SPS Virtual Colloquium Series
The Society of Physics Students is hosting live virtual colloquium through throughout 2020 and beyond to help bring the community together and enrich local chapters. All are welcome and if you are unable to make any of the colloquium, no problem! All talks are recorded and posted to our YouTube channel.
Next Talk:
Dr. Anthony Kuchera, Davidson College, "Minimizing resistance: teaching electronics labs during a pandemic," Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 3 PM ET.
Abstract: Undergraduate electronics courses are a typical part of a physics curriculum. These courses commonly have a significant hands-on laboratory component accompanied by a theoretical lecture component. The COVID-19 pandemic has moved many courses into a virtual environment. Some laboratory courses that have gone virtual have utilized “everyday objects” students likely have at home and/or computer simulations. Because of the hands-on skills typically developed in an electronics lab and the necessary equipment, which are not commonly found at home, these solutions are less than ideal. To provide students with an equitable solution, affordable electronics kits were purchased and distributed to all students enrolled in the course. In this talk I will describe my experiences teaching an electronics course in a hybrid-environment with students working remotely and in-person simultaneously. I will provide details and examples using a key piece of equipment which made the cost of the kits affordable. Additionally, I will share what I would change for the future and what I would keep for a second iteration. In the end, there were several positive takeaways that will be borrowed from this semester even in a post-pandemic in-person electronics course.
Dr. Randall Tagg, University of Colorado Denver, "Physics for Humans - 24 Challenges in 24 Minutes (Choose 1)," Wednesday, May 12, 2021 at 3 PM ET.
Abstract: How many dimensions will your physics career have? Will it be narrow and focus tightly on an extraordinary new direction of inquiry? Will it broadly encompass ideas and technologies from other fields to dissolve barriers to scientific and technical progress? Will it acquire a human dimension, merging fundamental knowledge and technical skills with perception and empathy to enhance the well-being of people and our planet? The good news is that your career can have all of these aspects. As encouragement to include the larger human dimension, I will post twenty-four challenges across a spectrum of human activities and needs. Each will have a general part and a specific instance. consider choosing one for further thought and investigation. If you are bound for research, called to teach, intent of exploration, or drawn to the needs of industry - you can keep your day job! But think also about the insights and passions that your unique life experience can stimulate to create value for humans and for life in general. See how some of the most exquisitely difficult but rewarding problems of physics are inspired by human needs. Then perharps you will want to find the time, a place, and companionship to create ways to use physics for humans. A new student organization, PSI* (Physics Student Inovators *and Alumni) exists to support such an endeavor. And watch out! This could become your career after all.
Previous Talks:
Dr. Colleen Countryman, Ithaca College, "Going the Distance: Mobile Labs in the Time of Covid," Wednesday, April 7, 2021.
Dr. H. Frederick Dylla, Executive Director Emeritus of the American Institute of Physics, "Scientific Journeys: A Physicist Explores the Culture, History and Personalities of Science," Wednesday, March 24, 2021.
Mohammad Soltanieh-ha, Boston University, "Data Science Career for Physics Graduates", Friday, November 13, 2020.
Nicole Gugliucci, Nate Letteri, Ana Morrison, Saint Anselm College, "Radios for Jupiter: Learning to Teach while Building a Radio Telescope" Thursday, October 22
Daniel A. Russell, Pennsylvania State University, “The Acoustics of Ping-Pong: A Vibroacoustic Analysis of Table Tennis Rackets and Balls”, Wednesday, September 23, 2020
Bryan Gaither, PROFESSIONAL Mad Scientist at Austin Peay State University, "Fire and Pressure Demo show", Thursday August 27, 2020
Renee Horton, NASA Engineer"Adaptability to Thrive", Wednesday, August 12, 2020
SPS Interns talks 2020 (15 different talks), "SPS Summer 2020 Intern Closing Symposaium", August 7, 2020
Michael Furher, ARC Laurete Fellow in the School of Physics at Monash University, "What are tolological insulators, and how can they save the world?", Thursday, August 3, 2020
Toni Sauncy, Texas Lutheran University, "Living the Life in a Physics World: Hard work, serious skills, and necessary frivolous diversions” Wednesday, June 17, 2020
Shannon Clardy, Henderson State University, "So your internship is cancelled. Now what?" - Tuesday, May 26, 2020
Julianne M. Pollard-Larkin, Cheif of Thoracic Services, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, "Nothing is more Contagious than Hope: Tips for a Physics Student Braving a Pandemic!" May 21, 2020
David J. Helfand, Columbia University and AIP Board Chair, "Global Warming: The Astronomical Factors" - Thursday, April 23, 2020
David J. Helfand, Professor Columbia University and AIP Board Chair, "Where Did All That CO2 Come From?" - Wednesday, April 15, 2020
Colleen Countryman, Assistant Professor Ithaca College, "The Development and Assessment of Instructional Mobile Apps for Physics Students" - Wednesday, April 1, 2020
Greg Good, Director of the Center for History of Physics. Titled “Space Weather in the Time of Pandemic” - Tuesday, March 24, 2020
Susan White, Interim Director of the Statistical Research Center at AIP, "You Can't Handle the Truth" - Tuesday, March 17, 2020