Physics & society is a research area that examines the interactions between physical science and social systems, focusing on how physical principles, methods, and technologies influence, and are influenced by, societal structures, policies, and behaviors. It encompasses quantitative modeling of social phenomena using tools from statistical physics, network theory, and complex systems, as well as analysis of the societal implications of physics-based technologies such as nuclear energy, climate modeling, and advanced materials. This area also includes risk assessment, science policy, ethical considerations in physics research, and the role of physics expertise in evidence-based decision-making and public discourse.
Global climate mitigation scenarios shape real-world policy choices of who cuts emissions, who pays, and who benefits from climate action. A new IIASA-led essay published in PLOS Climate identifies how these influential tools ...
Environment
Feb 11, 2026
0
1
A Florida State University economics professor's latest research offers a new perspective on the long-held belief that the space race of the 1950s and 60s served as a primary engine for broad American economic growth.
Space Exploration
Jan 26, 2026
0
14
Quantum researchers in the twenty-first century are part of an international network that requires a great deal of interaction and communication. Around one hundred publications on the topic are produced every day, often ...
Quantum Physics
Oct 22, 2025
0
24
Nobel Prize in Physics will be announced Tuesday, the second award to be revealed this year by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm a day after a trio of scientists won the prize for contributions to medicine.
General Physics
Oct 7, 2025
0
1
We are amid what appears to be a second space race, except this time, the space race is not just led by two major superpowers, but by a wider group of nations who have interests in engaging in space exploration.
Women and ethnic minority groups are still significantly underrepresented in astronomy and geophysics despite attempts to bring about change over the past decade, research has shown.
Astronomy
Jul 10, 2025
0
4
There has been a lot of interest in recent years in governing new technologies, especially for AI. Yet, before the current hype in AI, there was nanotechnology and others before it. In his doctoral thesis, Nicholas Surber ...
Nanomaterials
May 23, 2025
0
0
"Climate change is real." That stark and undeniable statement spearheads a new call to action in a paper published in a special edition of the European Physical Journal Special Topics, focusing on energy saving in physics ...
General Physics
Feb 10, 2025
0
1
Out of 225 people awarded the Nobel Prize in physics, only five have been women. This is a very small number, and certainly smaller than 50%—the percent of women in the human population.
General Physics
Oct 1, 2024
2
16
It has been over a century since the boom period of physics exploded with Albert Einstein, Max Planck and others, sending us spinning into a new world of chaos from our previously ordered universe. This brilliant generation ...
General Physics
May 29, 2024
14
84
