Winner of the 2018 IOP Gravitational Physics Group (GPG) thesis prize: Dr Viraj A A Sanghai

Can you tell us a little bit about the work in your thesis?

One of the challenges of modern cosmology is to interpret observations in a consistent and model-independent way. There are several assumptions in interpreting cosmological/astrophysical data. For example, it is often assumed that Einstein’s theory of gravity is the correct theory of gravity. Furthermore, fundamental to cosmology is the assumption that the universe is homogeneous and isotropic on the largest scales and hence, this is the correct starting point to interpret cosmological data. To test these assumptions, approaches are needed, which work in a model-independent way. Broadly speaking, my thesis addresses these questions.

Thinking back, what was the most interesting thing that happened during your PhD?

Dr Viraj A A Sanghai is a postdoctoral fellow working on theoretical cosmology at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada

The most interesting thing that happened during my PhD was the discovery of gravitational waves by LIGO, due to the merging of two black holes. This opened up a new avenue into testing Einstein’s theory of gravity and started the new field of gravitational wave astronomy. Before this, all our astronomical observations relied on electromagnetic radiation. This discovery is helping us to have a deeper understanding of our Universe. Consequently, the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for this discovery.

Congratulations to Dr Bernard Kelly, CQG Reviewer of the Year

Classical and Quantum Gravity is proud to recognise excellence in peer review and acknowledge our reviewers for their invaluable contribution to the journal.

Bernard Kelly, University of Maryland, Baltimore County & NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Congratulations to Dr Bernard Kelly who has won our newly introduced ‘Reviewer of the Year‘ title for his excellent referee reports throughout 2016.  Below Dr Kelly gives us some insight into his process of reviewing and tells us a little bit more about himself.

Tell us how you go about reviewing an article?

First I sit on it for a week or so, thinking “Sounds appropriate. I’ll take a look when I get the chance”. And then the next thing, the journal is pinging me with a follow-up notification, which is when I realise I’ve let too much time slip by.

I read the title, abstract, gloss over the Introduction, and try to assess how mathematically involved the text is, and how much overlap there is with my own areas of expertise (or at least competence). I don’t expect to be familiar with all aspects of the research, but if it’s 50% or better (in whatever fuzzy metric I’m using), I think it’s worth giving it a serious look. Occasionally, I find that what I thought was going to be a good fit wasn’t on closer inspection, and I end up declining.

Now I print the paper out: in colour, if I’m feeling extravagant with my lab’s resources, but usually in B & W. It’s impractical to mark up PDFs on a laptop; perhaps it’d be better on a full-size tablet, but I don’t have one yet. I break out two pens — usually blue & red.

Interview with Daniela Saadeh: winner of the IOP Gravitational Physics Group (GPG) thesis prize

Daniela Saadeh – UCL Astrophysics Group

CQG is proud to sponsor the IOP Gravitational Physics Group (GPG) thesis prize. This year the prize was awarded to Daniela Saadeh, who we have interviewed below. Congratulations Daniela!

Can you tell us a little bit about the work in your thesis?

A fundamental assumption of the standard model of cosmology is that the large-scale Universe is isotropic – i.e. that its properties are independent of direction. Historically, this concept stemmed from the Copernican Principle, the philosophical statement that we do not occupy a ‘special’ place in the Universe. In physical terms, this idea is converted into the assumption that all positions and directions in the Universe are equivalent, so that no observer is ‘privileged’.

However, assumptions must be tested, especially foundational ones. General relativity – our standard theory of gravity – allows for many ways in which spacetime could be anisotropic: directional symmetry is not fundamentally required. If the Universe were indeed to be anisotropic, we would actually need to carefully revise our understanding (for instance, calculations about its history or content). Making this health check is very important!

Interview with Patricia Schmidt, winner of the 2015 GPG thesis prize

Patricia Schmidt is a Postdoctoral Scholar in TAPIR at Caltech

What was the most interesting thing that happened during your PhD?

The most interesting thing was that literally every day, you would do something new. Even looking at the same set of equations again and again you would get new ideas and new insights.

Were there any big surprises?

The biggest surprise was that it actually worked out! We didn’t have a path set out to reach this result when we started, so who would have thought when Mark and I set out that we would actually have exactly

Interview with Dr Anna Heffernan: winner of the 2014 IOP Gravitational Physics Group’s thesis prize, co-sponsored by CQG

Dr Anna Heffernan, Advanced Concepts Team, European Space Agency

What led you into science and your chosen area of research?

I’ve always enjoyed Mathematics and learning about the world around me. General relativity allows us to use mathematics to probe the very space time in which we exist – I find this fascinating, and it means I also get to play with equations for a living.

What do you find most interesting about this subject?

The fundamental questions it both addresses and raises. I also like the idea that with the emergence of gravitational wave astronomy, general relativity will soon be used as a tool to explore our universe.

Can you tell us a little bit about the work in your thesis?

Sure, my thesis was on the self-force problem – this is when