Message from FIP Newsletter Editor

Dear FIP Members,

These are extraordinary times. And we face extraordinary challenges.

As the Danish philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard, once remarked, "Life can only be understood backward, but it must be lived forwards." So it is with this pandemic crisis.

Without a doubt, these are extraordinary times, with several global socioeconomic transformations and a significant impact on scientific research and education.

Public universities are experiencing state budget recisions and reductions, and private institutions and industries have seen operating income declining precipitously.

Many research centers reduced or eliminated staff positions and even tenured faculty members at the universities are now worried.

Future students are also concerned about the cost of college education and current students are struggling to pay tuition.

Several Physics Departments and labs worldwide have suspended research with almost no prior warning and students and staff have dispersed.

Although these are extraordinary times, they also bring exceptional opportunities. We have a generational chance to rethink scientific collaborations, programs, and structures, refocus priorities, and resharpen government policies and strategies.

The physics community demonstrated resilience and resourcefulness. Scientists worked tirelessly to keep the research and the education missions alive, often with inadequate public acknowledgment of the importance of their contributions.

The APS, even if it had to cancel its conferences and required staff to work from home maintained most core activities and it is currently exploring new ways to disseminate scientific information and interact with the physics community.

Many APS Units, the FIP, among these, conducted online sessions to ensure the continuity of scientific exchange and the APS staff is continuously working hard to support, encourage, and enable virtual sessions.

The APS outlines several policy initiatives aimed at helping the physics community get through and beyond the pandemic. If you want to learn more about the APS efforts on the COVID-19 go to the response page.

The APS's Office of Government Affairs (OGA) has worked hard on ensuring that graduate students and postdocs continue to receive support, despite the shutdown of labs and universities across the country.

We are living through a period that can only be described as the greatest act of solidarity in history, as people give up civic freedoms to save lives. And we all know that these extraordinary times will not end soon. It is difficult to imagine that the pandemic's traumatic experiences will be forgotten quickly or disappear entirely over time.

Even in these difficult times, the FIP is currently working to support the international physics community and serve its members better. We are preparing scientific sessions for the 2021 March and April Meetings and organizing activities to support scientists worldwide, with special attention to students and early career physicists, especially in developing countries. If there are actions you think we should be taking at this time, please let us know.

Recently, we refreshed the look of our Newsletter and have a new layout. We thank Marinora Sanges for designing the new cover and all the authors contributing to this issue.

I hope you will enjoy reading it and if you have any suggestion or want to submit articles, please send me an email (marialongobardi@gmail.com)

I send all best wishes to you and your families and hope you can stay healthy and strong.

Sincerely,

Maria Longobardi
FIP Newsletter Editor