due mainly to absorption and downward emission of radiant energy by atmospheric trace gases, results in global mean surface temperature about 32 K greater than what it would otherwise be for the same planetary absorption of solar radiation, and is thus of enormous importance to Earth's climate. This Resource Letter introduces the physics of the greenhouse effect and more broadly of Earth's climate system and provides resources for further study. A companion Resource Letter (GECC-2), planned for the following issue, examines the increase in the greenhouse effect due to human activities over the past 200 years and its consequences for Earth's climate system.

Optical techniques for the diagnosis and treatment of lesions induced by the human papillomavirus - A resource letter.

Human papillomaviruses (HPV) are the most common sexually-transmitted virus, and carcinogenic HPV strains are reported to be responsible for virtually all cases of cervical cancer and its precursor, the cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). About 30% of the sexually active population are considered to be affected by HPV. Around 600 million people are estimated to be infected worldwide. Diseases related to HPV cause significant impact from both the personal welfare point of view and public healthcare perspective. This resource letter collects relevant information regarding HPV-induced lesions and discusses both diagnosis and treatment, with particular attention to optical techniques and the challenges involved to the implementation of those approaches.

Resource Letter FCA-1: Frequency Combs and Applications

Since their invention at the turn of the millennium, optical frequency combs have been the focus of a growing and active field of research. At their core, frequency combs serve a seemingly simple function—to provide a direct link between microwave and optical frequencies. However, due to their robustness and flexibility, frequency combs have been revolutionary for precision optical spectroscopy and have found numerous applications in fields as diverse as searches for extrasolar planets and ultra-stable microwave generation. This letter aims to provide resources that introduce this increasingly diverse and exciting field.

Resource Letter OSE-1: Observing Solar Eclipses

This Resource Letter provides a guide to the available literature, listing selected books, articles, and online resources about scientific, cultural, and practical issues related to observing solar eclipses. It is timely, given that a total solar eclipse will cross the continental United States on August 21, 2017. The next total solar eclipse path crossing the U.S. and Canada will be on April 8, 2024. In 2023, the path of annularity of an annular eclipse will cross Mexico, the United States, and Canada, with partial phases visible throughout those countries.

Resource Letter RBAI-1: Research-Based Assessment Instruments in Physics and Astronomy

This resource letter provides a guide to Research-Based Assessment Instruments (RBAIs) of physics and astronomy content. These are standardized assessments that were rigorously developed and revised using student ideas and interviews, expert input, and statistical analyses. RBAIs have had a major impact on physics and astronomy education reform by providing a universal and convincing measure of student understanding that instructors can use to assess and improve the effectiveness of their teaching. In this resource letter, we present an overview of all content RBAIs in physics and astronomy by topic, research validation, instructional level, format, and themes, to help faculty find the best assessment for their course. More details about each RBAI available in physics and astronomy are available at PhysPort: physport.org/assessments.