Editor’s Comments

I have the pleasure of opening this edition by welcoming aboard Maury Goodman of Argonne National Laboratory as the newest member of P&S's editorial board. Maury's biographical details are summarized briefly under the News of the Forum below. The vitality of the Forum depends on the willingness of its members to contribute time and energy to Forum activities, and I am grateful to Maury for his willingness to serve in this capacity. Maury is replacing Ruth Howes, who is rotating off the board following a three-year term. Ruth's sound judgment, patience, and sense of humor were a tremendous asset in helping me get oriented when I became Editor; on behalf of the other members of the board, I thank her for her service, and wish her all the best.

One of the high points of our annual January edition is that it gives us a chance to recognize the accomplishments of individuals who have received Forum awards and APS Fellowship though Forum auspices. The details appear in the New of the Forum; I encourage readers to extend their congratulations to Burton Award winner Arian Pregenzer, Szilard Lectureship winner Siegfried Hecker, and new Fellows Jonathan Katz and William Rees; they will be formally recognized at the April meeting in Atlanta. Also, we are proud to note that P&S's Assistant Editor, Jonathan Wurtele, is the recipient of the APS's 2011 John Dawson Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research for work involving the trapping of antihydrogen.

The Forum will again be sponsoring a number of sessions at the upcoming March and April national APS meetings in Boston and Atlanta, and our News of the Forum contains a summary of the very interesting talks scheduled for these sessions.

Our first feature article for this edition, by Jay Davis, examines technical and policy issues relevant to nuclear weapons numbers downsizing. This article is based on a talk Dr. Davis gave at the forum-sponsored session "Nuclear Weapons at 65" which was held at the APS April 2011 meeting in Anaheim. Our second feature article discusses the physics of a very different downsizing issue, but one that is much more personal for most of us, particularly at this time of year: the Body-Mass Index. Our book reviews look at a volume on nuclear energy prepared by Forum Past-Chair Charles Ferguson, and a treatment of the issue of communicating climate change to a public audience. Enjoy.

These contributions have not been peer-refereed. They represent solely the view(s) of the author(s) and not necessarily the view of APS.