Ninth Level Ireland

“Work on a new Dublin new metro line planned to run under Trinity’s School of Physics could disrupt research taking place in the building, according to the school’s manager. Metrolink, which will link Dublin Airport to the city centre, was originally meant to run underneath the College’s Centre for Research on Adaptive Nanostructures and Nanodevices (CRANN), but the proposed route has since been altered and it is now set to lie beneath the Fitzgerald Building …” (more)

[Emer Moreau, University Times, 4 September]

“Yesterday, I gave a seminar about the results of a little side-project that I did with two collaborators, Tobias Mistele and Tom Price. We analyzed publication data in some sub-disciplines of physics and looked for differences in citations to papers with male and female authors. This was to follow-up on the previously noted discrepancy …” (more)

[Sabine Hossenfelder, BackReaction, 30 November]

“Few pursue a career in physics expecting it to be a smooth ride; the subject is notoriously challenging, the playing field competitive. For women, though, the road can be downright treacherous. Feelings of not belonging or imposter syndrome, rampant among physics students at the best of times, are compounded by the frequent lack of female faculty members …” (more)

[Eleanor Hook, Physics Central, 28 November]

“As few as six graduates are in training to be physics teachers in secondary schools, new figures indicate. The shortage of qualified teachers threatens to undermine Government plans to make Ireland the best in Europe in so-called Stem subjects – science, technology, engineering and maths – within a decade …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 28 November]

“I’m about to head off for a short New Year’s vacation in West Texas, but wanted to recommend a wonderful article that just appeared at Nautilus. It’s a memoir by Bob Henderson (who I met when he wrote about me, see here), appearing under the title What Does Any of This Have To Do with Physics? (although the title of the web-page, What Graduate School in Theoretical Physics is Really Like, is more descriptive) …” (more)

[Peter Woit, Not Even Wrong, 29 December]

“Dear Rankers, Having perused your latest set of league tables along with the published methodology, a couple of things puzzle me. First, I note that you have made significant changes to your methodology for combining metrics this year. How, then can you justify making statements such as ‘US continues to lose its grip as institutions in Europe up their game’ …” (more)

[In the Dark, 5 October]

“Laying the groundwork for what they said would be a new era of scientific cooperation, leaders of European and American particle physics initiatives signed an agreement at a White House ceremony on Thursday to share the spoils of their research in the coming decades …” (more)

[Dennis Overbye, New York Times, 7 May]

“I had a most enjoyable day on Friday at the physics department of Maynooth University, or NUI Maynooth, to give it its proper title. I was there to attend an international masterclass in particle physics …” (more)

[Antimatter, 21 March]

“Trinity College Dublin scientist Dr Shane Bergin has today been awarded the European Commission’s Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) achievement award for his ‘contribution to communicating science in a fun and attractive way and mentoring the next generation in science’ …” (more)

[Grainne Rothery, Business and Leadership, 18 November]

“CERN is the pre-eminent scientific laboratory in the world. Membership would underline Ireland’s commitment to science and deliver significant benefits to the nation …” (more, download)

[Institute of Physics in Ireland, 12 June]

“Physics departments at three Irish universities are engaging with the Juno initiative, which looks to encourage women in physics …” (more)

[Claire O’Connell, Silicon Republic, 11 April]

“The Institute of Physics in Ireland would like to invite members of the physics community to a meeting in the Royal Irish Academy to discuss a response to the recent announcement by Minister Sean Sherlock of a review of Ireland’s international engagement on research and innovation, with particular attention to the costs and benefits of joining CERN …” (more)

[Institute of Physics in Ireland, 28 February]

“An Irish MEP is hoping to meet with Government about Ireland becoming a member of CERN. Sean Kelly MEP said that the move could make Ireland a global hub for young scientists and leading innovators …” (more)

[TheJournal.ie, 20 January]

“Physics students are taught to look to the future, so are naturally optimistic; economics students learn from mistakes of the past – no wonder their world is full of gloom …” (more)

[Theo Hobson, Guardian, 1 November]

“Perhaps it is time to rethink Ireland’s participation in international scientific organisations. There was a lot of quiet satisfaction in the world of physics this month with the award of the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physics to theoretical physicists Peter Higgs and François Englert …” (more)

[Cormac O Raifeartaigh, Irish Times, 31 October]

“Today was the first day of the COSMO 2013 conference at Cambridge. Walking up the path to the hallowed Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP), I was gripped by my usual fear that I might be met with a frosty reception at the door; ‘No experimentalists, please!’ …” (more)

[Antimatter, 2 September]

“A turn around for physics numbers but still a significant gender imbalance and almost a quarter of schools are still not offering physics at Leaving Cert level …” (more)

[IOPI, 14 August]

“… In a provocative new report from the American Institute of Physics (AIP), researchers argue that there’s no evidence to suggest that women are being excluded from physics departments. Rather, they say, rigorous statistical analysis suggests that the real reason female physics faculty are rare is simply that so few women are getting physics degrees …” (more)

[Macrina Cooper-White, Huffington Post, 23 July]

“Three Irish researchers have been announced as recipients of the prestigious European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grants and will share €2m between them to pursue their cutting-edge research in physical sciences and engineering …” (more)

[John Kennedy, Silicon Republic, 19 July]

“After decades of waiting, physicists at Trinity College have for the first time captured a rare scientific event on camera. 70 years after the experiment was set up, the scientists have videoed pitch dripping from a funnel …” (more, video)

[RTÉ News, 17 July]