So long and thanks for all the physics: The Hitchhiker's Guide

A Hitchhiker's Guide for first-year physics students

Of all of the documents uploaded to the arXiv - a virtual library of scientific publications - it is possible that only one is adorned with a smiling alien made of Feynman diagrams and the words "DON'T PANIC."

You might need an Infinite Improbability Drive to verify that claim, though. Over the course of more than 19 years, users have uploaded more than 627,000 publications to the database.

The document in question is "The Hitchhiker's Guide to First Year Physics Labs at UCD," a collection of handouts Ph.D. student Philip Ilten wrote between 2009 and 2010 for a class of freshmen he taught at University College Dublin.

Ilten arranged his handouts into a book during downtime at a theory school on QCD phenomenology and shared them with the world on Sept. 9.

"I'm a die-hard believer of open-source," he wrote in an e-mail. "I really believe that for science to make progress, we need to share absolutely everything."

It's not that he thinks his explanations are perfect. In the introduction to the book, he warns, "Despite my best effort, I am certain this book still contains spelling mistakes, grammar mistakes, and worst of all, physics mistakes."

But the book is a living, crowd-sourced effort. A couple of people have already contacted him to offer their input, and he has made corrections.

A glance through the Physics Education section of the arXiv reveals that comprehensive guides like this are rare in the library. Rarer still might be the guide's approachable language and conversational tone.

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Flu vaccinations available for employees at high risk

Starting Oct. 1, the Medical Office will offer 110 influenza vaccinations to full-time employees who meet the U.S. Centers for Disease Control definition of high risk.

You may register on the ES&H website. Additional doses are expected to arrive throughout October. Check Fermilab Today for future availability announcements.

As they have done in past years, the Medical Office will distribute any vaccinations not used by employees at high risk for the flu to the general employee population on a first-come basis starting about the middle of October. Fermilab Today will announce when registration opens for the general population.

Fermilab will offer only the standard vaccine dose, not the dose marketed to those older than 65 that contains four times the level of immunity-inducing antigen. The CDC and American Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) does not recommend one vaccine type over another. However, if you are over 65 years old, you may wish to consult your physician to learn if there is a recommendation based on your specific medical history.

Historically the flu peaks in March. Vaccination in late October or early November will offer ample time before the typical onset of the flu within our community.

"Gathering Storm" back on the radar

From Nature News, Sept. 23, 2010

An update of a landmark report repeats a stirring call for US investment in science, technology and education.

Efforts to increase US competitiveness by funding basic scientific research and education have failed to improve the country's global outlook, says a report released today by the US National Academy of Sciences, the US National Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine. It comes at a time when two key bills for science funding are set to expire and several science programs have had their budgets frozen in the current versions of the appropriations bills in Congress. "There is support for research but it is unstable, and these investments only make sense if they are sustained for the long haul," says report coauthor Charles Vest, president of the National Academy of Engineering in Washington D.C.

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