Bulletin of the American Physical Society
2009 APS April Meeting
Volume 54, Number 4
Saturday–Tuesday, May 2–5, 2009; Denver, Colorado
Session R7: FPS Awards Session |
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Sponsoring Units: FPS Chair: Donald Prosnitz, Rand Corporation Room: Governor's Square 12 |
Monday, May 4, 2009 1:30PM - 2:06PM |
R7.00001: Leo Szilard Lectureship Award Talk: Science and International Security Invited Speaker: The proliferation of nuclear-weapons technology is one of the gravest dangers facing the world, with potentially devastating consequences if it is not contained. The scientific community has a special role to play in confronting this threat, not only because many of the issues involved are highly technical, and science offers important tools such as hypothesis testing, but also because open communication lies at the heart of scientific research. International dialogs among scientists can thus be uniquely powerful in confronting problems of global concern, especially when political constraints hinder communication between nations. Many view the scientific community as at least partly responsible for major threats confronting the world, but we also have the opportunity to reduce those dangers through the same processes that lead to discovery and advancement of knowledge. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, May 4, 2009 2:06PM - 2:42PM |
R7.00002: Joseph A. Burton Forum Award Talk: Remembering our Humanity: the deep impact of the Russell-Einstein Manifesto Invited Speaker: ``There lies before us, if we choose, continual progress in happiness, knowledge, and wisdom. Shall we, instead, choose death, because we cannot forget our quarrels? We appeal as human beings to human beings: Remember your humanity, and forget the rest.''\footnote{From the Russell-Einstein Manifesto, London, 9 July 1955, signed also by Max Born, Percy W. Bridgman, Leopold Infeld, Frederic Joliot-Curie, Herman J. Muller, Linus Pauling, Cecil F. Powell, Joseph Rotblat and Hideki Yukawa} Days before his death, Albert Einstein joined Bertrand Russell and other notable scientists and philosophers in issuing a statement calling for the abolition of war and for governments to ``find peaceful means for the settlement of all matters of dispute between them." As a first step, they called for the renunciation of nuclear weapons. The initiative led to the establishment of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, which bring together influential scholars and public figures concerned with reducing the danger of armed conflict and seeking cooperative solutions for global problems. The Russell-Einstein Manifesto has had a major impact on the way in which people discuss the issues of peace and war. The paper traces the growing awareness of the meaning of war, ways in which violent conflict can be prevented, particularly in the nuclear age, and the humanitarian imperative for so doing. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, May 4, 2009 2:42PM - 3:18PM |
R7.00003: Forum on Physics and Society Special Recognition Invited Speaker: This year we wish to use the FPS awards session to recognize those individuals who have made special contributions to issues at the interface of physics and society. Twelve years ago, Al Saperstein became the editor of Physics and Society, with Jeff Marque as the news editor. The two have been functioning as co-editors for the past five years. They have conscientiously brought us all a newsletter that informs and challenges. Thanks to the tireless efforts of these two men, the FPS ``newsletter'' is in reality a high-quality quarterly journal that is always thought-provoking and sometimes controversial. The typical issue contains a number of substantive articles, stimulating commentary and letters, informative news and interesting book reviews. The editors have had to exert considerable effort to assemble such interesting material on a range of relevant topics, often laboring with little additional help - and without benefit of a peer review system - to fill out the newsletter. With their retirement, the FPS Executive Committee wishes to express our deep appreciation to each of them for their many years of tireless service. Each year, the Forum on Physics and Society has the privilege of nominating APS members that have made outstanding contributions to the rank of Fellow. This year, we will introduce our newly elected Fellows during this Forum on Physics and Society Awards session. [Preview Abstract] |
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