iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

IUPAP Commission 17 Laser Physics and Photonics is seeking nominations for its biennial Early Career Scientist Prizes. Recipients must be within 5 years of their PhD and nominations must be received before 30 September 2026. More details at the prize webpage iupap.org/who-we-are/i...

iupap.org

C17: News - IUPAP: The International Union of Pure and Applied Physics

Call for Applications to “Early Career Scientist Prizes” The IUPAP Commission 17: Laser Physics and Photonics is seeking nominations for its biennial “Early Career Scientist Prizes”. Two prizes are av...

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

We have lost a giant with the passing of Mary Tsingou Menzel aged 97. A family announcement is here: www.riverafamilyfuneralhome.com/obituaries/m... The image below is her FPUT algorithm that you can read about in Thierry Dauxois's article: www.cs.princeton.edu/courses/arch... An amazing life!

Diagram of the algorithm developed by Mary Tsingou Menzel to solve the Fermi-Pasta-Ulam-Tsingou problem of coupled nonlinear oscillators.

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Phortify @phortify.eu · 05/12/2025

That’s a wrap! 🎉 Our Phortigy Partner Highlight campaign is now complete. Here’s the full map of our European network. If you missed any, feel free to check our previous posts or visit our website. 💙 #Phortify #Photonics #EUcollaboration

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Phortify @phortify.eu · 10/02/2026

We are pleased to announce that Phortify scholarships are officially launched and open for applications. 🚀

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 11/01/2026

So sad to see the loss of another laser pioneer with the passing of Orazio Svelto on 10 Jan. As well as being an inspiring scientist who helped create the European ultrafast community, he was gracious and generous with his time and support for international science. www.ansa.it/canale_scien...

ansa.it

Addio a Orazio Svelto, pioniere della ricerca sui laser in Italia - Fisica e Matematica - Ansa.it

Addio al fisico Orazio Svelto: è morto oggi a Milano, a 89 anni, il pioniere della ricerca sui laser in Italia e figura cardine dell'elettronica quantistica a livello internazionale. (ANSA)

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Wonderful news and heartfelt congratulations to UCL prof Polina Bayvel on being named a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2026 New Year Honours List. A truly outstanding and well-deserved achievement. Congratulations, Polina!

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Ariel Levenson @ariel-l.bsky.social · 14/12/2025

History of Quantum Dots: It was a pleasure to collaborate to this movie on the history of quantum dots. Produced as part of of the PÉPITES program of the French Optical Society, SFO. @c2n-nanos.bsky.social youtu.be/p89chOVElSA?...

youtu.be

L'histoire des boîtes quantiques

YouTube video by C2N Centre de Nanosciences et de Nanotechnologies

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Mikhail Kats @mickeykats.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

We here in Madison do not do a good job celebrating this, but we should:

ON THE EINSTEIN PODOLSKY ROSEN PARADOX*
]. S. BELL

Department of Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin

(Received 4 November 1964)

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Athene Donald @athenedonald.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

Today is Lise Meitner's birthday, as well as Marie Curie. I wrote this blogpost about Meitner and her life a while back. Let's celebrate the woman who 'never lost her humanity'. occamstypewriter.org/athenedonald...

occamstypewriter.org

Zombies and Narratives | Athene Donald's Blog

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

John Bell released Bell's theorem on 4 November 1964. home.cern/news/news/ph... In 1972, Bernard d'Espagnat was the first to nominate him for the Nobel Prize. As the Nobel archives progressively come on line, we will surely see that he was nominated very many times afterwards as well ...

nobelprize.org

Nomination%20Archive

mycontent

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 15/10/2025

Great news for Michael Berry who has received the Isaac Newton medal of the IOP. What I absolutely love about his work is that it cuts across so many different areas of physics - from the foundations of quantum physics to understanding the rainbow. physicsworld.com/a/theoretica...

physicsworld.com

Theoretical physicist Michael Berry wins 2025 Isaac Newton Medal and Prize – Physics World

Berry recognized for his contributions in mathematics and theoretical physics over a 60-year career

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 08/10/2025

Those outside the field really don't pay enough attention to what goes on in condensed matter. Indeed, even the excellent DPG Quantum History Wall didn't include yesterday's Nobel Prize winning work on tunnelling in its list of quantum milestones of the 1980s! www.quantum-history.de

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

If you love supercontinuum (and who doesn't!) check out our forward-looking Perspective in EPL which is free to read. Thanks @jctravs.bsky.social Thibaut Sylvestre, Alex Heidt, Roy Taylor, Goery Genty iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 09/08/2025

Reposting to @tsizer.bsky.social via JL Beylat. What about a tribute at the 100 year session at ECOC ?

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

Very sad to hear that the great soliton pioneer Akira Hasegawa has died on June 22. His work truly was revolutionary in so many ways and impacted so many different fields. An obituary from Columbia is below. www.apam.columbia.edu/memoriam-pro...

apam.columbia.edu

In Memoriam: Prof. Akira Hasegawa (1934-2025)

Dr. Akira Hasegawa, former adjunct professor at Columbia’s Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics, has passed away.

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 05/08/2025

Anyone with a library endowment fund who doesn't know what to do with it? First edition of Opticks for sale!

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 28/07/2025

I just had some fun verifing the 1/r potential drop from a plasma ball. The idea is from @simonpoliakoff.bsky.social and his video is here: youtube.com/watch?v=crW7... To get close to the ball (5 mm) I used a 10kOhm feedthrough terminator which yields around 25 V peak-peak !

Setup to measure potential drop from a plasma ball. Showing glowing ball and antenna and oscilloscope.

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Dano Loves Music @danolovesmusic.bsky.social · 27/07/2025

RIP Tom Lehrer

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 26/06/2025

This is incredible from Les Wright ! It has everything: lasers, home grown nonlinear optics crystals, and a home made Arduino-driven diamond saw. If you're planning to colonize Mars to avoid an apocalypse, include Les in your passenger list! youtu.be/RxjqMh3gkx8?...

youtu.be

A DIY Pockels cell!

YouTube video by Les' Lab

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 21/06/2025

Impact factors certainly do not tell the whole story, but in what is more or less an annual tradition, I have compiled a list for some physics/optics journals. Note that there are truly excellent articles in all of these journals and different journals play very different roles in the community.

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European Research Council (ERC) @erc.europa.eu · 02/06/2025

Planning to apply for #research #funding from the ERC? From the next application rounds, expect changes to the: • proposal structure • evaluation process • extra funding you can request • eligibility for Starting & Consolidator #Grants (from 2027) More 👇 europa.eu/!RPHWvv

europa.eu

Changes to the 2026 and 2027 Work Programmes

With the launch of the competitions for grants under ERC Work Programme 2026 in July of this year, several changes to the submission of applications and the evaluation of proposals will apply. The mai...

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Ambra Ferrari @ambrafer.bsky.social · 06/06/2025

Big changes to the ERC funding schemes! Note the new eligibility criteria from 2027 on: 📌 Starting Grant: 0-10 y post-PhD 📌 Consolidator Grant: 5-15 y post-PhD erc.europa.eu/news-events/...

erc.europa.eu

Changes to the 2026 and 2027 Work Programmes

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 16/06/2025

Just learned that the Wii remote triangulates position via IR sources in the bar you place on the TV. Most phone cameras allow you to see the emitters (top) but in fact you don't need them. You can replace the bar by two candles and it works just fine! Am sure most people knew this already ...

Images of the Wii "sensor bar" showing IR emission (top) and a picture of a TV with the bar replaced by two candles (bottom).

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Hanna Le Jeannic @quantumhanna.bsky.social · 16/06/2025

Il n'y a pas "trop" de deux musées scientifiques à Paris! (surtout comparé au nombre de musées d'art 😅) Et surtout quand ceux ci apportent des choses différentes (tellement de souvenirs! ⚡👩‍🦱). NE LAISSONS PAS LE PALAIS DISPARAITRE! signez la pétition et partagez 🙏 ⬇️ www.change.org/p/sauvons-le...

change.org

Signez la pétition

Sauvons le Palais de la découverte

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

Our library holds a rare copy of the proceedings of the 1911 Solvay Conference on physics, and I enjoyed looking through it (very carefully) today. As well as the amazing discussions and pictures (these are from Perrin) it seems a previous reader had been practicing their French at the same time!

Page images from Proceedings of 1911 Solvay Conference

Page images from Proceedings of 1911 Solvay Conference with insert from a reader showing tables of French verb conjugaisons

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

Good morning everyone! Just the seasons doing their thing!

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 22/05/2025

Tenure-track Junior Professor Chair at Université Marie et Louis Pasteur & FEMTO-ST in micro/nanotech for healthcare. Top-tier research environment & amazing quality of life in Besançon. Details (FR/EN): www.femto-st.fr/sites/defaul... Deadline June 16 but make informal contact first!

femto-st.fr

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 20/05/2025

Lighting up a handheld He-Ne tube in the field of a plasma globe #pintofscience Thanks to Andrei Ermolaev for the photo!

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 20/05/2025

#PintofScience tonight! Slightly more of a logistical challenge than in a lecture theatre but still it all works out!

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DarkSky International @darkskyintl.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

Today is the International Day of Light and the International Day of Peace! At DarkSky, we believe that thoughtful lighting can lead to a better and more peaceful tomorrow for all. 📷 By Clearsky Astrofoto / Jakob Arthur Andersen in Anholt, Denmark—An International Dark Sky Park.

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Sylvain Gigan @sylvaingigan.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

I was really happy to participate today to this very nice event for the international day of light #IDL at the university of Catania. sites.google.com/dfa.unict.it... also a good occasion to have wonderful arancini, cannoli, granite ... always a pleasure to come to #Sicily

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Optica @optica.org · 16/05/2025

We're not done yet! The Multimedia University of Kenya Optica Student Chapter held engaging lectures, interactive sessions, and informal presentations highlighting key takeaways from the watch party. How has your #LightDay2025 been?

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Optica @optica.org · 16/05/2025

“We should have a celebration on the International Day of Light.” “We should involve the Optica Student Chapters.” “We can ask them to post photos from their events.” “And Optica can do a 24-hour, round-the-clock social media campaign sharing these photos from chapters.” This is the result. 🧵

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

Celebrating #LightDay2025 with a general lecture for staff and students on The Nature of Light, and Light in Nature. Thanks to the members of the @optica.org @spie.org student chapter and all the local comms staff who helped with the organisation! @idlofficial.bsky.social

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

Celebrating #lightday2025 here is a beautiful photo (from Dan Curticapean) of Sainte-Chapelle through a Fisheye View (Paris). The colours arise from nanoplasmonic resonances and you can read more about the physics here: doi.org/10.1063/1.35...

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Saganism @sagan.bsky.social · 10/05/2025

Higher Resolution

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

Great interview with Nobel Laureate Richard Roberts on luck, discovery, creativity, failure, and how our education systems are suppressing creativity. www.youtube.com/shorts/QNHTo...

youtube.com

”I love failure.” Richard Roberts, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1993

YouTube video by Nobel Prize

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

Great interview with Nobel Laureate Richard Roberts on luck, discovery, creativity, failure, and how our education systems are suppressing creativity. www.youtube.com/shorts/QNHTo...

youtube.com

”I love failure.” Richard Roberts, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1993

YouTube video by Nobel Prize

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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 04/05/2025

I think a lot about what Carl Sagan said in one of his final interviews.

"WE'VE ARRANGED A society based on science and technology, in which nobody understands anything about science technology. And this combustible mixture of ignorance and power, sooner or later, is going to blow up in our faces. Who is running the science and technology in a democracy if the people don't know anything about it?"
"Science is more than a body of knowledge, it's a way of thinking. A way of skeptically interrogating the universe with a fine understanding of human fallibility. If we are not able to ask skeptical questions, to interrogate those who tell us that something is true, to be skeptical of those in authority, then we're up for grabs for the next charlatan, political or religious, who comes ambling along."

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Dr David Boyce @drdavidboyce.bsky.social · 04/05/2025

Exciting Science Teaching Opportunity! Are you a science educator looking for a part-time role in the North London & Hertfordshire area? Are you passionate about girls in STEM? Join us 👇 www.tes.com/jobs/vacancy...

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 04/05/2025

So here are the dates: Grimaldi - 1665. Newton's "New Theory about Light & Colours" - 1672. Newton's Opticks - 1704. No feathers anywhere! But in Opticks 2nd Edition 1718, we find a brief paragraph inserted describing colours and fringes from feathers & ribbons (red mark in second image).

Screenshots from Newton's Opticks 1704 and 1718 edition comparing differences.

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 03/05/2025

After Newton's 1672 letter on prisms, in 1673 James Gregory wrote to John Collins asking him to tell Newton that you could also see colours looking through a feather! This quick experiment does not show exactly the same thing so I need to hunt for more feathers! Thanks to @astchalyan.bsky.social !

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John Dudley @johnmdudley.bsky.social · 03/05/2025

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SPIE @spie.org · 01/05/2025

Science funding is under attack in the United States. This is a dire national problem with profound global implications, but we can fight back. Use the form on our website to tell your representatives to advocate for federal research and science funding. Act now: spie.org/community-su...

spie.org

Protect Federal Funding for Science and Technology

Act now to support the optics, photonics, and STEM community that brings so much benefit to our society

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Helen Czerski @helenczerski.bsky.social · 26/04/2025

The scientific news from America is grim. The Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) has resigned and hundreds of existing grants are ending. NSF grant money isn't paid out in a chunk at the start - you invoice as you need it, so gov can just stop paying. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

nature.com

Hundreds more NSF grants terminated after agency director resigns

Sethuraman Panchanathan abruptly leaves helm of US funding agency after Elon Musk’s DOGE arrives.

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