Jacopo Bertolotti
@jacopobertolotti.com
Associated Professor of Physics at the University of Exeter.
Scientific visualizations (grouped under the hastag #PhysicsFactlet).
He/lui/on. All opinions are my own fault.
Scientific visualizations (grouped under the hastag #PhysicsFactlet).
He/lui/on. All opinions are my own fault.
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
Procrastinators, rejoice! The deadline to apply for #PLASMONICAschool2026 has been extended until November 16th ⏰. Bring a mate and don't be late!
Have you been living under a rock and never heard about #PLASMONICAschool2026? No worries: it's not too late to join our School on Plasmonics & Nano-Optics 💡: there is still one week left to apply ⌛. Check all the info in the 🧵 below 👇 and at 🌐 www.plasmonica.it/2026school/.
November 10, 2025 at 9:57 AM
Procrastinators, rejoice! The deadline to apply for #PLASMONICAschool2026 has been extended until November 16th ⏰. Bring a mate and don't be late!
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
pre-writing a devastating obituary for your enemy is god-tier hating of a kind you don’t often see anymore. renaissance haterism. beautiful stuff.
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 12:55 AM
pre-writing a devastating obituary for your enemy is god-tier hating of a kind you don’t often see anymore. renaissance haterism. beautiful stuff.
The secret that #BigMaths doesn't want you to know is that real numbers are vectors, complex numbers are vectors, matrices are vectors, and even tensors are vectors.
You might ask "is there anything that is not a vector?" and the answer is "spinors". But spinors are evil.
🙃 /s
You might ask "is there anything that is not a vector?" and the answer is "spinors". But spinors are evil.
🙃 /s
November 6, 2025 at 3:29 PM
The secret that #BigMaths doesn't want you to know is that real numbers are vectors, complex numbers are vectors, matrices are vectors, and even tensors are vectors.
You might ask "is there anything that is not a vector?" and the answer is "spinors". But spinors are evil.
🙃 /s
You might ask "is there anything that is not a vector?" and the answer is "spinors". But spinors are evil.
🙃 /s
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
Academics in Assyria in the 7th c BC complain that admin is preventing them from doing research and teaching
November 3, 2025 at 10:04 AM
Academics in Assyria in the 7th c BC complain that admin is preventing them from doing research and teaching
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
A halloween cartoon for @newscientist.com
October 31, 2025 at 11:27 AM
A halloween cartoon for @newscientist.com
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
JD Vance claims that diversity weakens unions, as people end up distrusting each other and not organizing.
Let me tell you two menswear stories related to this claim. 🧵
Let me tell you two menswear stories related to this claim. 🧵
October 30, 2025 at 8:07 AM
JD Vance claims that diversity weakens unions, as people end up distrusting each other and not organizing.
Let me tell you two menswear stories related to this claim. 🧵
Let me tell you two menswear stories related to this claim. 🧵
Come and listen to me blabber for a few hours about light scattering!
The first lecturer of #PLASMONICAschool2026 will be @jacopobertolotti.com from University of Exeter (UK). He is an expert of imaging through scattering media 👓 and optical computing 💻 and will teach us the fundamentals of optical wave scattering from single particles and in diffusive media 🥛.
October 30, 2025 at 11:14 AM
Come and listen to me blabber for a few hours about light scattering!
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
“Talent is a pursued interest. In other words, anything you’re willing to practice, you can do.”
- the great Bob Ross, who would have turned 83 today.
#RIP 🎨
- the great Bob Ross, who would have turned 83 today.
#RIP 🎨
October 29, 2025 at 11:58 AM
“Talent is a pursued interest. In other words, anything you’re willing to practice, you can do.”
- the great Bob Ross, who would have turned 83 today.
#RIP 🎨
- the great Bob Ross, who would have turned 83 today.
#RIP 🎨
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
obviously the real lesson here is that author lists are arbitrary anyway, defined by the field, and say nothing about quality of the research
October 26, 2025 at 12:21 PM
obviously the real lesson here is that author lists are arbitrary anyway, defined by the field, and say nothing about quality of the research
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
October 22, 2025 at 3:19 PM
☹️ "the European Commission (EC) announced a €1 billion initiative to accelerate the use of artificial intelligence (AI)"
🙂 "photonics is a critical enabling technology underpinning AI, quantum, semiconductor manufacturing and other areas that are vital to the EU’s technological independence"
💡
🙂 "photonics is a critical enabling technology underpinning AI, quantum, semiconductor manufacturing and other areas that are vital to the EU’s technological independence"
💡
The European Commission announced a €1 billion initiative to accelerate the use of AI in key industries, with photonics technology poised as the hardware backbone.
Read the OPN story: bit.ly/4hngMW9
#AI #Technology 💡⚛️
Read the OPN story: bit.ly/4hngMW9
#AI #Technology 💡⚛️
October 22, 2025 at 2:39 PM
☹️ "the European Commission (EC) announced a €1 billion initiative to accelerate the use of artificial intelligence (AI)"
🙂 "photonics is a critical enabling technology underpinning AI, quantum, semiconductor manufacturing and other areas that are vital to the EU’s technological independence"
💡
🙂 "photonics is a critical enabling technology underpinning AI, quantum, semiconductor manufacturing and other areas that are vital to the EU’s technological independence"
💡
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
Is the UK's immigration system easy to navigate?
No.
Is it inexpensive to apply to?
Also no.
Does it run efficiently and predictably?
Haha no.
But at least once you're in the country you'll not be arbitrarily kicked out of it, right?
I'm afraid we have some bad news about that.
No.
Is it inexpensive to apply to?
Also no.
Does it run efficiently and predictably?
Haha no.
But at least once you're in the country you'll not be arbitrarily kicked out of it, right?
I'm afraid we have some bad news about that.
The costs of the UK’s Global Talent Visa looks a trifle high in comparison to competitor countries - largely through the Immigration Health Surcharge (which critics say is a form of double taxation as they contribute to the NHS through normal tax on their earnings)
October 21, 2025 at 7:28 AM
Is the UK's immigration system easy to navigate?
No.
Is it inexpensive to apply to?
Also no.
Does it run efficiently and predictably?
Haha no.
But at least once you're in the country you'll not be arbitrarily kicked out of it, right?
I'm afraid we have some bad news about that.
No.
Is it inexpensive to apply to?
Also no.
Does it run efficiently and predictably?
Haha no.
But at least once you're in the country you'll not be arbitrarily kicked out of it, right?
I'm afraid we have some bad news about that.
I am old enough to remember when "do not feed the trolls" was the first thing you learnt about surviving on the internet.
October 19, 2025 at 8:30 PM
I am old enough to remember when "do not feed the trolls" was the first thing you learnt about surviving on the internet.
October 18, 2025 at 2:25 PM
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
Our department (UW-Madison Electrical and Computer Engineering) has two openings in semiconductors and quantum technologies
First, an open-rank (asst/assoc/full) search in quantum engineering, broadly defined, especially in experimental areas that take advantage of our nanofab resources
First, an open-rank (asst/assoc/full) search in quantum engineering, broadly defined, especially in experimental areas that take advantage of our nanofab resources
Assistant/Associate/Full Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering (Quantum Engineering) - Madison, Wisconsin, United States
Current Employees: If you are currently employed at any of the Universities of Wisconsin, log in to Workday to apply through the internal application process.Job Category:FacultyEmployment Type:Regula...
jobs.wisc.edu
October 17, 2025 at 8:39 PM
Our department (UW-Madison Electrical and Computer Engineering) has two openings in semiconductors and quantum technologies
First, an open-rank (asst/assoc/full) search in quantum engineering, broadly defined, especially in experimental areas that take advantage of our nanofab resources
First, an open-rank (asst/assoc/full) search in quantum engineering, broadly defined, especially in experimental areas that take advantage of our nanofab resources
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
I've received an 'exclusive' invite to try Nature's new 'research assistant', which will burn down a forest to provide a 'summary of the paper' I'm reading and I have SUCH exciting news for them, that's called an 'abstract' and the actual authors already wrote it for me, no forest-burning required.
October 17, 2025 at 2:10 PM
I've received an 'exclusive' invite to try Nature's new 'research assistant', which will burn down a forest to provide a 'summary of the paper' I'm reading and I have SUCH exciting news for them, that's called an 'abstract' and the actual authors already wrote it for me, no forest-burning required.
@plasmonica.bsky.social is organizing a summer school on "Plasmonic and Nano-optics" (march 23-27 in Florence, Italy), with a bunch of amazing lecturers and speakers, plus me.
Come and join us!
www.plasmonica.it/2026school/
Come and join us!
www.plasmonica.it/2026school/
Plasmonica School 2026
www.plasmonica.it
October 17, 2025 at 2:01 PM
@plasmonica.bsky.social is organizing a summer school on "Plasmonic and Nano-optics" (march 23-27 in Florence, Italy), with a bunch of amazing lecturers and speakers, plus me.
Come and join us!
www.plasmonica.it/2026school/
Come and join us!
www.plasmonica.it/2026school/
#PhysicsFactlet
In its simplest form Monte-Carlo integration allows to estimate a area/volume with complicated boundaries by taking a number of samples and looking at which fraction fall inside the object of interest.
🎢🧪⚛️ #ComputationalPhysics
In its simplest form Monte-Carlo integration allows to estimate a area/volume with complicated boundaries by taking a number of samples and looking at which fraction fall inside the object of interest.
🎢🧪⚛️ #ComputationalPhysics
October 17, 2025 at 10:29 AM
#PhysicsFactlet
In its simplest form Monte-Carlo integration allows to estimate a area/volume with complicated boundaries by taking a number of samples and looking at which fraction fall inside the object of interest.
🎢🧪⚛️ #ComputationalPhysics
In its simplest form Monte-Carlo integration allows to estimate a area/volume with complicated boundaries by taking a number of samples and looking at which fraction fall inside the object of interest.
🎢🧪⚛️ #ComputationalPhysics
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
BREAKING: Pope Leo XIV is set to effectively disband Opus Dei in the coming weeks.
This would be the most sweeping internal reform of his pontificate — and a dramatic continuation of Pope Francis’s legacy.
This would be the most sweeping internal reform of his pontificate — and a dramatic continuation of Pope Francis’s legacy.
NEW: Pope Leo Set To Break Up Opus Dei
If Pope Leo does indeed approves a plan that effectively dissolves Opus Dei’s structure, it would be the most significant internal action of his short pontificate to date.
open.substack.com
October 16, 2025 at 9:15 PM
BREAKING: Pope Leo XIV is set to effectively disband Opus Dei in the coming weeks.
This would be the most sweeping internal reform of his pontificate — and a dramatic continuation of Pope Francis’s legacy.
This would be the most sweeping internal reform of his pontificate — and a dramatic continuation of Pope Francis’s legacy.
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
Interesting. Tell me more about these early Xbox meetings.
October 16, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Interesting. Tell me more about these early Xbox meetings.
When you see people screaming that the "establishment" is suppressing their their discoveries / insights / theories / etc they have invariably taken the path on the right.
🧪⚛️ #xkcd
🧪⚛️ #xkcd
Physics Paths
xkcd.com
October 16, 2025 at 10:00 AM
When you see people screaming that the "establishment" is suppressing their their discoveries / insights / theories / etc they have invariably taken the path on the right.
🧪⚛️ #xkcd
🧪⚛️ #xkcd
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
250 documents with a keyword followed by gibberish, injected into the training of a large language model, can "poison" it - according to Anthropic.
www.anthropic.com/research/sma...
www.anthropic.com/research/sma...
A small number of samples can poison LLMs of any size
Anthropic research on data-poisoning attacks in large language models
www.anthropic.com
October 15, 2025 at 8:35 AM
250 documents with a keyword followed by gibberish, injected into the training of a large language model, can "poison" it - according to Anthropic.
www.anthropic.com/research/sma...
www.anthropic.com/research/sma...
Reposted by Jacopo Bertolotti
October 14, 2025 at 7:33 AM