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Summary
BACKGROUND
Physics encompasses the broad search for basic knowledge and the
search for technology applicable to urgent societal problems; the
research is pursued in many different institutional settings including
national laboratories, government laboratories, industrial research
centers, and universities. A single volume that attempted to portray
both the full scope of these activities and the many roles of physics on
the national scene would be unmanageable. Consequently, the main
body of the Physics Survey is presented in a series of reports prepared
by panels of the Survey Committee one report on each major subfield
of physics and one on scientific interfaces and technological applica-
tions. These seven reports, together with this Overview, collectively
constitute the Physics Survey, Physics Through the 1990s. The subti-
tles are
· An Overview
· Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics
· Condensed-Matter Physics
· Elementary-Particle Physics
· Gravitation, Cosmology, and Cosmic-Ray Physics
· Nuclear Physics
· Plasmas and Fluids
· Scientific Interfaces and Technological Applications
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2 PHYSICS THROUGH THE 1990s: AN OVERVIEW
This Overview summarizes the findings of the panels (the panels are
listed in Appendix A) and addresses issues that broadly concern
physics. The role of physics in society is discussed in Chapter 1.
Highlights of the progress and the opportunities in each subfield are
presented in Chapter 2. Future needs and recommended action are
described in Chapter 3. In addition, there are three supplements on
issues that cut across the individual fields: international aspects of
physics, education and supply of physicists, and organization and
support of physics.
PHYSICS AND THE NATION
We are witness to one of the most exciting times in physics; major
advances are to be found in every field. In particle physics theories of
the electromagnetic and weak forces have been unified with one theory
that explains electromagnetic and radioactive decay phenomena in a
consistent manner. The particles that carry the weak interaction that
were predicted by the unified theory have been observed. The multi-
tude of subnuclear particles that have been generated by high-energy
particle accelerators can now be described in terms of small families of
elementary particles called quarks and leptons. The forces that hold
quarks together are beginning to be explained by particles called
gluons. In nuclear physics, after decades of work in which studies of
nuclear systems succeeded in revealing the behavior of the particles
(called nucleons) that make up atomic nuclei, we now have the
possibility of creating an entirely new state of matter one in which the
constituents of the nucleons themselves (quarks and gluons) emerge to
form a plasma.
In plasma and fluid physics, magnetically confined plasmas have
been created at densities and temperatures that approach the condi-
tions required to produce a fusion reaction in which nuclei merge with
a release of energy. These conditions have also been approached using
lasers, with which physicists have compressed pellets to many times
their liquid density. Studies of fluids and plasmas have led to dramatic
progress in understanding turbulence and chaos. The revolution in the
field of atomic, molecular, and optical physics caused by the laser
continues. Spectroscopic accuracy has been enormously enhanced,
and new atomic and molecular species have been discovered.
In condensed-matter physics, techniques developed to explore the
nature of phase transitions (changes in the state of matter from, for
example, liquid to solid) have helped to elucidate disordered systems.
States of matter found nowhere in nature have been created artificially,
and unexpected phenomena such as the quantized Hall effect have
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SUMMARY 3
been discovered. In cosmology and gravitation new observational
techniques are transforming the study of the universe. The confluence
of cosmology with elementary-particle physics and condensed-matter
physics has created a new picture of the origin and development of the
universe. Experimental gravitational physics is emerging as a new
discipline.
Viewed collectively, these discoveries in physics are among the
greatest achievements of our time. The impact of physics extends far
beyond the satisfaction of manes desire to understand nature, for
physics is a central discipline that contributes theoretical concepts and
experimental techniques to all the other natural sciences, to technol-
ogy, and to medicine. Physics is a vital component of such national
programs as energy development, environmental improvement, and
security. Discoveries in physics have generated entire industries such
as microelectronics and optical technology. By helping the nation to
maintain technological leadership. physics constitutes a driving force
in our economy.
UNIVERSITIES AND SMALL-GROUP RESEARCH
Concern is felt in all of physics for the health of the nation's
university research institutions that will educate the next generation of
physicists. Retirements from physics department faculties will begin to
occur at an increasing rate starting in the early 1990s. To meet the need
for faculty replacements, steps should be taken to ensure the continued
ability of universities to attract highly qualified young physicists to
work in an academic setting. This need is particularly acute in fields
where research is carried out by small groups. Such groups make an
exceptionally strong contribution to educating new physicists. To
enhance the attractiveness of academic research, the difficulty in
obtaining modern instrumentation in university research laboratories
and the difficulty in obtaining support for research groups must be
addressed. The resources required represent only a tiny fraction of the
nation's total research and development expenditures. For our univer-
sities to maintain preeminence in physics and train graduate students at
the highest level, the support for university-based research must be
increased to ensure that it can compete at the forefront of physics.
LARGE FACILITIES AND MAJOR PROGRAMS
Large national facilities and major programs in physics are essential
for forefront research. To assist the Congress and funding agencies that
are responsible for the planning of these facilities and programs, the
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4 PHYSICS THROUGH THE 1990s: AN OVERVIEW
panel reports on each of the relevant subfields describe priorities in
detail, justifying the proposed facilities and programs and explaining
the process by which recommendations were formulated. These find-
ings are summarized in Chapter 3 of this Overview along with a brief
discussion of priority setting in physics.
SUPPORTING PHYSICS RESEARCH
The support of basic research in physics and all the physical
sciences, which is essential to ensure the future technical leadership of
this country, is approximately 2.5 percent of the total research and
development expenditures in the United States. The fraction spent on
basic research is not large compared with the total research and
development expenditures, and a healthy physics research enterprise is
well within the nation's means.
MANPOWER
The production of Ph.D. physicists has remained stable for more
than a decade. However, the proportion of foreign-born students has
steadily grown; today about 40 percent of our entering graduate
students are from abroad. Young physicists have increasingly found
work in industry; approximately one third of the new Ph.D.s leave
physics research. At present, a balance exists between the supply of
and demand for scientific manpower in physics, but it is precarious and
could be upset by a change in the career patterns of foreign-born
scientists or the creation of large government programs. Starting in the
1990s, however, the faculty retirement rate will begin to increase in
universities and colleges throughout the nation, and we can predict a
shortage of qualified applicants for academic positions. Such a shortage
would have most serious consequences not only for the quality of
undergraduate and graduate education but also for the quality of basic
research in the universities. Further, because a majority of those
trained as physicists are now engaged in applications or engineering,
the increasing technological focus of the U.S. economy may increase
demand for physics graduates even more rapidly.
In most of the sciences in the United States, the number of male
scientists has decreased, but the number of female scientists has
increased to fill the gap. The number of female physicists, however,
remains small; steps should be taken to realize the potential of this
untapped resource.
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SUMMARY 5
INTERNATIONAL POSITION OF U.S. PHYSICS
For 40 years, the United States has been the world leader in physics
research, but the situation is changing rapidly. During the past decade,
both the Western European nations and Japan have fully recovered
from World War II and have reassumed an aggressive role in science.
In many areas where previously we were clearly ahead, these nations
are now fully competitive. Their re-emergence in the field of physics
benefits science as a whole, but the United States can and must retain
a competitive edge. Without it an essential factor in maintaining our
economic well-being will be lost.
Representative terms from entire chapter:
development expenditures
