The week in physics: Potential US grad school admissions decrease; Early reionization

The week in physics: 21–25 April A small ancient galaxy started reionizing its surroundings early As the James Webb Space Telescope looks back at the universe's first billion years, surprises continue to turn up. Johanna L. Miller Physics, astronomy graduate admissions in the US expected to shrink amid funding uncertainty The predicted decrease is larger than pandemic-era disruptions, according to a survey of university departments. Jenessa Duncombe ADVERTISEMENT Transform High School Physics Education Apply for the William F. and Edith R. Meggers Project Award to receive up to $25,000 to enhance high school physics education. This award supports high school–level projects aimed at increasing interest in physics and improving the quality of physics education. The deadline to apply is June 15.  Learn More From the vault: September 1985 What is the lithosphere? We live on a highly dynamic Earth whose stony outer portion participates in a massive convection of matter that continually builds, destroys and moves plates of continental and oceanic crust. John C. Maxwell From FYI, AIP's science policy news service NSF director resigns amid mass grant cuts, looming layoffs The agency is terminating hundreds of grants that run afoul of Trump priorities. Clare Zhang From the April issue Dense crowds follow their own rules When thousands of people are packed into a confined space, collective dynamics takes over. The phenomenon can be described with a physical model. Johanna L. Miller Post a Job Get Job Alerts Browse All Jobs Post-Doctoral Research Associate: Department of Materials Science and Engineering University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN) View Job Postdoctoral Research Associate Ames Laboratory/Iowa State University (Ames, IA) View Job Faculty Appointment in International and Nuclear Security Stanford University (Stanford, CA) View Job Postdoctoral Researcher—JR2145 University of New Hampshire (Durham, NH) View Job Lecturer of Physics University of North Carolina Asheville (Asheville, NC) View Job Lecturer—Physics The College of New Jersey (Ewing, NJ) View Job Physics Today is published by the American Institute of Physics. To manage your AIP email preferences and newsletter subscriptions, click here. Or unsubscribe from all AIP emails. © 2025 American Institute of Physics. Physics Today 1 Physics Ellipse College Park, MD 20740-3842 +1 301 209 3100