When John Bell graduated from Queen’s in mid-1949, he was lucky that, following the invention of radar and the atomic bomb in the Second World War, physics was very much in favor with the powers-that-be. In particular, under the leadership of John Cockcroft, the Atomic Energy Research Establishment at Harwell was just getting into its stride. Doubtlessly, many physicists would have liked to get a job there, so it was remarkable that a new graduate without experience. and without even a PhD, was appointed, and more than that, there was even competition for his services.
The organization's aim was fundamental research in atomic physics, with no commercial or defence work, and John Bell was highly valued.
What if a painting were a hidden map of the heavens? In recent years, scientists have begun to treat famous canvases as puzzles to be solved with telescopes and software. Consider Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night: its swirling stars and glowing crescent moon might look like pure imagination, but astronomers and art historians discovered that the sky in the painting closely matches the real night sky on June 19, 1889. In fact, Venus appears in exactly the position Van Gogh painted it. Likewise, Johannes Vermeer’s View of Delft is more than a cityscape; researchers measured the angles of sunlit patches and shadows in the painting and found they align with the Sun’s position on a clear Dutch morning around 8 a.m. on September 3 or 4, 1659. It’s as if these masterpieces are cosmic records. In this article, the author plays detective with science and art, using celestial clues – star charts, sun positions, historical maps – to decode the hidden details of Van Gogh’s and Vermeer’s worlds. What emerges is a story of wonder: art created in the real light of the sky, waiting for modern "astronomers as sleuths" to unlock its secrets.
Meet Professor Anthony James Leggett, Nobel laureate in Physics (2003) and titan of low-temperature physics, whose groundbreaking Leggett-Garg inequality — born from his 1985 collaboration with Anupam Garg — unlocks laboratory tests of Schrödinger’s Cat paradox, challenging realism itself. This piece emerges from an intimate conversation Anindya De shared with the professor during his 80th birthday conference at Raman Research Institute, Bengaluru.
The Physicist Who Drew to Think
Werner Heisenberg took up artistic pursuits as a young man, aligning with the broad cultural education expected of Germans...
Werner Heisenberg’s 1929 world tour offered a rare glimpse into the personal experiences of the physicist just three years after his groundbreaking work in quantum mechanics...
Long before we invented the vocabulary of nanoscience, before crystallographers learned to see atoms arranged like constellations, and before chemists dared to imagine hollow crystals capable of breathing, hosting, and transforming molecules — there existed a curious idea in the mind of an ancient philosopher.
At Curiosita, we take pride in nurturing curiosity and creative problem-solving among our readers. In this spirit, we present three engaging mathematical puzzles contributed...
Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) scan the entire genome to pinpoint genetic variations linked to common diseases such as diabetes and hypertension. This overview introduces the key genetic concepts, study designs, and statistical methods that make GWAS possible, while highlighting safeguards against false results. It also explores how GWAS discoveries are being translated into tools like Polygenic Risk Scores, paving the way for more precise and personalized approaches to public health.
Prologue
When a flowering branch placed in a vase continues to thrive longer than expected, it is often thanks to a florist’s special touch--her secret...
