Physics

Stephen L. Adler, Professor Emeritus in the School of Natural Sciences, reflects on the life and legacy of Chen Ning Yang, Professor (1955–66) in the School of Mathematics/Natural Sciences, who passed away in 2025. Adler traces Yang's landmark contributions, emphasizing how these ideas helped shape today’s Standard Model.

In the Spring 2023 edition of The Institute Letter, archivist Caitlin Rizzo outlined her research into Thayyoor K. Radha, one of the earliest women of color at the Institute. Radha joined IAS in 1965–66 as a Member, but her continued success was rendered virtually undiscoverable after her marriage saw her change her surname. After reading The Institute Letter, Radha’s daughter reached out to the Archive, allowing more elements of her story to be collected.

Weishun Zhong, Member in the School of Natural Sciences, uses tools from statistical physics to study the brain and AI. "Although these two might appear very different at first glance," he states, "when zoomed out and abstracted away, they are both just networks of basic units called neurons."

In this excerpt, Freeman Dyson, Faculty (1952–2020) in the School of Natural Sciences, ascends the New Court clock tower at St. John’s College, Cambridge during a wartime blackout.

In the wake of the first image release, past Member Nadia Zakamska, whose research group has been involved with JWST since 2017, provides a deeper understanding of the telescope’s significance and reflects on her role in gathering and analyzing early release data.

Past Members in the School of Natural Sciences Robert J. Vanderbei (2019–20) and Michael A. Strauss (1991–95), along with Neil deGrasse Tyson and J. Richard Gott, have authored a unique journey into the cosmos titled Welcome to the Universe in 3D: A Visual Tour, the fourth in a series of astrophysical tours for Princeton University Press. 

In this Scholar Spotlight we feature Hofie Sigridar Hannesdottir, a Member in the School of Natural Sciences. She shares what inspired her to study elementary particles and what she hopes to learn about our universe.

Natalie Paquette, Member in the School of Natural Sciences, is a mathematical physicist whose research interests span string theory and quantum field theory. Most recently, she has been exploring connections between holography and the mathematical...

In 1989, Joanne Cohn, a physicist then at the Institute for Advanced Study, began distributing TeX files of string theory papers via email. By August of 1991, the email list had grown to 180 physicists—an unwieldy number for Cohn to individually...

By the twentieth century, mathematics had advanced into rather abstract realms, transcending its origins, which had been largely driven by questions closer to the natural world. Physics on the other hand, especially after the development of quantum...