Two URV articles among the most influential in statistical physics

Two articles signed by URV researchers have made it among the most influential in statistical physics of the last 30 years, according to the magazine Physical Review E. And it’s no small feat: this distinction puts Tarragona on the international map of a science that studies how systems with many components behave.

The works, coordinated by professors and researchers from Rovira i Virgili University, respond to global changes in the application of statistical physics, now essential to understand everything from social networks to pandemics. A milestone that reinforces URV’s role and its influence in the scientific field.

The articles that have placed Tarragona at the center of statistical physics

A pioneering look at human networks

The first article, published in 2003, was led by Roger Guimerà, Francesc Giralt, and Àlex Arenas. This work analyzes for the first time the structure of a real communication network within an organization with about 1,700 workers, through the emails exchanged.

This research has become a classic for the study of complex social systems and still serves today to validate mathematical models that explain human interactions on a global scale.

When physics explains pandemics

The second article, published in 2014, is the work of Clara Granell, Sergio Gómez, and Àlex Arenas. This study analyzed how different spreading processes compete and interact, such as diseases and information, across various networks.

The relevance of this work became evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the need was shown to understand not only the disease’s transmission but also the diffusion of messages among the population.

Statistical physics and its evolution: from Tarragona to the world

A discipline that transcends borders

Traditionally focused on gases and magnetic systems, statistical physics has broadened its scope to include social systems or neural networks. Tarragona, through URV, has contributed with these articles an advanced vision that connects with recent Nobel prizes, such as Giorgio Parisi in 2021 and Geoffrey Hinton and John Hopfield in 2024, in recognition of these new applications.

Internationally recognized by the scientific community

The American Physical Society formalized the Division of Statistical and Nonlinear Physics, and the magazine Physical Review E selected these two articles as key works to understand the scientific evolution of the last 30 years.

This reinforces the prestige of URV, located in the province of Tarragona, and its weight in global research in physics and engineering.

Impact and local applications that reach far

URV research with global resonance

URV’s involvement in this area positions the province of Tarragona as a scientific focus that transcends its territory, with researchers working on problems of great complexity and global importance.

The studies led from Tarragona contribute to models applied in fields as diverse as public health, information technologies, and artificial intelligence.

A scientific engine for the region

These successes position URV and Tarragona not only as a center of academic excellence but as a hub of attraction for innovative projects and international collaborations.

A clear example that local research can have a reach that seems impossible.

The reality is that statistical physics in Tarragona is not just theoretical: it is the key to understanding phenomena that affect our society and the way we relate, inform, and protect ourselves. And this, who would have thought, comes from right here.

Article source: Rovira i Virgili University