As a research professor of physics, A. M. Cetto works in the field of quantum foundations, with the aim of revealing the physical underpinnings of the mathematical formalism of quantum theory. Her research is documented in two books and more than 100 research papers. She is also actively involved in university teaching and tutoring, textbook writing and science popularisation. Examples of the latter include the creation of the Museum of Light, UNAM, as well as temporary science exhibitions, 24 books, over 160 articles and 330 lectures on science for young people and the general public.
Prof. Cetto has been deeply involved in activities at the interface of science and society, as well as in regional and international scientific cooperation, believing that for science to be truly international and for the benefit of humanity, it must be promoted by people from all over the world. She has served as Secretary-General of the International Council for Science, Deputy Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Chair of the Pugwash Executive Committee, and President of the Mexican Physical Society, and has worked closely with UNESCO. Over the past three decades, she has also been involved in scientific publishing, notably through the creation of Latindex, a comprehensive regional information system for Ibero-American scientific journals. She currently presides over the UNESCO Steering Committee on Open Science.
Key publications
Books
El Mundo de la Física, Vols. I, II, III (college textbook). A.M. Cetto et al. Editorial Trillas, Mexico 1990-1993.
Scientific Publications in Latin America, A.M. Cetto and K.-I. Hillerud, eds., Fondo de Cultura Económica, Mexico, 1995 (bilingual).
Scientific Journals in Latin America, A.M. Cetto and O. Alonso-Gamboa, eds., Fondo de Cultura Económica, Mexico, 1999 (bilingual).
World Conference on Science: towards a new commitment (Proceedings of the World Conference on Science). A.M. Cetto, ed. Banson, London; UNESCO, Paris, 2000. www.unesco.org/science/wcs
The Quantum Dice. An introduction to stochastic electrodynamics. L. de la Peña and A.M. Cetto. Kluwer Academic Publishers (Fundamental Theories of Physics no. 75), Dordrecht, 1996.
The Emerging Quantum. The physics behind quantum mechanics. L. de la Peña, A.M. Cetto and A. Valdés-Hernández, Springer Verlag, Berlin, 2015.
Light beyond 2015/Luz más allá de 2015 (bilingual). A. M. Cetto and Ma. T. J. Pérez de Celis, eds., UNAM, Mexico, 2016.
Some recent research articles
Excellence or Quality? Impact of the Current Competition Regime on Science and Scientific Publishing in Latin America and its Implications for Development. H. Vessuri, J.-C. Guédon and A. M. Cetto, Current Sociology 62 :5, 647-665 (2014).
Towards a local realist view of the quantum phenomenon. A. M. Cetto, A. Casado, K. Hess and A. Valdés, Frontiers in Physics 8 (2021).
Relevance of stochasticity for the emergence of quantization. L. de la Peña, A.M. Cetto and A. Valdés, EPJ Special Topics 230(4), 923-929 10.1140/epjs/s11734-021-00066-4 (2021).
On the physical origin of the quantum operator formalism. A M Cetto, L de la Peña, A Valdés, Quantum Stud. Math. Found. DOI 10.1007/s40509-020-00241-7 (2021).