Ulrich Zuelicke

Purveyor of some fruits of rational thought. Allergic to people wearing ideological blinkers. We do science not to create wisdom but to limit error (Brecht).

[César A. Hidalgo @cesifoti]

It is true that many things in Europe are not working as they should. It is equally true that people across the continent feel an acute unease about the future. But Europe still has one extraordinary advantage: its people. At first this may sound like a cliché, yet it is far more than that. It is a diagnostic. It points, indirectly to where the real problem lies.

Europe is not a place where an educated elite governs an uneducated population in need of guidance. It is a place where a highly educated population is constrained, often unnecessarily, by an overly paternalistic elite. That tension shapes daily life in ways both subtle and exhausting.

Life in Europe follows a very peculiar rhythm. From Monday to Friday, we try to get things done. And on Saturday and Sunday, we gather with friends and family and confess, half-jokingly and half-defeated, that it is impossible to get anything done. That is the quiet part spoken out loud. Everyone feels it by now. Regulations, compliance checks, paperwork, unanswered messages; layer upon layer of administrative sediment, accumulate until progress stalls and even the simplest initiative begins to feel like an expedition.

But the tragedy is that this paralysis exists in a place overflowing with talent, creativity, and ambition. Europe’s people are not the obstacle; they are the squandered opportunity.

And that is why the diagnosis matters. If Europe’s problem were a lack of education or ability, the path forward would be long and uncertain. But Europe’s problem is structural: a governing and administrative culture that distrusts its own citizens, that confuses caution with wisdom and procedure with progress.

The hopeful side of this diagnosis is that the solution is within reach. Europe does not need to reinvent itself from scratch; it needs to learn to trust the intelligence and agency of the people who already make it remarkable. It needs to rediscover a lighter touch. To replace suspicion with empowerment, rigidity with responsibility, and bureaucracy with the freedom to build, experiment, and act.

If Europe ever manages to align its institutions with the capabilities of its citizens, the continent’s potential will be extraordinary. And perhaps then, our Monday-to-Friday efforts will finally carry into the weekend leaving us with something better to talk about than all the things that never got done.

[NicoleYunger Halpern @nicoleyh11]

Sean Carroll @Balticon: Simplicity is overrated, physicists. Prioritize complexity, for a change. @seanmcarroll

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

Great fun to contribute with my colleague Roland Winkler @NIUlive to a deeper understanding of altermagnetism @VicUniWgtn
https://t.co/vLfhpY57yK

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

@drsciman @AMN11_NZ 😀😎

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

Beautiful Wellington day. Great time to take the scenic bus route 14 @metlinkwgtn

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

C'est parti ! Le festival des films de nouvelle-Calédonie... 🇨🇵🇳🇨 @AmbafranceNZ

[Physical Review Research @PhysRevResearch]

Odd-frequency superfluidity from a particle-number-conserving perspective, K. Thompson, U. Zülicke, J Schmalian, M. Governale, and J. Brand @DoddWalls
@MacDiarmidInsti @ulizue #AtomicPhysics #CondensedMatter https://t.co/B0OUef0qkq

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

Getting ready for the @RSNZWellington Hudson lecture, given by Prof Michele Governale from @VicUniWgtn. Subject: quantum technologies @MacDiarmidInsti @DoddWalls

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

Hot off the press @PhysRevB: Our theory for quantifying 🖥️ arbitrary multipolar order 🧲 in solids 💎. Comprises all types of polar materials, ferro- and altermagnets 💯. A 🇺🇸+🇳🇿 co-production! https://t.co/SPIEsG8UyL

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

Fantastic to be back at @KITP_UCSB for the Quantum Crystal 2023 conference! Stoked to present our recent work on multipolar ⚡ and 🧲order in solids 😉

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

@drsciman

[Brian Skinner @gravity_levity]

uhhh...

We desperately need to get James Hamlin's talk from our workshop posted online. There is very clear evidence of fabricated data by these authors, which by any reasonable thinking makes another retraction _more_ likely, not less.

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

Absolute pity. Never mind the textbooks, what I am going to miss is the chance to browse new releases while waiting for coffee to meet colleagues and students in a congenial environment 😟 https://t.co/2wCSJVW20s

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

PhD opportunity on @FindAPhD: https://t.co/lL53t72dOY

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

@fietsprofessor @BicycleDutch Show me the German city with Wellington wind/rain patterns 😬

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

Tuatara bingo! All three of them are out today @WellingtonUni

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

We are playing bus lotto again. Today I am a winner! Sitting inside, as angry scenes unfold outside when the only un-cancelled bus in a half-hour window fills up and finally passes by stops. Overtaking miserable wet cyclists rest of the way. Welcome to commuting in our city 😜

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

Nice barista art @VicBooksCafe 😍

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

"Driver shortages today. Plan for some cancellations and longer wait times."

TODAY? SOME? LONGER?

Who can still stand the corporate euphemisms! It should read:

"Ongoing driver shortage. Lots of cancellations. Long wait times. You better plan, because we actually can't!"

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

@iangriffin I heard an extended low-frequency rumbling that also slightly shook the house (located in Miramar). A couple of waves or intensity peaks. Expected it to be the typical precursor of an earthquake, but none hit 😜

[Ulrich Zuelicke @UliZue]

OMG, this has an entirely new spin to it... https://t.co/YWdsbxX8J5