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Physicists must get used to the limelight
EDITORIAL
LOCATIONS UK Lacon House, 84 Theobald’s Road, London WC1X 8NS Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1200 Fax +44 (0) 20 7611 1250 Australia Tower 2, 475 Victoria Avenue, Chatswood, NSW 2067 Tel +61 2 9422 2666 Fax +61 2 9422 2633 USA 225 Wyman Street, Waltham, MA 02451 Tel +1 781 734 8770 Fax +1 720 356 9217 201 Mission Street, 26th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105 Tel +1 415 908 3348 Fax +1 415 704 3125 to SUBSCRIbe UK and International Tel +44 (0) 8456 731 731 [email protected] The price of a New Scientist annual subscription is UK £143, Europe €228, USA $154, Canada C$182, Rest of World $293. Postmaster: Send address changes to New Scientist, PO Box 3806, Chesterfield, MO 63006-9953, USA. cONTACTS Editorial Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1202 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Picture desk Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1268 Who’s who newscientist.com/people Contact us newscientist.com/contact Enquiries Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1202 Display Advertising Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1291 [email protected] Recruitment Advertising UK Tel +44 (0) 20 8652 4444 [email protected] Permission for reuse [email protected] Media enquiries Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1202 Marketing Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1286 Back Issues & Merchandise Tel +44 (0) 1733 385170 Syndication Tribune Media Services International Tel +44 (0) 20 7588 7588 UK Newsagents Tel +44 (0) 20 3148 3333 Newstrade distributed by Marketforce UK Ltd, The Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark St, London SE1 OSU Tel: + 44 (0) 20 8148 3333 © 2012 Reed Business Information Ltd, England New Scientist is published weekly by Reed Business Information Ltd. ISSN 0262 4079. Registered at the Post Office as a newspaper and printed in England by Polestar (Colchester)
Too fast, too furious The flap over faster-than-light neutrinos will be the first of many THE affair of the superluminal In a letter to Le Scienze (the neutrinos is taking casualties. Italian edition of Scientific Two leaders of the OPERA American), Antonio Ereditato, collaboration, which in September OPERA’s outgoing chairman, announced the detection of defended the approach that the neutrinos moving faster than collaboration had taken. But he the speed of light in a vacuum, added that “as a result of the stepped down last week. Both enormous media interest, the cited mounting tensions within OPERA collaboration found itself the team after it became clear that under anomalous and in some the best explanation for OPERA’s “The days of stageanomalous result is not novel managed announcements physics, but experimental error. of rock-solid results are That is what most bystanders drawing to a close” had expected since the news first broke: physicist Jim Al-Khalili notoriously promised to eat his respects irregular pressure, boxer shorts if the claim was thanks to a series of excessive confirmed. But the revelation in simplifications of the standard February that it might be the analysis and review process result of a malfunctioning clock regarding experimental results and a leaky fibre-optic cable and their interpretation.” nonetheless exposed OPERA to One can sympathise with scorn and prompted criticism of Ereditato’s position, but such a its leadership. remarkable claim was always
bound to attract a huge amount of both public and professional attention. Indeed, a major reason for announcing it at all was so that others might scrutinise it. Perhaps the only way to have avoided the fuss would have been to keep the result under wraps for even longer than the three years it took to become public. Its flaws might then have been uncovered more discreetly. But word was leaking into the blogosphere; OPERA physics coordinator Dario Autiero, who also stood down, says concealment was untenable. The personal cost to those at OPERA’s helm has been high. But with public interest piqued – witness Higgs hysteria – and big physics becoming ever bigger, the days of carefully stage-managed announcements of rock-solid results are drawing to a close. More such flaps will follow. n
Close the data gaps HAS the oceans’ capacity to support life halved over the past century or so? That’s the worrying implication of a study that suggests a sharp decline in the tiny sea plants, or phytoplankton, behind half of all photosynthesis on Earth (see page 42). The fate of phytoplankton has ramifications for the entire food chain. But we can’t tell for sure if
the controversial decline is real, largely because continuous satellite records of ocean colour – used to estimate phytoplankton abundance – only go back to 1997. That’s not nearly long enough to establish a long-term trend. To make matters worse, the main instrument used for this purpose, SeaWiFS, failed in 2010, while others are ageing or problematic.
Even if a replacement is eventually launched, the resulting gap in the data will make it difficult to differentiate any trend from temporary fluctuations. A continuous satellite record is crucial for monitoring many longterm changes, from the amount of energy reaching us from the sun to the thickness of Arctic sea ice. But the way missions are planned emphasises individual projects with little continuity. More joined-up thinking, please. n
There’s more to fusion than ITER
the backing of the European Union and six powerful nations to get even this far (see page 22). But care needs to be taken that ITER does not overshadow other experiments. The US Department of Energy last month cited increased support for ITER as the reason it plans to axe funding for several smaller fusion projects.
In these penny-pinching times, tough choices need to be made. But ITER will not address a host of practical and operational questions that must be answered before fusion power can become a reality. It is a first step, not a last best hope. If that is forgotten, the distant dream of fusion power may remain just that. n
CONSTRUCTION is finally under way in southern France of ITER, the experimental fusion reactor that scientists hope will produce more energy than it consumes. It is a huge undertaking, needing
7 April 2012 | NewScientist | 3
LOCATIONS UK Lacon House, 84 Theobald’s Road, London WC1X 8NS Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1200 Fax +44 (0) 20 7611 1250 Australia Tower 2, 475 Victoria Avenue, Chatswood, NSW 2067 Tel +61 2 9422 2666 Fax +61 2 9422 2633 USA 225 Wyman Street, Waltham, MA 02451 Tel +1 781 734 8770 Fax +1 720 356 9217 201 Mission Street, 26th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105 Tel +1 415 908 3348 Fax +1 415 704 3125 to SUBSCRIbe UK and International Tel +44 (0) 8456 731 731 [email protected] The price of a New Scientist annual subscription is UK £143, Europe €228, USA $154, Canada C$182, Rest of World $293. Postmaster: Send address changes to New Scientist, PO Box 3806, Chesterfield, MO 63006-9953, USA. cONTACTS Editorial Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1202 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Picture desk Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1268 Who’s who newscientist.com/people Contact us newscientist.com/contact Enquiries Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1202 Display Advertising Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1291 [email protected] Recruitment Advertising UK Tel +44 (0) 20 8652 4444 [email protected] Permission for reuse [email protected] Media enquiries Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1202 Marketing Tel +44 (0) 20 7611 1286 Back Issues & Merchandise Tel +44 (0) 1733 385170 Syndication Tribune Media Services International Tel +44 (0) 20 7588 7588 UK Newsagents Tel +44 (0) 20 3148 3333 Newstrade distributed by Marketforce UK Ltd, The Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark St, London SE1 OSU Tel: + 44 (0) 20 8148 3333 © 2012 Reed Business Information Ltd, England New Scientist is published weekly by Reed Business Information Ltd. ISSN 0262 4079. Registered at the Post Office as a newspaper and printed in England by Polestar (Colchester)
Too fast, too furious The flap over faster-than-light neutrinos will be the first of many THE affair of the superluminal In a letter to Le Scienze (the neutrinos is taking casualties. Italian edition of Scientific Two leaders of the OPERA American), Antonio Ereditato, collaboration, which in September OPERA’s outgoing chairman, announced the detection of defended the approach that the neutrinos moving faster than collaboration had taken. But he the speed of light in a vacuum, added that “as a result of the stepped down last week. Both enormous media interest, the cited mounting tensions within OPERA collaboration found itself the team after it became clear that under anomalous and in some the best explanation for OPERA’s “The days of stageanomalous result is not novel managed announcements physics, but experimental error. of rock-solid results are That is what most bystanders drawing to a close” had expected since the news first broke: physicist Jim Al-Khalili notoriously promised to eat his respects irregular pressure, boxer shorts if the claim was thanks to a series of excessive confirmed. But the revelation in simplifications of the standard February that it might be the analysis and review process result of a malfunctioning clock regarding experimental results and a leaky fibre-optic cable and their interpretation.” nonetheless exposed OPERA to One can sympathise with scorn and prompted criticism of Ereditato’s position, but such a its leadership. remarkable claim was always
bound to attract a huge amount of both public and professional attention. Indeed, a major reason for announcing it at all was so that others might scrutinise it. Perhaps the only way to have avoided the fuss would have been to keep the result under wraps for even longer than the three years it took to become public. Its flaws might then have been uncovered more discreetly. But word was leaking into the blogosphere; OPERA physics coordinator Dario Autiero, who also stood down, says concealment was untenable. The personal cost to those at OPERA’s helm has been high. But with public interest piqued – witness Higgs hysteria – and big physics becoming ever bigger, the days of carefully stage-managed announcements of rock-solid results are drawing to a close. More such flaps will follow. n
Close the data gaps HAS the oceans’ capacity to support life halved over the past century or so? That’s the worrying implication of a study that suggests a sharp decline in the tiny sea plants, or phytoplankton, behind half of all photosynthesis on Earth (see page 42). The fate of phytoplankton has ramifications for the entire food chain. But we can’t tell for sure if
the controversial decline is real, largely because continuous satellite records of ocean colour – used to estimate phytoplankton abundance – only go back to 1997. That’s not nearly long enough to establish a long-term trend. To make matters worse, the main instrument used for this purpose, SeaWiFS, failed in 2010, while others are ageing or problematic.
Even if a replacement is eventually launched, the resulting gap in the data will make it difficult to differentiate any trend from temporary fluctuations. A continuous satellite record is crucial for monitoring many longterm changes, from the amount of energy reaching us from the sun to the thickness of Arctic sea ice. But the way missions are planned emphasises individual projects with little continuity. More joined-up thinking, please. n
There’s more to fusion than ITER
the backing of the European Union and six powerful nations to get even this far (see page 22). But care needs to be taken that ITER does not overshadow other experiments. The US Department of Energy last month cited increased support for ITER as the reason it plans to axe funding for several smaller fusion projects.
In these penny-pinching times, tough choices need to be made. But ITER will not address a host of practical and operational questions that must be answered before fusion power can become a reality. It is a first step, not a last best hope. If that is forgotten, the distant dream of fusion power may remain just that. n
CONSTRUCTION is finally under way in southern France of ITER, the experimental fusion reactor that scientists hope will produce more energy than it consumes. It is a huge undertaking, needing
7 April 2012 | NewScientist | 3