Recently in American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) Category

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Marilyn Gardner
American Association of Physics Teachers
mgardner@aapt.org
301-209-3306

July 17, 2011 -- The traveling members of the US Physics team competed with 393 of the most talented young physicists on the global stage, representing 84 countries, during the 42nd International Physics Olympiad and they brought home two gold and three silver medals. The Olympiad, held July 10-17, was sponsored by the Promotion of Academic Olympiads and Development of Science Education Foundation (POSN), under the patronage of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana Krom Luang Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra, and Chulalongkorn University (CU), in Bangkok, Thailand.

The gold medalists are Brian Zhang, a senior at Henry M. Gunn High School in Palo Alto, CA, and Ante Qu, a senior at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South, Princeton Junction, NJ. Brian scored 8th highest overall in the competition.

The silver medalists are Lucy Chen, a senior at Ames High School, Ames, IA, Andrew Das Sarma, a senior at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, MD, and Eric Speiglan, a junior from Naperville North High School in Naperville, IL. Andrew's score ranked him as the second highest silver medalist.

Four countries won five gold medals: Taiwan, China, Singapore, and Korea. These four countries also had unofficial aggregate total scores above the US. The US aggregate total score was fifth highest.

Six countries won three gold medals: Hong Kong, India, Japan, Thailand, Kazakhstan, and Slovakia.

The United States "tied" for eleventh on the medal count with Romania.

The coaches for the 2011 U.S. Physics team are: Paul Stanley, Academic Director/Senior Coach, Warren Turner, Senior Coach/Lab Coach, Andrew Lin, Jia Jia Dong, Quizi Li, David Fallest, and Marianna Mao, Junior Coach.

The U.S. Physics Olympiad Program was started in 1986 by AAPT to promote and demonstrate academic excellence. It continues to be supported as a joint initiative between AAPT, AIP, and the member societies of the American Institute for Physics: Acoustical Society of America, American Association of Physicists in Medicine, American Astronomical Society, American Crystallographic Society, American Geophysical Union, American Physical Society, AVS, Optical Society America, and The Society of Rheology.

The 42nd IPhO was organized and hosted through the generous support of the Royal Thai Government and the POSN (The Promotion of Academic Olympiad and Development of Science Education Foundation). The nine-day international competition brought together The IPhO this year, with about 393 participating pre-university students from more than 84 nations.

MORE ON THE WEB
• Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2011/index.cfm
• History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/program.cfm
• The official website of the International Physics Olympiad: http://www.ipho2011.org/
• Screening exams the students had to pass to place on the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.compadre.org/psrc/evals/olympiad.cfm.

Funding for the U.S. Physics Team is supported through donations from concerned individuals and organizations. Contributions are entirely used to support the selection, training, and travel of the team. Donations to the U.S. Physics Team are accepted at www.aapt.org/physicsteam/donate.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education --with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

July 6, 2011--AAPT has announced that David P. Jackson will assume the position of Editor for the American Journal of Physics in 2012.

Jackson's undergraduate work in Physics at the University of Washington was recognized as Magna Cum Laude with distinction in Physics. Since receiving his Ph.D. in physics from Princeton University in 1994, he has held faculty positions at Santa Clara University and Dickinson College, including a term as Chair of the Dickinson Department of Physics and Astronomy from 2006-2009.

The recipient of numerous awards and grants, Jackson is a frequent presenter at national and international physics conferences. His publications have appeared in such journals as Physical Review Letters and Science, and he co-authored a textbook for non-science majors titled Explorations in Physics. Additionally, he regularly contributes to the American Journal of Physics as a reviewer and as an author.

"The Search Committee was very pleased with the high quality of the applicant pool, gratified that AJP's editorial office has found such a welcoming and supportive home at Dickinson College, and confident that the journal will be in most capable hands under the guidance of David Jackson," said John Mallinkrodt, Search Committee Chair.

Jackson will begin working with Jan Tobochnik, the current editor, this fall. During that time he will be considering candidates for the position of Associate Editor.

In his application for the position, Jackson noted that, "The American Journal of Physics is a unique journal that, I believe, has more impact than any other physics journal in the world. I say this because most articles published in research journals are highly specialized and are typically of interest to only a small number of researchers...In contrast, most articles published in AJP are understandable by almost any physicist, most physics graduate students, many undergraduate physics students, and a good number of other scientists as well. As such, AJP may well be the most widely read physics journal in the world, giving it tremendous reach."

About the American Journal of Physics
The American Journal of Physics (AJP) is devoted to the instructional and cultural aspects of physics. The journal informs physics education globally with member subscriptions, institutional subscriptions, such as libraries and physics departments, and consortia agreements. It is geared to an advanced audience, primarily at the college level. Contents include novel approaches to laboratory and classroom instruction, insightful articles on topics in classical and modern physics, apparatus and demonstration notes, historical or cultural topics, resource letters, research in physics education, and book reviews.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical applications of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

For Immediate Release

College Park, MD, May 23, 2011 -- The members of the 2011 U.S. Physics Team come from California, Iowa, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Texas, and Washington. There are four sophomores, seven juniors, and nine seniors. Five of them are returning as second time members of the United States Physics Team. You will find them in College Park, MD, preparing for the next stage of the competition to identify the world's best high school physics students.

The top twenty physics students in the United States are beginning ten days of rigorous academic training, interactive learning, and friendship building as they prepare to test themselves on the world stage. Team members were selected through an examination process that included such upper level skills as the Lagrangian Formula of Mechanics, Differential Calculus for Electricity and Magnetism, and Complex Variables, skills usually learned at the end of the undergraduate experience.

They were welcomed to the University of Maryland, College Park campus by AAPT Executive Officer, Beth Cunningham and AIP Executive Director, Fred Dylla. Officers and staff from AAPT, AIP, APS, and the University of Maryland were on hand for the camp kick off.

Meet the U.S. Physics team at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2011/team.cfm. Get to know their coaches, Paul Stanley, Academic Director; Warren Turner, Senior Lab Coach; Qui Zi Li, Assistant Lab Coach; and Academic Coaches, Jia Jia Dong, David Fallest, and Andrew Linn at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2011/coaches.cfm.

In addition to learning a year of physics in two weeks, the team members will visit their congressional representatives on Capitol Hill, meet with physicist and Nobel prize winner, Carl Wieman of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), have a photo opportunity at the Albert Einstein statue at the National Academy of Science, and meet NASA scientists, Jonathan Gardner, Chief, Observational Cosmology Laboratory and Neil Gehrels, Chief, Astroparticle Physics Laboratory.

At the end of the camp, they will be tested again and five of the team members will be selected to travel to Bangkok, Thailand, representing the United States in the 42nd International Physics Olympiad, July 10 - 18, 2011.

MORE ON THE WEB
Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2011
Meet the 2011 Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2011/team.cfm
History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/Contests/olympiad.cfm
The official website of the 2011 International Physics Olympiad: http://www.ipho2011.org/index.php

About AAPT
The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides organizational and sponsorship support to the U.S. Physics Team in partnership with the American Institute for Physics and its member societies (http://www.aip.org/aip/societies.html).

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, MD, May 5, 2011--Where can you find America's brightest emerging physicists? They come from California, Iowa, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, and Texas. There are four sophomores, seven juniors, and nine seniors. Five of them are returning as second time members of the United States Physics Team. You will find them in College Park, MD, later this month preparing for the next stage of the competition to identify the world's best high school physics students.

Twenty students from across the U.S. have emerged through a rigorous exam process that began last January with approximately 3,600 students who participated in the Fnet=ma exam to become the 2011 U.S. Physics Team (http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/team.cfm). These students will continue to train for the mentally grueling exams and lab tests they'll face at the 42nd International Physics Olympiad to be held from July 10 - 18, 2011 in Bangkok, Thailand, where more than 400 student scholars from 90 nations will test their knowledge in physics, competing with the best in the world. Over the past ten years, every U.S. Physics Team member traveling to the international competition has returned with a medal.

The members of the 2011 U.S. Physics Team are:
Lucy Chen, Ames High School, Ames, IA
Andrew Das Sarma, Montgomery Blair High School, Silver Spring, MD
Calvin Deng, William G. Enloe Magnet High School, Raleigh, NC
Adam Jermyn, Longmeadow High School, Longmeadow, MA
Yota Kato, EPGY Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Brian Kong, Milton Academy, Milton, MA
Benjamin Li, Arcadia High School, Arcadia, CA
Jonathan Li, St. Margaret's Episcopal School, San Juan Capistrano, CA
Peter Lu, Illinois Math and Science Academy, Aurora, IL
Ante Qu, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South, Princeton Junction, NJ
Eric Schneider, High Technology High School, Lincroft, NJ
Sadik Shahidain, Princeton High School, Princeton, NJ
Bobby Shen, Dulles High School, Sugar Land, TX
Utsarga Sikder, South Brunswick High School, Monmouth Junction, NJ
Eric Spieglan, Naperville North High School, Naperville, IL
Albert Wu, The Harker School, San Jose, CA
May Yang, Libertyville High School, Libertyville, IL
Ryan Yoo, Homeschool, Los Angeles, CA
Brian Zhang, Palo Alto High School, Palo Alto, CA
Andrew Zhao, Webster Thomas High School, Webster, NY

"The competition for a position on the U.S. Physics Team is intense and each student who participated in the 2011 selection process is deserving of recognition. They are the future of America's success in physics related fields. AAPT is honored to recognize the exceptional scholars who qualified for the team and to support their further participation in the International Physics Olympiad," said Dr. Beth A. Cunningham, Executive Officer of the American Association of Physics Teachers.

An integral part of the U.S. Physics Team experience is the training camp. Most of the students invited to the camp are the top science student in their high school. For many, it is their first chance to meet other students who are truly their peers. The training camp is a crash course in the first two years of university physics. Students learn at a very fast pace. They have an opportunity to hear about cutting edge research from some of the community's leading physicists. At the end of the training camp, five students will be selected to travel to Bangkok for the international competition.

The coaches for the 2011 U.S. Physics team are: Paul Stanley, Academic Director/Senior Coach, Warren Turner, Senior Coach/Lab Coach, Andrew Lin, Jia Jia Dong, Qui Zi Li, and David Fallest.

The US Physics Team is sponsored by the generous support of private donors and the member societies of the American Institute for Physics:
Acoustical Society of America
American Association of Physicists in Medicine
American Association of Physics Teachers
American Astronomical Society
American Crystallographic Association
American Geophysical Union
American Physical Society
AVS: Science & Technology of Materials, Interfaces, and Processing
Optical Society of America
The Society of Rheology

LIST OF EVENTS:
May 20 -- 2011 Physics Team members arrive at the University of Maryland for their intensive training camp
May 23 -- Welcome Reception at the University of Maryland
May 25 -- Congressional Visits
May 31 -- Five students will be chosen to represent the U.S. Physics Team at the international competition
July 10-18 -- The International Physics Olympiad in Bangkok, Thailand
July 17 -- Closing Ceremony

MORE ON THE WEB
Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2011
History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/Contests/olympiad.cfm
42nd International Physics Olympiad: http://www.ipho2011.org/index.php

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and physical scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT is responsible for recruiting, selecting and training teams each year to compete in the International Physics Olympiad Competition. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

Contact: Marilyn Gardner
Director of Communications
E-mail: mgardner@aapt.org
Phone: (301) 209-3306
www.aapt.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, April 7, 2011--James E. Hansen, is the 2011 recipient of the Klopsteg Memorial Award from the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). Hansen will receive the award on August 3 at the 2011 AAPT Summer Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska. The theme of the meeting will be communicating with the public about physics and Hansen's work on global climate change has been an exemplar in this area.

Klopsteg awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to the general public. Hansen will present a lecture on a physics topic of current significance suitable for nonspecialists, in memory of Paul Klopsteg, AAPT Past President.

Often called the "father of global warming," Hansen heads the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City, a part of the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, Earth Sciences Division. He is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia University.

Hansen was trained in physics and astronomy in the space science program of James Van Allen at the University of Iowa. He obtained a B.A. in Physics and Mathematics, a M.S. in Astronomy, and a Ph.D. in Physics, all three degrees from the University of Iowa. He participated in the NASA graduate traineeship from 1962 to 1966 and, at the same time, between 1965 and 1966, he was a visiting student at the Institute of Astrophysics at the University of Kyoto and in the Department of Astronomy at the University of Tokyo. Hansen began work at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies in 1967.

After graduate school, Hansen continued his work with radiative transfer models and attempting to understand the atmosphere of Venus. He is best known for his research in the field of climatology, his testimony on climate change to congressional committees in 1988 that helped raise broad awareness of global warming, and his advocacy of action to limit the impacts of climate change. He has authored and co-authored an impressive number and variety of scholarly papers about climate change.

Hansen was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1996 for his "development of pioneering radiative transfer models and studies of planetary atmospheres; development of simplified and three-dimensional global climate models; explication of climate forcing mechanisms; analysis of current climate trends from observational data; and projections of anthropogenic impacts on the global climate system."

In 2001, he received the 7th Annual Heinz Award in the Environment for his research on global warming. In 2006 he was listed as one of the 100 Most Influential People by Time Magazine. Also, in 2006, the he was selected to receive the AAAS Award for Scientific Freedom and Responsibility.

In 2007, Hansen shared the US $1 million Dan David Prize for "achievements having an outstanding scientific, technological, cultural or social impact on our world." In 2008, he was named by EarthSky Communications and a panel of 600 scientist-advisers as the Scientist Communicator of the Year. In 2009, Hansen was awarded the American Meteorological Society's Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal, their highest honor. He was the 2010 winner of the Sophie, Prize, set up in 1997 by Norwegian Jostein Gaarder, for his "key role for the development of our understanding of human-induced climate change." A well known authority on climate change issues, Hansen authored the book, "Storms of My Grandchildren" which was published in 2009 by Bloomsbury USA.

About the Award
Established in 1990, this award is given to a notable physicist in memory of Paul Klopsteg. The Klopsteg Memorial Award recipient is asked to make a major presentation at an AAPT Summer Meeting on a topic of current significance suitable for non-specialists.

Previous Awardees:
2010 Robert Sherrer, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
2009 Lee Smolin, Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, Waterloo, ON
2008 Michio Kaku, City University of New York, New York, NY
2007 Neil deGrasse Tyson, Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY
2006 Lisa Randall, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
2005 Wendy Freedman, Carnegie Observatories, Pasadena, CA
2004 Anton Zeilinger, University of Vienna, Austria
http://www.aapt.org/Programs/awards/klopsteg.cfm

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. The association is dedicated to providing the most current resources and up-to-date research needed to enhance a physics educator's professional development. The results are not only a deeper appreciation of the teaching profession, but most importantly, more enthusiastic involvement from their students. Founded in 1930, AAPT is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, March 18, 2011-- The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today Edward E. Prather is the recipient of 2011 David Halliday and Robert Resnick Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Award. Prather is Associate Professor, Department of Astronomy-Steward Observatory, at the University of Arizona where he serves as Executive Director of the NSF, NASA, and JPL funded Center for Astronomy Education (CAE). This award is given in recognition of contributions to undergraduate physics teaching and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students.

This prestigious award will be presented to Dr. Prather during the AAPT Summer Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, where he will also present a paper. When informed of his selection for this award, Prather said, "When I was an undergraduate physics major I spent countless hours pouring over my Halliday and Resnick physics textbook - it was my physics bible. It is quite an honor to be recognized, with this particular award, for something I am so passionate about--sharing my love of physics and astronomy with undergraduates, and hopefully instilling in these students just how important science is to our society and to our everyday lives."

Prather received a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics and Astronomy at the University of Washington, and a Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Maine. He predominantly teaches large-enrollment general education introductory college Astronomy courses, but also has taught in-person and online graduate courses both in astronomy and astronomy education, as well as calculus-based intro. physics courses, physics courses for non-majors, and physics courses for pre and in-service teachers. In 2004 he became Executive Director of the Center for Astronomy Education (CAE) at the University of Arizona, where he has led research programs to investigate students' conceptual and reasoning difficulties in the areas of astronomy, astrobiology, physics, and planetary science resulting in the development of innovative instructional strategies that engage learners and significantly improve their understanding of fundamental Earth and space science concepts.

Prather has been a driving force in the creation of research-validated curriculum and assessments materials for introductory Astronomy, such as Lecture-Tutorials for Introductory Astronomy, Ranking Tasks in Astronomy, the Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory, the Stellar Properties Concept Inventory, the Greenhouse Effect Concept Inventory, Mastering Astronomy, and many others. Another major component of Dr. Prather's work is providing industry-leading professional development workshops for current and future instructors of Earth and Space Science. His work in Astronomy Education Research has been published in the American Journal of Physics and in Physics Today, as well as Astronomy Education Review.

In 2006 his work was recognized with the University of Arizona Provost's General Education Teaching Award. He also received the 2009 University of Arizona College of Science Innovation in Teaching Award. Prather's interactive classroom environment challenges his students to step out of their comfort zones, to take chances on being wrong, and to take charge of their learning.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, February 14, 2011--The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that the 2011 Paul Zitzewitz Excellence in Pre-College Physics Teaching Award winner is Stacy McCormack, a high school physics teacher at Penn High School in Mishawaka, IN. This award is in recognition of contributions to pre-college physics teaching and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students.

Steve Hope, Principal of Penn High School said, "Stacy is nothing short of a master teacher. She maintains high standards, teaches to every modality through a wide variety of creative assignments, differentiates her instruction to meet individual needs, personalizes instruction, incorporates current technology, and uses current research to guide her teaching. Stacy creates an atmosphere of support, healthy risk taking, and camaraderie in her classes. She has taken technology and integrated that with her best practices to further motivate and engage students."

McCormack has a BS in Secondary Education from Indiana University and earned her MA in Physics Education from Ball State University. She has received numerous awards including Indiana State Teacher of the Year 2011, Penn-Harris-Madison 2010 Teacher of the year, and the Martha Lee and Bill Armstrong Teacher Educator award. She has been involved in the Quarknet Research Experience for Teachers program at the University of Notre Dame and she was selected as one of five teachers in the United States to attend a three-week conference at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) in Geneva, Switzerland during the summer of 2006.

A member of AAPT and teacher of First Year Physics, Integrated Chemistry/Physics, and online adjunct instructor of Astronomy, Physics, and Physical Science classes for Ivy Tech Community College, she is also the author of Teacher Friendly Physics, a book designed to help science teachers plan affordable lab projects.

On her selection for this recognition, McCormack said, "I am extremely honored to accept the Paul W. Zitzewitz Award for Excellence in Pre-College Physics Teaching at the Summer AAPT meeting in Omaha. Thank you so much for recognizing the important role of high school physics educators across the country. It means the world to me to receive this award."

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, March 31, 2011--The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that Brian Jones is the 2011 recipient of the Robert A. Millikan Medal. This award recognizes educators who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics. It will be presented during the AAPT Summer Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska.

Jones has a B.S. in Physics from Case Western Reserve University and a M.S. in Physics from Cornell University. He is best known for his work as Director of the Little Shop of Physics, an outreach program of the Colorado State University Physics Department.When he isn't traveling and teaching with the Little Shop of Physics, Jones is a Physics Instructor at CSU where he also supervises the undergraduate physics laboratories.

The heart of the Little Shop of Physics is its traveling program. Each year, the Little Shop crew visits over 40 different schools, and makes presentations to approximately 20,000 K-12 students. The key element of the Little Shop of Physics traveling program is that it is all hands-on, giving every student the chance to work with all of the experiments. Besides doing school programs, the Little Shop of Physics presents teacher workshops, hosts an annual open house, and produces a television show, Everyday Science, in cooperation with the local Poudre School District.

Regarding his selection for the 2011 Millikan Medal, Jones said, "I am quite honored to be considered in the company as the past recipients, many of who have been wonderful role models to me as I've developed as a physics educator. And I am honored to be part of such a great group of folks in the Little Shop of Physics. Everything I've done has been a true team effort, and I couldn't ask for a better team."

Jones was recognized for his work in a People Magazine profile ("Scientific Roll Model") in May, 2000, and was selected as one of the 75 physics educators to be profiled in the AAPT's 75th anniversary booklet "Celebrating 75 Years of Excellence in Enhancing the Understanding and Appreciation of Physics Through Teaching."

Additional recognition includes: A "Best Teacher" Award from the Colorado State University Alumni Association, February 2000, the Faculty Undergraduate Teaching Award, College of Natural Sciences, 1998, Colorado State University's N. Preston Davis Award for Instructional Innovation in 1998, Outstanding Science Mentor in Physics by Students as Leaders in Science, 2004-2005, and the Excellence in College Science Instruction Award, Colorado Association of Science Teachers, in 2010.

Jones is co-author of College Physics: A Strategic Approach and has co-developed hands-on science activity kits on electricity, pressure, energy, and motion. The Little Shop of Physics Website has more than 200 visitors daily and features simple physics experiments, interactive experiments and resources for K-12 teachers.

A member of AAPT for over 20 years, Brian's involvement in the organization has been extensive and varied. He has been a member of the Committee on Laboratories and an ongoing member of the Committee on Science Education for the Public. As an extension of his committee involvement, Brian has presented numerous workshops at AAPT national meetings. He is an active member of the Colorado-Wyoming section, at one time serving as president.

In his letter of nomination for Jones, former AAPT President, Chris Chiaverina said, "I can think of no individual more worthy of this recognition. His life-long passion for communicating both the content and beauty of physics to diverse audiences is exemplary; his impact on his students, his colleagues, the local, national and international physics teaching community, and the public is extraordinary. Simply stated, Brian Jones is an evangelist for physics."

About the Award
The Robert A Millikan Medal, established in 1962, recognizes teachers who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics. The recipient is asked to make a presentation at the Ceremonial Session of an AAPT Summer Meeting. A monetary award, The Millikan Medal, an Award Certificate, and travel expenses to the meeting are presented to the recipient.

Previous Awardees
2010, Patricia M. Heller, 2009, University of Minnesota
2009, Arthur Eisenkraft, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA
2008, Eric Mazur, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
2007, David R. Sokoloff, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
2006, Art Hobson, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
2005, John S. Rigden, Washington University in St. Louis, MO
2004, Kenneth S. Krane, Oregon State University, Corvallis
http://www.aapt.org/Programs/awards/millikan.cfm

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
College Park, Maryland, United States, January 12, 2011

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) has announced that David R. Sokoloff, Ph.D. has assumed the role of AAPT President. Sokoloff, Professor of Physics, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, will serve as President in 2011, and Past President in 2012.

He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Queens College of the City University of New York, and earned his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1972. Sokoloff taught at Western Illinois University and the University of Michigan-Dearborn before joining the physics faculty of the University of Oregon.

For more than two decades, he has conducted research into students' understanding of physics, and used the results of physics education research to develop active learning laboratories and interactive lecture demonstrations that connect students to the behavior of the physical world. He has also been active sharing these active learning approaches with colleagues.

Since 1999, he has been part of teams presenting active learning workshops in countries around the globe, primarily sponsored by the National Science Foundation, UNESCO, or AAPT. Although these workshops have spanned a full range of introductory physics topics, all were designed to introduce the principles of interactive teaching. He is editor/contributor to Active Learning in Optics and Photonics Training Manual (UNESCO, 2006).

Sokoloff was recently honored with the 2010 Excellence in Physics Education Award from the American Physical Society (with Priscilla Laws and Ronald Thornton). He has also been the recipient of AAPT's Distinguished Service Citation (1997) and Robert A. Millikan Award (2007). An active member of AAPT since 1972, Sokoloff has served as a New Faculty Workshop presenter (2006-present); Co-chair of the Committee on Research in Physics Education (1992-95); PTRA workshop presenter, and given many other national and international presentations.

Sokoloff says of his new role, "This is a critical moment in the history of AAPT, and while the task is daunting, as 2011 President I look forward to working with our Executive Board, AAPT office staff, and our new Executive Officer, Beth Cunningham, to institute changes that will keep the Association vibrant well into the future. This will not happen without the strong support and involvement of our devoted members!"

About AAPT:The AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education --with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics education. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publica¬tions. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209- 3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, please contact:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers
301-209-3306 (office) mgardner@aapt.org

College Park, Maryland, November 19, 2010 - "There is a compelling reason why students should study physics in high school. It is not, however, for the reasons so often given. It is not, for example, to enable students to understand contemporary physics research or to learn to think like physicists, nor is it because our Nation's future depends on our capability in science and engineering or because U.S. students as a whole perform poorly on international comparisons of scientific proficiency. Rather it is," Rutherford argues, "because physics is essential for achieving scientific literacy, a vital component of the general education of all students."

The Oersted Award Talk and Medal presentation will be on Monday, January 10, at 3:30 pm.

Born in 1924, F. James Rutherford earned degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, Stanford University, and Harvard University. In 1949, he began his career in science education as a teacher of general science, algebra, chemistry, and physics in a high school in which the students were mostly children of first-generation Greek and Italian immigrants. In 1951, another school district recruited Rutherford to participate in the creation of its first post-WWII high school.

Rutherford became assistant professor of education at Harvard in 1964, there joining Gerald Holton and Fletcher G. Watson as co-directors of Harvard Project Physics (later simply the Project Physic Course). Over the course of the project, he served as its executive director and senior author and editor, and now as curator of the Project Physics Collection (www.archive.org/details/projectphysicscollection).

From 1971 to 1977, Rutherford was professor of science education and head of science and mathematics education at New York University. There he taught doctoral seminars and a series of graduate courses for education and science majors that included the public understanding of science, the scientific enterprise, history of science, and science and the humanities. He also initiated and directed Project City Science, a federally-funded effort engaging graduate students (education and science) in cooperating with the junior-high science teachers to improve instruction.

Rutherford then served in two federal agencies. In 1977, he was appointed assistant director of the National Science Foundation responsible for all science, mathematics, and engineering education programs, preschool through postdoctoral. When the new U.S. Department of Education was launched, he was appointed assistant secretary with responsibilities for the Office of Education for Research and Improvement, the National Institute of Education, the National Center for Educational Statistics, the Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education, and the federal programs supporting libraries and the development of educational technologies.

Rutherford's last position before retiring was as chief education officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C. At AAAS, he started a variety of projects reasserting the role of the AAAS nationwide science education reform. The most important of these was Project 2061, begun in 1984 as a long-term, comprehensive effort of the scientific community to foster nationwide reform in science, mathematics, and technology education.

In retirement, Rutherford, currently a visiting scholar at UC Berkeley, created the Website Science Education Encore, produced Radioactive Waste and other environmental teaching modules for middle and high school science courses, co-authored Understanding Physics, an undergraduate textbook, with David Cassidy and Gerald Holton, and has continued to serve on national committees.

ABOUT THE AAPT 2011 WINTER MEETING
The 2011 AAPT Winter Meeting takes place January 8-12 at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront Hotel in Jacksonville, FL. This year's theme is "100 Years of Nuclear Physics." The full meeting program, workshop, and directions to the hotel are at: http://www.aapt.org/Conferences/wm2011/.

Journalists are invited to cover the meeting onsite. News releases describing meeting highlights, including this year's plenary lectures featuring several nationally renowned speakers, are available at: http://aapt.org/aboutaapt/PressReleases.cfm.

MEDIA CREDENTIALS
Members of the press can request information and are invited to cover the upcoming meeting onsite. Credentials can be obtained by contacting Marilyn Gardner at mgardner@aapt.org or 301-209-3306.

ABOUT AAPT
AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators -- with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Its mission is to enhance the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, please contact:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers
301-209-3306 (office) mgardner@aapt.org

College Park, Maryland, November 19, 2010 -The Fifth Annual Symposium on Physics Education will address the ways that AAPT, working with its partners, keeps policy makers informed on the views of physics educators and suggests appropriate policy options within their sphere of influence. The symposium will bring together individuals who play pivotal roles in helping to shape policies and who provide information to policy makers. The 2011 symposium will take place January 11 at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront Hotel in Jacksonville, FL.

The symposium, Education Policy: Having an Impact, Improving the Landscape, will be chaired by Noah Finkelstein of the University of Colorado, Boulder. Speakers will be U.S. Congressman Vernon J. Ehlers, Michael Lach, and Dahlia Sokolov.

U.S. Representative Vernon J. Ehlers, Grand Rapids, MI
U.S. Rep. Ehlers (R-MI) was first elected to the 103rd Congress in a special election on Dec. 7, 1993. He joined Congress following a distinguished tenure of service in teaching, scientific research, and public service. He has served on numerous boards and commissions and was elected to the Kent County (Mich.) Board of Commissioners, and the Michigan House and Senate. The first research physicist to serve in Congress, Ehlers has been recognized for his strong work ethic and proven leadership skills in his duties on Capitol Hill. As a member of the 111th Congress, Ehlers serves on three standing House committees. He also co-chairs the STEM Ed Caucus, which is dedicated to improving the nation's K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. He serves on the Science and Technology Committee (previously known as the House Science Committee) and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Ehlers also is a member of the Education and Labor (previously the Education and the Workforce) Committee, where he blends his efforts with the Science Committee on improving math and science education.

Michael Lach, Special Assistant for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Education, U.S. Department of Education
Michael Lach leads science, mathematics, engineering, and technology education efforts at the U. S. Department of Education. Previously, he was Officer of Teaching and Learning for the Chicago Public Schools, overseeing curriculum and instruction in the 600+ schools that comprise the nation's third largest school district. Lach began his professional career teaching high school biology and general science at Alceé Fortier Senior High School in New Orleans in 1990 as a charter member of Teach For America, the national teacher corps. After three years in Louisiana, he joined the national office of Teach For America as Director of Program Design, developing a portfolio based alternative-certification system that was adopted by several states. Returning to the science classroom in 1994 in New York City Public Schools, and then back to Chicago in 1995 to Lake View High School, he was named one of Radio Shack's Top 100 Technology Teachers, earned National Board Certification, and was named Illinois Physics Teacher of the Year. He has served as an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow, advising Congressman Vernon Ehlers on science, technology, and education issues.

Dahlia Sokolov, Research and Science Education Subcommittee, Committee on Science and Technology
Dahlia Sokolov is the staff director for the Subcommittee on Research and Science Education of the House Committee on Science and Technology, where her responsibilities include oversight of the National Science Foundation, STEM education across the federal government, and major interagency research initiatives such as the National Nanotechnology Initiative. Dahlia joined the S&T Committee staff as an American Institute of Physics Congressional fellow in October 2004 and joined the professional staff in July 2005. For the two years prior to joining the Democratic staff, she served on the Energy Subcommittee working on nuclear energy R&D under then-Chairman Sherwood Boehlert's leadership. Before coming to the Hill, Dahlia completed a two-year postdoctoral research fellowship at the National Institutes of Health in the Radiation Oncology Sciences Program. She has a PhD in Bioengineering from the University of Washington and a BS in Engineering Physics from U.C. Berkeley. Her graduate research was on the physics and bioeffects of shock-wave driven cavitation.

ABOUT THE AAPT 2011 WINTER MEETING
The 2011 AAPT Winter Meeting takes place January 8-12 at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront Hotel in Jacksonville, FL. This year's theme is "100 Years of Nuclear Physics." The full meeting program, workshop, and directions to the hotel are at: http://www.aapt.org/Conferences/wm2011/.

Journalists are invited to cover the meeting onsite. News releases describing meeting highlights, including this year's plenary lectures featuring several nationally renowned speakers, are available at: http://aapt.org/aboutaapt/PressReleases.cfm.

MEDIA CREDENTIALS
Members of the press can request information and are invited to cover the upcoming meeting onsite. Credentials can be obtained by contacting Marilyn Gardner at mgardner@aapt.org or 301-209-3306.

ABOUT AAPT
AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators -- with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Its mission is to enhance the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Marilyn Gardner
American Association of Physics Teachers
mgardner@aapt.org
301-209-3306

October 25, 2010. College Park, MD --The American Association of Physics Teachers is seeking a new Editor for the American Journal of Physics to transition into the post by January 2012.

Duties of the Editor
The Editor has overall responsibility for the operation of the Journal under the general supervision of the Publications Committee of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). The Editor is responsible for selecting articles, notes, and letters for publication from those submitted to the Journal. The Editor also coordinates the work of the other journal section editors including book reviews, apparatus and demonstration notes, and physics education research. Most of the routine tasks are presently carried out by editorial software which logs in new and revised submissions, sends reminders to reviewers, logs in reviews, maintains a database of correspondence with the journal, and provides a web based platform allowing the Editor and section editors if they choose to carry out the work of the journal from any location. Regular activities of the editor include submission to the AAPT for approval an annual budget for the editorial work; monitoring expenditures under the budget; electronically sending submitted papers out for review; corresponding with authors concerning reviewed papers; making publication decisions; editing papers to be accepted (an important and large part of the job); preparing accepted manuscripts for copy editing and production; monitoring the publication process; and assisting in the preparation of the annual index. The nature of the sharing of this work with the associate editor will be determined by the editor and has varied in the past. Publication of the Journal is done through a service provided to AAPT by a contract with the American Institute of Physics (AIP).

In addition to supervising these tasks, the Editor solicits some papers to be written, reviews the editorial policy of the Journal in consultation with the Editorial Advisory Board, writes editorials and solicits "guest comments," reports twice a year to the AAPT Publications Committee, nominates members of the Editorial Advisory Board for appointment by the AAPT Executive Board, and is at the center of every editorial emergency. The Editor is a member of the AAPT Publications Committee, and an ex officio, nonvoting member of the AAPT Executive Board.

More information can be found in the Editorial in the November 2010 issue of AJP.

Arrangements
The Editor's responsibilities constitute professional activities requiring approximately one-half of the Editor's time on a 12-month basis, but the specific time commitment and personal financial arrangement will be negotiated between the prospective Editor, the Editor's host institution and AAPT. In the past, host institutions have provided some or all of the following: released time for the Editor and Associate Editor(s), part or all of the salary for the released time, office space for the editorial staff without cost, disbursement of funds at the direction of the Editor, payroll services for the office staff, and billing of AAPT periodically for these expenses, without overhead.

The arrangements for the initial appointment are flexible. One possibility is to begin as an Associate Editor for a time period of up to one year, and then assume full responsibility as Editor after that. Editorial appointments are normally for 3 years. It is AAPT policy to conduct periodic reviews of each of its editorial functions.

The Search Committee is primarily interested in the qualifications of candidates, and thus present or past arrangements should not discourage anyone from applying.
Criteria of selection

Candidates will be judged on their interest and accomplishments in physics teaching, familiarity with the various fields of physics, demonstrated ability to use the written word, acquaintance with the Journal, and administrative ability. The Search Committee will review all applications and submit a recommendation to the AAPT Executive Board for approval.

Application procedure
The Search Committee welcomes inquiries from those interested in the Editor's position, as well as nominations of others. These should be directed to the Chair of the Search Committee (contact information below). Applications should include: (1) a cover letter explaining the candidate's views on the role of the American Journal of Physics and how it might be improved to serve the physics community better; (2) a curriculum vitae; (3) a letter of recommendation from the candidate's department chair (or equivalent), indicating, among other things, the willingness of the department and institution to support the presence of the AJP editorial office; and (4) two additional letters of recommendation. Applications should be complete by February 1, 2011 but will be accepted until the position is filled. Address correspondence to John Mallinckrodt, ajm@csupomona.edu.

Search Committee Members

* John Mallinckrodt, California State University, Pomona
* Joseph Serene, APS Treasurer/Publisher
* Karen Cummings, Southern Connecticut State University
* Marie Plumb, AAPT TYC At-Large Representative
* Steven Iona, AAPT Secretary, Chair of AAPT Publications Committee
* Jan Tobochnik, AJP Editor, ex officio, non-voting
* Beth Cunningham, AAPT Executive Officer, ex officio, non-voting

About AAPT
AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For Immediate Release

College Park, MD September 30, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers has announced the selection of Dwain Desbien, a member of the physics faculty Estrella Mountain Community College, as a recipient of the AAPT Distinguished Service Citation. These prestigious awards are presented to AAPT members in recognition of their exceptional contributions to AAPT at the national, sectional or local level.

Desbien earned his B.A. in Physics from Grinnell College in 1990, M.S. in Physics from University of Kansas in 1993, and Ph.D. in Physics education from Arizona State University in 2002. His work has been published in The Physics Teacher and he has served as a peer reviewer for this journal and other physics journals.

His work and teaching in physics education is guided by the modeling theory of physics. He is active in running workshops that teach the modeling method. Desbien is the Co PI on the ATE Project for Physics Faculty (an NFS funded professional development for High School and Two Year College Faculty). He has presented many workshops for the PTRAs, high school, two-year college, and university groups, both regionally and nationally. Additionally, he has led a number of workshops at national AAPT meetings.

Desbien has served on the Executive Board of the AAPT as the Two Year College Member-at-Large. In addition he has served on the Nominating Committee, the Two Year College Committee, and currently is on the Undergraduate Education Committee of the AAPT. He also, is currently serving on the 5-year Review Committee for The Physics Teacher. At the local level, he has been an active leader of the Arizona Section of AAPT for many years, including a term as the section's President.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

For Immediate Release

College Park, MD September 22, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers has announced the selection of Gordon Ramsey, a professor of physics at Loyola University Chicago, as a recipient of the AAPT Distinguished Service Citation. These prestigious awards are presented to AAPT members in recognition of their exceptional contributions to AAPT at the national, sectional or local level.

Ramsey received a BA in physics and mathematics from Southern Illinois University and MS and PhD degrees in physics from Illinois Institute of Technology. He is a resident scientist at Argonne National Laboratory, doing theoretical research in high-energy physics.

Ramsey has been active in the Chicago and Illinois sections and has served on AAPT International and Computers Area Committees. When AAPT met in Chicago for the 2009 Winter Meeting, Ramsey served on the organizing committee for the event. He has coordinated summer workshops for high school teachers, middle school teachers, and high school students. Ramsey, together with Loyola collaborators, performs research in physics education research and science anxiety. He has mentored many undergraduate research projects.

He recently served on the AAPT Executive Board as Member-at-Large Representing the University Community, and is presently the AAPT representative to the U.S. Liaison Committee of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physicists. In this capacity he works closely with the International Commission on Physics Education and AAPT to promote communication between physics teachers internationally.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

For Immediate Release

College Park, MD September 30, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers has announced the selection of Jane Bray Nelson as a recipient of the AAPT Distinguished Service Citation. These prestigious awards are presented to AAPT members in recognition of their exceptional contributions to AAPT at the national, sectional or local level.

Nelson received a BS in chemistry from Florida State University and MS in Science Teaching from Memphis State University. She has taught Advanced Placement Chemistry, Advanced Placement Physics, Physical Science, Biology, Geometry, or Anatomy-Physiology. From 1998 - 2005 Nelson was Teacher-Director of University High School at Research Park, a Science and Technology magnet high school in Orange County Florida. She was inducted into the National Teachers Hall of Fame in 2002.

She has been active in AAPT since 1987, serving as a member of Physics in High School and Minorities in Physics committees. Additionally, Nelson served as President of the Florida Section of AAPT from 2008 - 2010, and as Secretary-Treasurer of Florida Section from 1992 to 2007. Since 1987 Jane has been a National Physics Teacher Resource Agent. She has lead nearly 100 PTRA workshops impacting more than 800 teachers, and has brought $16,414 to the PTRA continuation fund.

During National PTRA Leadership Institutes, Jane Nelson has lead workshops for her fellow PTRAs on:

* 2010 - Portland (Teaching about Magnets & Magnetism & Teaching about Energy)
* 2008 - Edmonton (Momentum Supplement)
* 2007 - Greensboro (Force Supplement & Teaching about Waves in One-Dimensional)
* 2006 - Syracuse (Teaching about Geometric Optics)

She has authored or co-authored several PTRA manuals including:

* "Role of the Laboratory in Introductory Physics" with Jim Nelson
* "Teaching about Geometric Optics" with Jim Nelson
* "Role of the Ripple Tank in Introductory Physics"
* "Teaching about One-dimensional Waves" with Jan Mader
* "Teaching about Kinematics," with Jim Nelson
* "Teaching about Magnets and Magnetism AAPT/PTRA Resource Guide

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, September 27, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that Kathryn Moler, Ph.D., has been selected to receive The Richtmyer Memorial Award. Moler, Associate Professor of Applied Physics and of Physics at Stanford University, received the Award for outstanding contributions to physics and effectively communicating those contributions to physics educators.

The Richtmyer Award will be presented to Dr. Moler at a Ceremonial Session of the AAPT Winter Meeting at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront Hotel in Jacksonville, Florida, on Tuesday, January 11, 2011. Following the presentation, Dr. Moler will deliver a keynote address.

Alex Dickison, Chairman, AAPT Awards Committee, said, "Kathryn Moler is a perfect fit for the Richtmyer Award. She is a top notch, excellent physicist who also has the ability to explain her work to the public."

Moler is a graduate of Stanford University where she earned both her bachelor's degree and her Ph.D. in Physics (in 1988 and 1995 respectively). She is currently Associate Professor of Applied Physics and Physics, Stanford University, a faculty member of the Geballe Laboratory for Advanced Materials, Deputy Director of the DOE-support Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Science, and Director of the Center for Probing the Nanoscale, an NSF NSEC.C. In her position, Moler fabricates microscopic sensors and uses them to study the magnetic behavior of superconductors. Like most science professors, her time is divided among preparing lectures, writing scientific papers, traveling, and working in the lab.

She has received many prestigious awards including the Carrington Award for Excellence in Research and Teaching 1988, Stanford Centennial Teaching Assistant 1990, William L. McMillan Award for "outstanding contributions in condensed matter physics" 1999, Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers 2000-2005, the National Science Foundation Career Award (1999-2003) and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation Fellowship for Science and Engineering from 2001-2006.

Regarding the Richtmyer Award, Mohler stated, "It makes me feel humble when I think about all of the physics educators across the country, and how hard they are working to teach people to appreciate science. It's an honor to receive the Richtmyer Award and to come to the AAPT meeting in this context."

About the Award
The Richtmyer Memorial Award is given annually in memory of Floyd K. Richtmyer, distinguished physicist, teacher, and administrator. Professor Richtmyer was one of the founders of AAPT and served as its president. As a teacher, author, research worker, and dean, he was the guide for many young physicists who became leaders of American science and has had a wide influence on the development of physics in the United States. The award has been given annually since 1941 to a person who has made outstanding contributions to physics and effectively communicated those contributions to physics educators.

The previous recipients of the Richtmyer Award include Vera Rubin, Alex Filippenko, Arthur H. Compton, Enrico Fermi, Philip Morrison, and Steven Chu. The complete list of winners can be found at http://www.aapt.org/Programs/awards/richtmyer.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education --with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, September 17, 2010--From its beginning in California Public Schools through the illustrious conclusion with AAAS, the career of F. James Rutherford, spanning half a century, has had an outstanding, widespread, and lasting impact on the teaching of physics. The Oersted Medal, presented by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) recognizes these lifetime achievements by naming Ruthord as the 2011 recipient of the Medal.

The Oersted Medal will be presented to Dr. Rutherford at a Ceremonial Session of the AAPT Winter Meeting at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront Hotel in Jacksonville, Florida, on Tuesday, January 11, 2011. Following the presentation, Dr. Rutherford will deliver a keynote address titled, "The Particle Enigma, High School Physics, and the Search for Science Literacy."

"James Rutherford's career exemplifies the outstanding, widespread, and lasting impact on the teaching of physics for which the Oersted Medal was created. It is an honor to recognize his legacy," stated Warren Hein, AAPT's Executive Officer.

Rutherford was educated in the California public schools and earned degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, Stanford University, and Harvard University. In the last six months of WWII he served as a radar officer on an aircraft carrier in the Pacific. His MA thesis at Stanford, just four years after Hiroshima, was on the status of the teaching of atomic energy in California high schools.

In 1949, he began his career in science education as a teacher of general science, algebra, chemistry, and physics in a high school in which the students were mostly children of first-generation Greek and Italian immigrants. In 1951, he was recruited to participate in the creation of another district's first post-WWII high school. He served as chair of the curriculum committee, consulted with the architects in the design of the science facilities, and created and taught non-traditional chemistry and physics courses. In developing the school, he drew heavily on Gerald Holton's groundbreaking undergraduate textbook, Introduction to Concepts and Theories in Physical Science, leading to collaboration with Holton.

Rutherford became assistant professor of education at Harvard in 1964, joining Holton and Fletcher G. Watson as co-directors of the Harvard Project Physics. Over the course of the project, he served as its executive director, senior author and editor, and is currently curator of the Project Physics Collection (www.archive.org/details/projectphysicscollection).

The American Association of Physics Teachers recognized Rutherford with a Distinguished Service Citation in 1971 for his rich record of achievement on the Panel on the Preparation of Physics Teachers of the Commission on College Physics (CCP), as a member of the joint committee of CCP and AAPT, for his work as chairman of the NSTA Commission on Professional Standards and Practices, for his service to USESCO, and for his contributions as a member of the faculty of the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

From 1971 to 1977, Rutherford was professor of science education and head of science and mathematics education at New York University. He also initiated and directed Project City Science, a federally funded effort engaging graduate students (education and science) in cooperating with junior high science teachers to improve instruction.

In 1977, Rutherford was appointed assistant director of the National Science Foundation responsible for all science, mathematics, and engineering education programs, preschool through postdoctoral. When the U.S. Department of Education was established as a cabinet level agency in 1981, he was appointed assistant secretary with responsibilities for the Office of Education for Research and Improvement, the National Institute of Education, the National Center for Educational Statistics, the Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education, and the federal programs supporting libraries and the development of educational technologies.

Rutherford concluded his professional career as chief education officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Washington, D.C. At AAAS, he started a variety of projects reasserting the organization's leadership role in nationwide science education reform. The most important of these was Project 2061, begun in 1984 as a long-term, comprehensive effort of the scientific community to foster nationwide reform in science, mathematics, and technology education. As director during its first decade, he was responsible for a series of landmark publications--"intellectual reform tools"--the most influential being Science for All Americans, Benchmarks for Science Literacy, and Atlas of Science Literacy. The last of his Project 2061 books, written in 2001 with the late Andrew Ahlgren, was Designs for Science Literacy.

In retirement, Rutherford, currently a visiting scholar at UC Berkeley, created the website Science Education Encore, produced environmental teaching modules for middle and high school science courses, including Radioactive Waste, and co-authored Understanding Physics, an undergraduate textbook, with David Cassidy and Gerald Holton, and has continued to serve on national committees. He has summarized his views on reform in "The 2005 Brandwein Lecture: Is Our Past Our Future? Thoughts on the Next 50 Years of Science Education Reform in the Light of Judgments on the Past 50 Years," Journal of Science Education and Technology.

Alex Dickison, Awards Committee Chair and Past President, noted, "It will be an honor to give this award to Jim Rutherford. He is a giant in the field of physics education. His work has been significant and will impact physics education for years to come."

Regarding the award, Rutherford stated, "When I first taught high school physics in 1949, I could not have imagined that one day I would be so honored for my contributions to physics education in the years to follow. Nevertheless, my high school teaching years provided a perspective that guided my work in the university, government, and scientific association years that followed. While I achieved less than I would have liked, I am deeply honored that my peers believe I accomplished enough to be worthy of the prestigious Oersted Medal."

About the Award
The Oersted Medal is named for Hans Christian Oersted (1777-1851), a Danish physicist who, in the course of creating a demonstration for teaching his class, discovered that electric currents caused a magnetic field. This was a crucial step in establishing the theory of electromagnetism so important in building modern technology and modern physics. The award was established by AAPT in 1936 and is given annually to a person who has had outstanding, widespread, and lasting impact on the teaching of physics.

Previous Oersted awardees are George F. Smoot, Mildred S. Dresselhau, Carl Sagan, Lillian McDermott, Hans Bethe, and Richard Feynman. The complete list of winners can be found at http://www.aapt.org/Programs/awards/oersted.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education --with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Marilyn Gardner
American Association of Physics Teachers
mgardner@aapt.org
301-209-3306

July 26, 2010

College Park, MD -- The US top physics students are bringing home 1 gold medal, 2 silver medals, and 2 bronze medals from the 41st International Physics Olympiad, held this year from July 17 to 25 in Zagreb, Croatia.

The gold medal winner: Daniel Li, a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Alexandria, VA.

The silver medal winners: Eric Spieglan, a sophomore at Naperville North High School, Naperville, IL and Anand Oza, a senior at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, MD.

The bronze medal winners: Jenny Lu, a senior at Pomperaug High School in Southbury, CT and David Field, of Andover, MA, a senior at the Phillips Andover Academy in Andover, MA.

The US Physics Team tied with Korea for 11th place. China, Taiwan, and Thailand tied for 1st place with five gold medals each.

The U.S. Physics Olympiad Program was started in 1986 by AAPT to promote and demonstrate academic excellence. It continues to be supported as a joint initiative between AAPT, AIP, and the member societies of the American Institute for Physics: Acoustical Society of America, American Association of Physicists in Medicine, American Astronomical Society, American Crystallographic Society, American Geophysical Union, American Physical Society, AVS, Optical Society America, and the Society of Rheology. . The coaches for the 2010 U.S. Physics team are: Paul Stanley, Academic Director/Senior Coach, Warren Turner, Senior Coach/Lab Coach, Andrew Lin, and David Fallest.

The 41st IPhO is being organized by the Croatian Physical Society and the University of Zagreb as the co-organizer, under the financial support of the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports of the Republic of Croatia and the City of Zagreb. The nine-day international competition brought together The IPhO this year, with about 410 participating pre-university students from more than 82 nations.

MORE ON THE WEB
• Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/index.cfm
• History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/program.cfm
• The official website of the International Physics Olympiad: http://ipho2010.hfd.hr/
• Screening exams the students had to pass to place on the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.compadre.org/psrc/evals/olympiad.cfm.

Funding for the U.S. Physics Team is supported through donations from concerned individuals and organizations. Contributions are entirely used to support the selection, training, and travel of the team. Donations to the U.S. Physics Team are accepted at www.aapt.org/physicsteam/donate.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

19 JULY 2010--The AAPT Executive Board announced that Dr. Beth Cunningham will become the next Executive Officer of AAPT. She will assume her duties in that office on January1, 2011 but will start her work in the AAPT office in College Park on October 1, 2010, overlapping for three months with Dr. Warren Hein, who is retiring as AAPT's Executive Officer on December 31, 2010. This overlap will facilitate a period of orientation to AAPT and give Dr. Cunningham the opportunity to become further acquainted with AAPT's members, staff, and activities before she officially assumes the position of Executive Officer.

Dr. Cunningham's career has provided her with admirable preparation to serve as AAPT's next Executive Officer. She pursued her B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. degrees, all with majors in physics, at Kent State University. Her Ph.D. thesis focused on biological liquid crystals. After a two-year post-doctoral appointment at the Hormel Institute of the University of Minnesota, she taught physics for one year at Gettysburg College before moving to Bucknell University. There she taught physics for seventeen years, advanced through the academic ranks to full professor and, during the last six of those years, served as Associate Dean of the Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences. In 2006, she assumed her present position as Provost, Dean of the Faculty, and Professor of Physics at Illinois Wesleyan University.

A skilled teacher and researcher, Dr. Cunningham has taught both introductory and advanced lecture and laboratory courses in physics, the latter particularly in condensed matter, thermodynamics, and statistical mechanics. She has taught outreach courses for non-science majors and one-week continuing education courses for middle school and high school teachers. While at Bucknell, she played a major role in stimulating the growth of opportunities for physics majors to engage in undergraduate research and was herself the faculty mentor for more than 20 undergraduate research students.

To quote from Dr. Cunningham's letter of application, "All of [my] positions have reinforced my desire to be instrumental in leading and providing strategic direction in an organization devoted to improving student learning and developing physics educators. I also believe now is the perfect time for me to use my experiences to provide AAPT with leadership as it continues to focus on improving physics education. I welcome the opportunity to be in a position that goes back to my roots as a scientist and allows me to be more connected with fellow physicists."

Dr. Cunningham's experiences as a teacher, scholar, and administrator have acquainted her not only with the challenges of the classroom but also with the challenges of administering large organizations and managing budgets in a variety of institutional contexts and economic climates. She is well acquainted with and well known within the professional scientific community and with organizations like the American Physical Society (APS), Project Kaleidoscope (PKAL), and the Council on Undergraduate Research that serve that community. She has worked collaboratively on a wide variety of projects and programs. She has been uncommonly successful in these varied endeavors. She is enthusiastic and energetic, and she communicates a passion for physics, for AAPT, and for working with AAPT for the advancement of excellence in physics education.

The full announcement is available at http://www.aapt.org/aboutaapt/Beth-Cunningham-New-EO-Announcement.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, please contact:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers
office: 301-209-3306
mgardner@aapt.org

College Park, Maryland, United States, July 15, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers has announced the 25th Anniversary Celebration of Physics Teacher Resource Agents (PTRA) on Wednesday, July 21 at 11:15 am during their 2010 Summer Meeting in Portland, Oregon.

The speakers will discuss the origin of the idea, its implementation, its development over 25 years, and its present and future plans. Speakers include George A. Amann, James Nelson, Jan Mader, John Roeder, John Layman, Karen Jo Matsler, Lawrence Bader, Lila Adair, and Robert Beck Clark.

PTRA is one of the more innovative programs to be developed by a science professional organization. The idea that physics teachers could be engaged to meet together for common learning experiences and then, individually, go out into the community, to assume leadership roles, to network with other physics teachers, and be a resource and an educational assistant was a unique idea in the beginning.

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) initiated the Physics Teaching Resource Agents (PTRA) Program in 1985--with support from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the American Physical Society (APS)--with the mission of improving the teaching and learning of physics and physical science for all teachers and students in the United States. Twenty-five years later it is the leading in-service physics professional development program. Serving middle school and high school teachers, it provides professional development on physics content, teaching techniques based on research in physics education, and integration of technology into curriculum.

The program maintains a nationwide cadre of more than 150 accomplished high school teacher-leaders who are trained and continually involved in professional development. These teacher-leaders are certified as PTRAs by AAPT to lead workshops throughout the country. They have participated in national leadership institutes where they have developed their skills on a wide range of topics--to assist their fellow teachers. The program has involved more than 30 universities and college physics departments partnering to provide the summer institutes and follow-up sessions.

Potential national PTRAs are selected based on physics content mastery, creativity, successful teaching experience, familiarity with physics education research, and the capacity for professional leadership. The opportunity for continuity and expansion of training is offered each year at an intense summer institute at which AAPT/PTRA commissioned workshops are developed. What emerges, then, are teachers from within urban districts or rural schools who go out to meet the specific needs of teachers in their local area.

Learn more about PTRA at http://www.aapt.org/Programs/projects/PTRA/index.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, please contact:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers
office: 301-209-3306 Email: mgardner@aapt.org

College Park, Maryland, United States, July 14, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers has announced that its 2010 Summer Meeting in Portland, Oregon, will feature some of the nation's top physics educators. The meeting will take place on July 17-21. Plenary sessions will celebrate 50 Years of the Laser, the Millikan Medal and Klopsteg Awardees, and awards for teaching as well as the AIP Children's Science Writing Award.

Monday, July 19
Celebrating 50 Years of the Laser: APS/DLS Symposium on Laser Physics
10:30 a.m.-12 p.m.

Breasts and Brains, Similarities and Differences: Using Novel Physics to Enhance Clinical Molecular Imaging
Warren S. Warren, Duke University
Molecular imaging--the use of targeted molecular and chemical signatures to visualizing function instead of just structure--is one of the most rapidly growing fields in biomedical science. Applications range from molecular medicine, to early and improved disease diagnosis, to reducing health-care costs. The major techniques in common use (positron emission tomography, CT, magnetic resonance imaging, optical imaging) often have quite complementary strengths and applications. This presentation will give an overview of the physical principles behind these methods, then focus on optical imaging--specifically on approaches that exploit optical nonlinearity to enable microscopic resolution without excision.

Femtosecond Optical Frequency Combs
Steven T. Cundiff, NIST and University of Colorado
The ability to detect the carrier-envelope phase evolution of the pulse train emitted by a mode-locked laser has led to the field of femtosecond combs. Femtosecond combs have solved the problem of optical frequency metrology, enabled optical atomic clocks and been essential to the development of attosecond technology. This address will give an introduction to the basic concepts of femtosecond combs and include a discussion their applications, both current and future possibilities.

Lasers and the Eye
3:20-4:20 p.m.
Vasudevan (Vengu) Lakshminarayanan, University of Waterloo
We celebrate the 50th anniversary of the laser which now has a huge range of applications, from consumer electronics to optical metrology. One of the very first applications of the laser was in biomedicine--namely photocoagulation process to weld a detached retina back into place in the eye. This talk will feature a discussion of laser applications in ophthalmology and deal with laser-tissue interaction, laser safety and more recent work on photorefractive procedures, such as LASIK as well as some recent work on predicting vision from measurement of wavefront aberrations and its use in predicting post-operative vision following photorefractive procedures.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010
10:30 a.m.-11:15 a.m.
Millikan Medal Address
Guiding the Future: Developing Research-based Physics Standards
Patricia Heller, Associate Professor of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Minnesota and a founding member of the Physics Education Research (PER) Group.

Almost two decades after the American Association for the Advancement of Science's "Benchmarks for Science Literacy" and the National Academies' "National Science Education Standards" set in motion attempts to systematize science standards in K-12 education, there is a growing realization at both the state and national level that those standards need to be revised to be based more firmly on learning research. Physics educators need to be heard on what physics concepts and related skills are truly essential for student success in higher education and in the workplace. These concepts and skills then would be linked to the necessary supporting knowledge that can appropriately be learned at earlier points in a student's K-12 education. This address frames the task by addressing important questions about developing K-12 physics standards for college success.

11:15-11:45 a.m.
Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Award
Stumbling on a Tightrope
William P. Hogan, Professor of Physics at Joliet Junior College, Joliet, IL.

This address will be a discussion of the issues, struggles, and the spectacular mistakes made along the way to finding what works to achieve high student performance and positive teacher evaluations.

11:45-12:15 a.m.
Excellence in Pre-college Physics Teaching Award
Who's In??
Diane Riendeau, physics teacher, Deerfield High School, Deerfield, IL

Mentoring helps shape all phases of a teaching career. Being a mentor is a vital role we should all play during our time as physics teachers but being a mentee is equally important. This address will challenge your beliefs on the importance and benefits of mentoring relationship at ALL times in your career.

Wednesday, July 21
8:30-9:40 a.m.

Klopsteg Award Address
Science and Science Fiction
Robert Scherrer, Department of Physics and Astronomy Chair, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN.

As a practicing physicist who has written science fiction, Scherrer will explore the similarities and differences between the process of writing science fiction and the process of "producing" science, specifically theoretical physics. What are the ground rules for introducing unproven new ideas in science fiction, and how do they differ from the corresponding rules in physics? How predictive is science fiction? (For that matter, how predictive is theoretical physics?) While science fiction has been dubbed "the literature of ideas," there are crucial differences between the role that ideas play in science fiction versus their role in science, as well as differences in the actual way in which ideas are presented. Finally, Scherrer will examine whether a background as a research scientist provides any advantage in writing science fiction, or whether it can actually be a hindrance at times.

Key Web Sites

* Main meeting site: http://www.aapt.org/Conferences/sm2010/
* AAPT abstracts: http://www.aapt.org/Conferences/sm2010/program.cfm
* Hotel: http://www1.hilton.com/en_US/hi/hotel/PDXPHHH-Hilton-Portland-Executive-Tower-Oregon/index.do

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

More Information for Journalists
The 2010 Summer Meeting of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) takes place from July 18-24 in Portland, Oregon.
The meeting hotel is the Hilton Portland and Executive Tower, which is located at 921 Southwest 6th Avenue, Portland, OR 97204.

Registering as a Journalist
Science writers intending to go to the meeting should contact Marilyn Gardner (mgardner@aapt.org) or 301-209-3306 about free registration. Journalists are encouraged to register in advance. Press badges can be picked up at the meeting registration desk and will allow you to attend all scientific sessions and exhibits.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, please contact:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers
office: 301-209-3306,
mgardner@aapt.org

College Park, MD June 28, 2010 -Governor, Theodore R. Kulongoski declared in a signed proclamation today that the upcoming week of July 18-24, 2010 will be "Physics Education Week" in Oregon.

In making his proclamation, Kulongoski recognizes the importance of physics to the global economy and calls upon "...all the residents of this great state to join me encouraging others to learn more about physics education."

The proclamation also specifically recognizes the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) for supporting the development of effective teaching resources and enrichment programs.

More than 1,000 physics educators will gather in Portland, Oregon that week for the AAPT 2010 Summer Meeting. Journalists interested in attending the meeting, which runs through Tuesday, can find registration information below.

Monday, July 19 is "Laser Day" at the meeting with special sessions dedicated to a study of some ways this marvelous tool improves our lives. The APS/DLS Symposium on Laser Physics, will feature addresses by Duke University's Warren Warren, "Breasts and Brains, Similarities and Differences: Using Novel Physics to Enhance Clinical Molecular Imaging," and by Steven T. Cundiff of NIST and the University of Colorado, "Femtosecond Optical Frequency Combs." Laser Day, will also feature an address by Vasu Devan Lakshminarayanan, University of Waterloo, on Lasers and the Eye.

MORE INFORMATION FOR JOURNALISTS

The 2010 Summer Meeting of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) takes place from July 18-24 in Portland, Oregon.
The meeting hotel is the Hilton Portland and Executive Tower, which is located at 921 Southwest 6th Avenue, Portland, OR 97204.

KEY WEB SITES

• Main meeting site: http://www.aapt.org/Conferences/sm2010/
• AAPT abstracts: http://www.aapt.org/Conferences/sm2010/program.cfm
• Hotel: http://www1.hilton.com/en_US/hi/hotel/PDXPHHH-Hilton-Portland-Executive-Tower-Oregon/index.do

REGISTERING AS A JOURNALIST

Science writers intending to go to the meeting should contact Marilyn Gardner (mgardner@aapt.org) or 301-209-3306 about free registration. Journalists are encouraged to register in advance. Press badges can be picked up at the meeting registration desk and will allow you to attend all scientific sessions and exhibits

May 31, 2010, College Park, MD -- Five students have been selected to represent the U.S. Physics Team as the 2010 Traveling Team at the 41st International Physics Olympiad, a competition among high-school physics students, to be held in Zagreb, Croatia, from July 17 to 25.
The traveling team members are:

Jenny Lu, a senior at Pomperaug High School in Southbury, CT; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/team.cfm?id=824&year=2010
Daniel Li, a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Alexandria, VA; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/team.cfm?id=819&year=2010
David Field, of Andover, MA, a senior at the Phillips Andover Academy in Andover, MA; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/team.cfm?id=818&year=2010
Anand Oza, a senior at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, MD; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/team.cfm?id=825&year=2010
Eric Spieglan, a sophomore at Naperville North High School, Naperville, IL; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/team.cfm?id=830&year=2010

"All twenty students who participated in the training camp are champions. They have tested themselves with the best of their peers for ten days and have proven to be an exceptional group of young people," said Warren Hein, Executive Officer of the American Association of Physics Teachers, which sponsors the team. "We are proud of them all and are confident that the five Traveling Team members will continue the tradition of success for the United States as they represent the U.S. Physics Team in Zagreb."

The students attended a rigorous training camp at the University of Maryland, where, through classes, labs and special lectures, they were coached on difficult physics concepts, then took a series of exams. They also made a trip to nearby Washington, DC to visit their congressional representatives and senators, and to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Chantilly, VA. The coaches for the 2010 U.S. Physics team are: Paul Stanley, Academic Director/Senior Coach, Warren Turner, Senior Coach/Lab Coach, Andrew Lin, Jia Jia Dong, Qui Zi Li, and David Fallest.

Last year, the team brought home one silver medal and four gold medals. David Field, a returning team member, brought home a silver medal for the 2009 Team.

The U.S. Physics Olympiad Program was started in 1986 by AAPT to promote and demonstrate academic excellence. It continues to be supported as a joint initiative between AAPT, AIP, and the member societies of the American Institute for Physics: Acoustical Society of America, American Association of Physicists in Medicine, American Astronomical Society, American Crystallographic Society, American Geophysical Union, American Physical Society, AVS - Science and Technology of Materials, Interfaces, and Processing, Optical Society America, and the Society of Rheology.

The 41st IPhO is being organized by the Croatian Physical Society and the University of Zagreb as the co-organizer, under the financial support of the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports of the Republic of Croatia and the City of Zagreb. The nine-day international competition brings together pre-university students from more than 80 nations.

LIST OF EVENTS:
May 21-31 -- Physics Team students visit University of Maryland for their intensive training camp.
May 31 -- Five students chosen as the Traveling Team to represent the US Team at the international competition.
July 17 -- Traveling Team arrives in Zagreb for the international competition.
July 25 -- The International Olympiad's final awards given.

MORE ON THE WEB
• Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/index.cfm
• History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/program.cfm
• The official website of the International Physics Olympiad: http://ipho2010.hfd.hr/
• Screening exams the students took to place on the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.compadre.org/psrc/evals/olympiad.cfm

CONTACT:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers, mgardner@aapt.org, 301-209-3306

For Immediate Release

College Park, MD, May 24, 2010--They came from Iowa and Ohio, Oregon and Massachusetts. Five came from California, two from New Jersey, and one from Connecticut. Students from the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic, the Midwest, the Southwest, and the Pacific coast are beginning ten days of rigorous academic training, interactive learning, and friendship building as they prepare to test themselves on the world stage.

They are the top twenty high school physics students in the United States, selected through an examination process that included such upper level skills as the Lagrangian Formula of Mechanics, Differential Calculus for Electricity and Magnetism, and Complex Variables, skills usually learned at the end of the undergraduate experience.

They were welcomed to the University of Maryland, College Park campus by AAPT Executive Officer, Warren Hein and AIP Executive Director, Fred Dylla. Officers and staff from AAPT, AIP, APS, and the University of Maryland were on hand for the camp kick off.

Meet the U.S. Physics team at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/team.cfm. Get to know their coaches, Paul Stanley, Academic Director; Warren Turner, Senior Lab Coach; Qui Zi Li, Assistant Lab Coach; and Academic Coaches, Jia Jia Dong, David Fallest, and Andrew Linn at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010/coaches.cfm.

In addition to learning a year of physics in two weeks, the team members will visit their congressional representatives on Capitol Hill, tour the National Air and Space Museum, and visit the Albert Einstein statue at the National Academy of Science. At the end of the camp, they will be tested again and five of the team members will be selected to travel to Zagreb, Croatia, representing the United States in the International Physics Olympiad, July 17 - 25, 2010.

Funding for the U.S. Physics Team is supported through donations from concerned individuals and organizations. Contributions are entirely used to support the selection, training, and travel of the team. Donations to the U.S. Physics Team are accepted at www.aapt.org/physicsteam/donate.cfm.

The US Physics Olympiad Program is a joint initiative of AAPT in partnership with the member societies of the American Institute for Physics (AIP): Acoustical Society of America, American Association of Physicists in Medicine, American Astronomical Society, American Crystallographic Society, American Geophysical Union, American Physical Society, AVS, Optical Society America, and the Society of Rheology.

MORE ON THE WEB
Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010
History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/Contests/olympiad.cfm
The official website of the 2010 International Physics Olympiad: http://ipho2010.hfd.hr/

About AAPT
The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides organizational and sponsorship support to the U.S. Physics Team in partnership with the American Institute for Physics and its member societies (http://www.aip.org/aip/societies.html).

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, MD April 22, 2010-- According to the Kansas State University website, "Sanjay Rebello does not just teach his students -- he wants to get into their minds."

This associate professor of physics focuses his research on physics education.
Rebello has been an active member of AAPT since 1995. He is currently serving on the Committee Graduate Education in Physics, and has served on the Committee on Educational Technologies. He hosted the 2003 Arkansas-Oklahoma-Kansas (AOK) section meeting at Kansas State University and is always working on some project that leads to better physics education. He organized the 2004 PER Conference at the National AAPT Summer meeting.

An active member of the AOK Section, Rebello brings his graduate students to section meetings where they always present the latest physics education research that the Kansas State University PER group is conducting. He is the kind of "champion" that a local AAPT section needs to maintain its presence in the greater organization. Without him, the AAPT AOK Section might be lost among the wind blown prairies.

Rebello promotes good educational practices in the classroom and he practices what he preaches. His students rave at his ability to assist them in understanding physics at both a conceptual level and at even greater depths. Many of his graduate students have continued the tradition of physics education as they have moved on to their own teaching careers, giving talks at the various AAPT meetings around the nation. This is probably the most significant and essential part of what Sanjay Rebello has meant to AAPT.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, MD April 22, 2010--"Always a physics teacher," is a phrase that aptly describes Chris Chiaverina whether he's teaching a physics class at New Trier High School, or shopping for physics toys at Wal-Mart, or pushing a Nobel laureate down the hall on an air-supported platform, or writing a physics textbook, or sharing a new teaching idea with his colleagues at Physics Northwest, or attending an AAPT Executive Board meeting, or helping one of 700 physics students at New Trier make a hologram. (The Physics Teacher, February 2002)

Regarding his selection for this honor, he says, "I am honored to receive this citation. I'm proud to say that I have been a member of AAPT for over 35 years. My association with this wonderful organization has profoundly affected my professional and personal life. Through my association with AAPT, I have grown professionally and have formed friendships with fellow physicists all over the world. To say that my introduction to AAPT by my friend and mentor Jim Hicks marked a watershed for me would be an understatement."

Chris received both his bachelor's and MS ED degrees from Northern Illinois University. Before retiring in 2002, he taught physics in an inner-city Chicago high school and in a small Illinois town (Forreston), as well as in the larger suburban Barrington High School and New Trier Township High School in Winnetka. He has also served as a visiting faculty member at DePaul University, Roosevelt University, and at Northern Illinois University.

Chris is a frequent contributor to The Physics Teacher (TPT) and also has served several terms on its Editorial Board. He is currently editor of the TPT "Little Gems" column (2004-present). He has been a co-author or contributor to several physics textbooks, including Light Science (Springer-Verlag, 1999), as well as a reprint book on Teaching Light and Color (AAPT, 2001). He was a contributing author in the Active Physics curriculum project of AAPT.

He has been a very active physics teacher outside the classroom. At Barrington, he was the co-founder of The Science Place, an interactive science museum. He was co-developer of physics day at Six Flags Great America and wrote one of the first manuals for doing physics at amusement parks. He served as Lead Teacher in the Department of Energy's High School Honors Program at FermiLab.

Chris has served AAPT in a number of roles on both the local and national levels. He has been a mainstay of the Chicago Section, serving as president 1992-93. Nationally, he has sat on several AAPT committees and boards, including the Science Education for the Public Committee (1990 - 1993) before becoming Vice President, President Elect, President, and Past President (200-2004). He has also been a key member of two local alliances of physics teachers in the Chicago area: The Illinois State Physics Project (ISPP) and Physics Northwest, both of which meet monthly to share physics teaching ideas.

His outstanding contributions to physics teaching have been recognized with the ISPP John Rush Memorial Physics Teaching Award in 1985. In 1997, AAPT awarded him the Award for Excellence in Pre-College Physics Teaching. He received the AAPT Illinois Section Outstanding Physics Teacher Award in 1982 and the Governor's Master Teacher Award in 1984. He was recognized by APS as Distinguished Physics Teacher from Illinois.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

For Immediate Release

College Park, MD April 22, 2010-- Quoting from the February 2007 issue of The Physics Teacher: "Harvey 'Styx' Leff brings a formidable combination of ability, passion, and demonstrated accomplishment--in the classroom, in research, in academic leadership, and on musical stages--to his service to AAPT."

After receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa under the direction of Max Dresden, he taught on the faculty at Case Western Reserve University, Harvey Mudd College, and Chicago State University. He spent four years as an energy policy analyst for the Oak Ridge Associated Universities before joining the faculty at Cal Poly Pomona in 1983 as department chair. He built a Physics Department that actively encourages and rewards excellence in physics teaching and the participation of faculty members in AAPT.

Harvey served as an officer and Section Representative of the Southern California Section of AAPT from 1987 to 2005, Associate Editor of the American Journal of Physics 1992-95, Chair of AAPT's Professional Concerns Committee 1999-2000, and Chair of the AAPT Nominating Committee 2003-04. He was subsequently elected to the AAPT Presidential Chain, serving as Vice President in 2005, President-Elect in 2006, President in 2007, and Past President in 2008. He was on the Governing Board of the American Institute of Physics 2006-2008.

Among Harvey's six dozen scientific publications, primarily related to thermal physics, are three dozen articles, letters, and book reviews in AAPT's American Journal of Physics and a half dozen in The Physics Teacher. He was a referee for these journals for over forty years. Serving the wider physics-teaching community, Harvey was an organizer of the Gordon Research Conference on Physics Education and Research on Quantum Mechanics in 2002 and Classical Mechanics and Non-linear Dynamics in 2004. In 2003, he co-edited the anthology, Maxwell's Demon 2: Entropy, Classical and Quantum Information, Computing. Finally, using the nickname Styx, Harvey has been drummer for the Out-Laws of Physics since 2003.

Upon learning he would receive an AAPT Distinguished Service Citation, Harvey commented, "AAPT has been a critical element of my growth and success as a physics teacher and I am thrilled to have been chosen for a DSC. I am reminded that when comedian Jack Benny was presented with an award, he quipped that he didn't deserve the award, but didn't deserve arthritis either. I feel the same way, including the arthritis! Without AAPT, my career would have been far less fruitful and my life far less rich. Thank you AAPT."

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, April 22, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today William P. Hogan is the recipient of the 2010 AAPT Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Award. Hogan is Professor of Physics at Joliet Junior College, Joliet, IL. This award is in recognition of contributions to undergraduate physics teaching and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students. This prestigious award will be presented to Hogan during the AAPT Summer Meeting in Portland, Oregon where he will also present a paper.

When informed of his selection for this award, Hogan said, "I'm honored to be chosen. I'm not sure I deserve this award but I love teaching introductory physics and feel very fortunate to make my living doing something I enjoy."

Hogan received a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering physics, a Masters of Science in physics, and a Ph.D. in experimental high energy physics all from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He accepted an appointment as a post-doctoral research associate with Rutgers University stationed at Fermi National Acceleration Laboratory after finishing his graduate studies. While working at Fermilab, he began teaching physics as an adjunct faculty member at several Chicago-area two-year colleges and decided to pursue a career teaching physics.

In 1997, he joined the physics faculty at Joliet Junior College where he has taught introductory physics at all levels including conceptual physics, technical physics, college physics with a trigonometry pre-requisite, and university physics with a calculus prerequisite. He believes strongly in making students active participants in the learning process in all parts of the course. In addition to teaching his classes, Hogan has been active in the Joliet Junior College Faculty Union and has served as its treasurer since being first elected in 2003.

Hogan has been active in physics teaching organizations throughout his career as a teacher. He is a member of both the Illinois Section and the Chicago Section of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) and has presented many papers at Illinois Section meetings. He has served as President-Elect (2005), President (2006), and Past-President of the Illinois Section of AAPT. In 2007, he received the Distinguished Service Citation Award from the Illinois Section of the AAPT. Currently, he serves on the Executive Board of ISAAPT as one of the Two-Year College representatives.

He was instrumental in the success of TYC21 (an NSF sponsored project to build networks among two- year college physics teachers) in Illinois. Hogan has represented Illinois at the national meetings of TYC21 and spoken at national meetings about the success of the network of Illinois teachers. He has previously served a term as a member of the AAPT Committee on Physics in Two-Year Colleges and is currently serving another term, this time as chair of the committee. Hogan was Editor for the AAPT Guidelines for Two-Year College Physics Programs (2001) and is currently serving as editor of a revision.

Hogan was a key member of the SPIN-UP/TYC Project during 2002-2004, attending the Training and Planning Conference held July 24-28, 2002 at Trinity University in San Antonio, TX. He was the team leader for a site visit to Lord Fairfax Community College in Middletown, VA in 2003 and helped write the Case Study for Lord Fairfax Community College which was selected as an "Exemplary Two-Year College Physics Program" by this Project.

One of his former students, expressing his experience with Hogan said, "Dr. Hogan has the empathy, the vocabulary, and the skills to express criticism and critique in ways that create an open and nurturing environment in which students of all levels can appreciate physics. He is not only interested in helping students learn physics but also takes interest in his students as human beings and helps them beyond the classroom."

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, April 26, 2010. The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that the 2010 AAPT Excellence in Pre-College Physics Teaching Award winner is Diane Riendeau, a high school physics teacher at Deerfield High School in Deerfield, IL. This award is in recognition of contributions to pre-college physics teaching and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students.

On her selection for this recognition, Riendeau said, "I am honored to receive this award. Many of my mentors, who supported me through my career, are previous recipients. I am humbled to join them as Pre-College award winners. The key to becoming a good teacher is support. I had fantastic high school physics teachers myself that became unbelievable mentors during my early years as a physics teacher. My husband supported me by handling the children while I went to AAPT or local physics alliance meetings and encouraging me when I hit some lows. My colleagues at the schools I taught shared their ideas with me and together we sharpened each other. I am not a great physics teacher due to my own hard work...I am a great physics teacher because of the input of others."

Riendeau has a BA in Mathematics from Northeastern Illinois University and earned her MA in Curriculum and Instruction from Concordia University. Additionally she had extensive coursework in Physics. She has received numerous awards including AAPT's Innovative High School Teaching Award, the Illinois finalist for Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching, and the AAAS Leadership in Science Education for High School Teachers.

One of her philosophies is that high school physics curricula should be concepts driven instead of math driven and hands-on instead of lecture-based. This way students walk away with lived physics experiences. This philosophy is especially applicable to high school freshmen who are still children at heart and enjoy learning by doing and playing. Throwing math at a group of students whose math skills are underdeveloped would be counterproductive to our school's goal of providing physics for all. She has served as a mentor for several years, teaching colleagues this philosophy.

According to her Department Chair, Judi Luepke, "Diane is always searching for new ideas to bring to the classroom. She is a lifelong learner, continually taking online courses to learn more about making physics relative to students" lives."

Riendeau joined AAPT in 1992 and served on the AAPT Committee on Physics in High Schools and is the current Chair of the Pre-High School Committee. She also served as head judge for the High School Teaching Grant 2005-6. She also serves on the Editorial Board.

She was a co-author of the 2006 AAPT "Physics First" pamphlet and has contributed numerous articles to The Physics Teacher. Additionally, she was a contributing author to "Conceptual Physics" (2008).

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, MD, May 3, 2010--With all the bad press that the US education system has received, it is good news that the U.S. is competitive in physics at the highest level. Over the past ten years, every U.S. Physics Team member traveling to the International Physics Olympiad has returned with a medal.

This year twenty students from across the U.S. have emerged through a rigorous exam process that began last January with approximately 3,300 students who participated in the Fnet=ma exam to become the 2010 U.S. Physics Team. These students will continue to train for the mentally grueling exams and lab tests they'll face at the 41st International Physics Olympiad to be held from July 17 - 25, 2010 in Zagreb, Croatia, where more than 400 student scholars from 90 nations will test their knowledge in physics, competing with the best in the world.

"Each student who participated in the 2010 U.S. Physics Team selection process is deserving of recognition. They are the future of physics and physics education in the United States. It is AAPT's honor to recognize the exceptional scholars who qualified for the team and to support their further participation in the International Physics Olympiad," said Dr. Warren Hein, Executive Officer of the American Association of Physics Teachers in College Park, MD, which selects the students and organizes their training.

An integral part of the U.S. Physics Team experience is the training camp. Most of the students invited to the camp are the top science student in their high school. For many, it is their first chance to meet other students who are truly their peers. The training camp is a crash course in the first two years of university physics. Students learn at a very fast pace. They have an opportunity to hear about cutting edge research from some of the community's leading physicists. At the end of the training camp, five students will be selected to travel to Croatia for the international competition.

The coaches for the 2010 U.S. Physics team are: Paul Stanley, Academic Director/Senior Coach, Warren Turner, Senior Coach/Lab Coach, Andrew Lin, Jia Jia Dong, Qui Zi Li, and David Fallest are all coaches.

The U.S. Physics Olympiad Program was started in 1986 by AAPT to promote and demonstrate academic excellence. This year's event is organized by the Croatian Physical Society and the University of Zagreb as the co-organizer, under the financial support of the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports of the Republic of Croatia and the City of Zagreb.

The US Physics Team is sponsored by the generous support of private donors and the member societies of the American Institute for Physics:
Acoustical Society of America
American Association of Physicists in Medicine
American Association of Physics Teachers
American Astronomical Society
American Crystallographic Association
American Geophysical Union
American Physical Society
AVS: Science & Technology of Materials, Interfaces, and Processing
Optical Society of America
The Society of Rheology

LIST OF EVENTS
May 22-31 -- Students visit University of Maryland for their intensive training camp.
May 31 -- Five students will be chosen to represent the US at the international competition.
July 17 -- Students arrive in Zagreb for the international competition.
July 25 -- The International Competition Closing Ceremony .

MORE ON THE WEB
Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2010
History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/Contests/olympiad.cfm
The official website of the 2010 International Physics Olympiad: http://ipho2010.hfd.hr/

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support con¬tinuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquar¬tered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, April 26, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that Dr. Patricia M. Heller is the 2010 recipient of the Robert A. Millikan Medal. This award recognizes educators who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics. It will be presented during the AAPT Summer Meeting at the University of Portland, Oregon.

Heller is Associate Professor of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Minnesota and a founding member of the Physics Education Research (PER) Group. She has been at the forefront of PER for most of her career, taking on problems and issues that later bloom into entire research areas. One example of this is her work with instructor beliefs. She recognized that no instructional change will happen unless the individual instructor believes in the value of the change. This means we need to know what instructors believe and how those beliefs can change. Her initial work on instructor beliefs in the late 1990s has led to other researchers taking on this important area of study. Her work on cooperative group problem solving has also been of great importance and has not only established a firm research base on the topic in university level physics education, but she and her research group have created (and freely disseminated) materials that are widely used and have influenced many instructors to bring more group problem solving into their classrooms.

Heller has a B.S. and M.S. in Physics from the University of Washington and earned her Ph.D. in Science Education at the University of Michigan. She has a long and distinguished career in physics education research and her research program has produced a number of students who are now leaders in the physics education and physics education research communities. The work of Heller, her students, and collaborators has been seminal in the community of researchers and is one of the most effective research-based approaches to teaching introductory physics that has been developed. The University of Minnesota Physics Education Research and Development web site developed by her research group in physics education is a primary resource for physics teachers and contains first rate materials that have been highly influential for many physics instructors, both in college and high school. [http://groups.physics.umn.edu/physed/]

She was a leader on two large NSF-funded projects since 1995: The Constructing Physics Understanding (CPU) project and the Interactions in Physical Science project. The former (1995-2000) developed workshop materials for elementary teachers (to learn physics themselves) and curriculum modules for high school teachers to use in their classrooms. The latter project (1998-2007) developed student and teacher materials for a yearlong middle school physical science course.

Heller's direct contributions to physics education are no less impressive. She has tirelessly worked to improve physics education at all levels. From a background that includes K-12 and university teaching, she took her experiences and her understanding of the education system to create curricula for elementary-school teachers, middle school students, college students, teaching assistants, and even college professors. She knows that change is slow and must come in steps, and has pushed the system to step slowly but surely towards improvement. She has also helped with K-12 reform by being a part of the group that created the science teaching licensure standards for Minnesota's Board of Teaching. In addition, Heller was a consultant to the American Association for the Advancement of Science national science standards, Benchmarks for Science Literacy (1985-1995), and a committee member for the College Board Science standards for College Success™ (2007-2008).

About the Award
The Robert A Millikan Medal, established in 1962, recognizes teachers who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics. The recipient is asked to make a presentation at the Ceremonial Session of an AAPT Summer Meeting. A monetary award, The Millikan Medal, an Award Certificate, and travel expenses to the meeting are presented to the recipient.

Previous Awardees
2009, Arthur Eisenkraft, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA
2008, Eric Mazur, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
2007, David R. Sokoloff, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
2006, Art Hobson, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
2005, John S. Rigden, Washington University in St. Louis, MO
2004, Kenneth S. Krane, Oregon State University, Corvallis
http://www.aapt.org/Programs/awards/millikan.cfm

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, February 19, 2010

The American Association of Physics Teachers announced that Jill A. Marshall has assumed the role of Vice President on the AAPT Executive Board. Dr. Marshall, Associate Professor at the University of Texas, Science and Mathematics Education Group, will serve as Vice President in 2010. She will continue in the Presidential chain as President-Elect in 2011, President in 2012, and Past President in 2013.

Dr. Marshall earned her BS in Physics at Stanford University and her Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Texas, Austin. Before joining the faculty of the University of Texas, she worked as a Research Scientist and Manager at Southwest Research Institute, Associate Professor in the Utah State University Physics Department, and as Assistant Director of the University of Texas Systemic Research Collaborative for Education in Mathematics, Science and Technology. She has been honored with a University of Texas College of Education Dean's Fellowship, a Utah State University College of Science Teacher of the Year and as a USU President's Leadership Council Faculty Member of the Year.

Her prior service in AAPT includes: President Idaho-Utah Section 1999-00, Executive Committee of the Texas Section (VP, President Elect, President, Immediate Past President, Past President) 2005-09; National Nominating Committee 2005-06; Committee on Women in Physics 2006-09; presenter and session organizer at national meetings 1998-to present; and published articles in the American Journal of Physics PER Supplement and The Physics Teacher.

Dr. Marshall has also served on the PhysTEC Advisory Committee (2005-07); PTEC Editorial Board (2008- ); Girl Scouts of Central Texas STEM Advisory Committee (2008- ); University of Texas Physics Department Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) Executive Committee (2007- ); Co-PI University of Texas Environmental Science Institute GK-12 Project (2007- ); University Space Research Association Science and Engineering Education Council (1999-02); PI and Co-I for NASA and NSF projects, including Program for Women and Girls, Elementary, Secondary and Informal Science, and CCLI; workshops for students and teachers, (1992- ); KUSU Outreach Utah Science Hour commentator (1997-00).

Of her goals for the term of her leadership, Marshall says, "My vision includes three key elements. First is sound fiscal stewardship. Financial security is not our reason for being, but our primary mission of serving the physics teacher community will not be possible without it. Second is maintaining and preserving the valuable work that we do in AAPT. Archiving the products of meetings, committee work, and other AAPT initiatives, and making them accessible, will ensure that what we do has the maximum impact for years to come. We have an excellent model to follow in the high quality contributions and online accessibility of our journals. Third is teacher preparation and professional development, especially outreach to new physics teachers. The future of our organization ultimately is in their hands. Toward these ends I will apply my time, energy and experience. Most important, I will seek the advice, feedback, and help of my colleagues in AAPT. "

About AAPT
The AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education --with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics education. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, February 19, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers announced today that Steve L. Shropshire , Professor in the Department of Physics at Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho, has assumed the role of Member-at-Large Representing Four Year Colleges on the Executive Board.

A long time active member of AAPT, Shropshire earned his B.S. and Ph.D. in Physics at Washington State University. His activity in AAPT has included service on the Committee on Science Education for the Public, Chair (2005 - 2007), member (2004 - 2007, 2009 - present); PTRA Advisory Committee (2006 - present); Workshop Leader, Physics on the Road (2003 - 2005); organized spring 1998 and 2004 meetings of the Idaho- Utah Section; World Year of Physics Committee (2004 - 2005); Rural Regional Coordinator for PTRA (2004 - 2007); Section Representative for Idaho and Utah (1999 - 2006); Idaho-Utah Section, President (1998), Vice President (1997, 2009); Committee on Pre-High School Education, Chair (2001 - 2003), member (1998 - 2003); organized the Demo Show at the 2002 Summer Meeting in Boise, Idaho.

Shropshire was awarded the AAPT Distinguished Service Citation (2008), Idaho Academy of Science Distinguished Science Communicator Award(2007), Idaho State University Achievement Award (2006), Idaho State University Distinguished Public Servant (2006), Salvation Army Community Hero (2003).

He is a member of AAPT, Idaho-Utah Section of AAPT, PIRA, Idaho Science Teachers Association, Idaho Academy of Science for Zone 15 (2006 - present); Director of ISU QuarkNet Center (2004 - present); Higher Education Representative with service on the Board, Idaho Science Teachers Association (2003 - present); Director, ISU Physics Demo Road Show and Teacher Workshop program.

About AAPT
The AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education --with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, February 17, 2010

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) has today announced that David M. Cook, Ph.D. has assumed the role of AAPT President. Cook, who recently retired as Professor of Physics and Philetus E. Sawyer Professor of Science, Lawrence University, will serve as President in 2010 and Past President in 2011.

Cook earned his BS in physics at Rensselaer. Both his AM and Ph.D. in physics were earned at Harvard. While serving on the Physics faculty at Lawrence University, Appleton, WI since 1965 he has taught nearly every undergraduate physics course. His focus, however, has been on computation in the upper-level curriculum. He has served several terms as Physics Department Chair. Additionally, he has served on the Tenure Committee, the Governance Committee, and the Presidential Search Committee at Lawrence.

Since 1985, with support totaling more than $1M for the National Science Foundation, Research Corporation, the W. M. Keck Foundation, and other sources, he has built the Computational Physics Laboratory at Lawrence and guided the design of the computational components of the Lawrence curriculum, including the creation of two courses titled Computational Mechanics and Computational Physics. His self-published text for those courses also contains numerous exercises for other physics courses, and his 1975 text on electromagnetic theory was recently reprinted by Dover.

His AAPT service includes more than four decades of meeting attendance and presentations, membership on the Committee on Computers in Physics Education, and leadership roles.

Recognizing the challenges AAPT faces now and in the future, Cook says, "Both the future of the United States as a leader in science and technology and the strength of the U.S. economy are at risk because too few of our most able young people are preparing for careers in science and engineering. AAPT is already playing an important role in addressing this growing crisis. The current efforts, however, need to be expanded in both intensity and scope. In particular, we need to assess whether the current structure and content of our offerings for prospective scientists are as strong as they can be in preparing students for productive 50-year careers in the 21st century and also whether they are as appealing as they must be to compete successfully with the students' alternatives."

About AAPT: The AAPT is the premier national organization and authority on physics and physical science education --with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics education. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)
.

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, January 28, 2010--Noah Finkelstein, Associate Professor of Physics and Co-director of the Integrating STEM Education Initiative at the University of Colorado-Boulder, will testify on Strengthening Undergraduate and Graduate STEM Education before the US House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology, Subcommittee on Research and Science Education at a hearing on February 4, 2010. An active member of AAPT, Finkelstein is a member of the Colorado/Wyoming AAPT Section, the Physics Education Research (PER) Group, and the PER Leadership Organizing Council.

Additional testimony at the hearing will be provided by:
• Joan Ferrini-Mundy, Ph.D , Director, Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings , Directorate for Education and Human Resources, National Science Foundation
• Karen Klomparens, Ph.D, Associate Provost of Graduate Education; Dean, Graduate School; Professor of Plant Biology; Provost's Representative to ADAPP
• Robert D. Mathieu, Ph.D, Professor of Astronomy, The University of Wisconsin, Department of Astronomy
• Rick Stevens, Ph.D, Associate Laboratory Director for Computing, Environment and Life Sciences, Argonne National Laboratory, Professor of Computer Science, University of Chicago

About the Committee on Science and Technology
The Committee is responsible for overseeing research and development programs at all of all non-defense federal scientific research and development (R&D) at a number of federal agencies, including (either completely or in part): National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Department of Energy (DOE), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Science Foundation (NSF), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Fire Administration, the U.S. Geological Survey, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, January 28, 2010--The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) will present the first J. D. Jackson Excellence in Graduate Education Award to Eugene Commins, physics professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. His remarks, Some Personal Reflections on Physics Graduate Education, will present a picture of his life as a graduate student and then as an instructor in the Columbia University Physics Department of the 1950s. He will discuss how those early experiences influenced his subsequent experiences as a mentor of Berkeley physics graduate students during the last five decades.

This prestigious award will be presented to Commins at the Ceremonial Session of the 2010 Joint APS/AAPT Winter Meeting at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park in Washington, DC, on Monday, February 15 at 1:30 pm.

Warren Hein, AAPT Executive Officer noted, "It is a great honor to recognize an educator with such a distinguished career as the first recipient of the J. D. Jackson Award. Dr. Commins sets the standard for graduate physics around the world."

Commins earned his B.A. with Honors in Mathematics and Physics at Swarthmore College and his Ph.D. in Physics at Columbia University, New York, N.Y. He began his teaching career at Columbia University before moving to the University of California, Berkeley in 1960. Frances Hellman, Chair of the Department of Physics at the University of California, Berkeley said, "Eugene has been one of the pillars of the Berkeley Physics Department for several decades. Over this period, he has taught and educated generations of physicists, many of whom have gone on to sterling careers in their own
right: our current Energy Secretary, Nobel Laureate Steve Chu, is an outstanding example of a student who was taught and mentored by Eugene! But, by far, the biggest impact that Eugene has had is on the broad spectrum of graduate students from across the country and around the world."

About the Award
Named in honor of outstanding physicist and teacher, J. D. Jackson, this award recognizes physicists and physics educators who, like John David Jackson, have made outstanding contributions to curriculum development, mentorship, or classroom teaching in graduate physics education. It is given in recognition of contributions to graduate physics education and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, January 27, 2010 --The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) will present The Melba Newell Phillips Medal to Mary Beth Monroe, Professor of Physics at Southwest Texas Junior College, at the Ceremonial Session of the Joint APS/AAPT Winter Meeting at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park in Washington, DC, on Monday, February 15, 2010 at 1:30 pm.

As a long-time AAPT member, Monroe has served the organization with dedication at the state and national level for more than three decades. She was AAPT Secretary and Chair of the Publications Committee from 2001-2007. Monroe is currently a member of the Committee on the Interests of Senior Physicists and Chair of the Governance Review Committee. She has played a leading role in developing networks among physicists teaching in Two Year Colleges that have led both to increasing involvement of Two Year and Community Colleges in AAPT and to better teaching for the students who study physics in these schools.

Monroe received her B.S. degree in physics from Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, and her M.S. in Physics (research field, plasma physics) with a double minor in Junior College Teaching (HEW intern) and Math, 1973. She is a dedicated proponent of quality physics education in Two Year and Community Colleges. She served on the AAPT Executive Board as Member-at-Large Representing Two Year Colleges and as a member of the Committee on Physics in the Two Year College. Additionally, she served as Principal Investigator and Project Director for TYC21 and as Co Principal Investigator for Strategic Programs for Innovations in Undergraduate Physics at Two Year Colleges from 2002-2005.

Regarding her presentation, Monroe says, "In the early planning stages of the AAPT initiative, The Two Year College in the Twenty First Century (TYC21), Jack Hehn, then Associative Executive Officer of AAPT, asked me,'Who is AAPT?' That question has come to mind often during the last fifteen years. During my presentation I will convey why it is important that we, individually and collectively, as a community of physicists and physics teachers, answer that question."

About the Award
The Melba Newell Phillips Medal is AAPT's highest recognition of member leadership and service. It honors Melba Phillips for her leadership and dedicated service to physics education. She was the first woman President of the AAPT and a founder of the Federation of American Scientists. She was a champion of physics education throughout her life. This Award is given only occasionally to subsequent AAPT leaders who display similar achievements and exceptional contributions. The first recipient of the Award was Melba Phillips herself (Emeritus, University of Chicago), in January 1982. The complete list of winners can be found at http://www.aapt.org/Grants/phillips.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, January 26, 2010 -- The Winter 2010 AAPT Distinguished Service Citations will be presented on Monday, February 15 at 1:30 pm during the Awards Ceremony at the 2010 Joint APS/AAPT Winter Meeting at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel. The AAPT members being honored with this award are Karen Williams, Patrick Whippey, and Beverly (Trina) Cannon.

Karen Williams is Professor of Physics at East Central University in Ada, OK. She earned her MS in Physics from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville and her PhD in Physics Education from the University of Oklahoma. Through her work with the Society of Physics Students, Williams has influenced thousands of future physics teachers.

An AAPT member for 20 years, she has been extremely active in the Arkansas- Oklahoma-Kansas Section, having held every office, including President, and hosting a section meeting at East Central University. Williams has presented several workshops at section meetings, attended countless workshops herself, and been involved as Co-PI or lead teacher in two NSF grants training teachers in teaching physical science. She has generously donated her time and shared her expertise as a presenter at numerous AAPT national meetings.

Patrick Whippey, The University of Western Ontario physics professor emeritus, is a very knowledgeable and dedicated physics teacher who is a role model to both educators and students. A willing and effective mentor to new and experienced teachers, he is well-respected among all of the OAPT Section members and hundreds of physics teachers and students across the province.

Whippey's service to AAPT, the physics profession, and the physics students and teachers of the Ontario section of the AAPT has spanned over 40 years. He has made significant contributions to the Ontario section as a member of the Executive Board, OAPT section representative, and web master. He has made contributions to numerous activities for physics teachers such as a physics contest; physics photo contest; science shows and presentations for elementary, middle school, and high school students; science olympics; and science fairs. He is an OAPT member at large, organizer of the section and national conferences (one of them was the Canadian Association of Physicists - AAPT joint conference), and contributor to the Science Teachers Association of Ontario events.

Beverly T. Cannon earned her BS in Chemistry at Mississippi State College for Women, her MS in Science Education from the University of Southern Mississippi, and her PhD from Louisiana State University. She has actively sought to spread her enthusiasm for physics as a high school teacher and as a Physics Teaching Resource Agent in Texas where she regularly gives workshops to help high school teachers.

For nearly three decades she has devoted her time to serving in AAPT. Perhaps her most unique and respected contribution is her heroic efforts for the AAPT's video contest. Every year, there are new technological issues as students get more and more sophisticated and Trina has dealt with these changes in a timely and professional manner. AAPT is an organization of volunteers, and Trina is one of our organization's best.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, Jan. 25, 2010 - Are Teacher Education Programs preparing physics teachers for the future? If not, what can be done now? The Fourth Annual Symposium on Physics Education will address these questions and many more during the 2010 Joint APS/AAPT Winter Meeting, which takes place February 13 to 17 at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, DC.

Even as STEM education is receiving renewed emphasis and increased funding in the United States, current statistics indicate that there is a drastic shortage of qualified physics teachers. A strong STEM education starts in our schools and depends on a large supply of highly qualified teachers.

The AAPT symposium, titled "Educating Physics Teachers: A Call to Action for Physics Departments," will examine the quality of Physics Teacher Preparation Programs in the United States. Symposium panelists will share their experiences in teacher education, and share the findings and recommendations of The Task Force on Teacher Education in Physics (T-TEP) Report.

T-TEP just completed a two-year effort in which it investigated the current status of physics teacher education in the United States, collected relevant research findings, and identified major local strengths, as well as significant systemic challenges.  The T-TEP Report, which describes the accumulated results of the Task Force investigation, will be distributed to all Physics Departments in the nation and the corresponding Departments of Education.

SYMPOSIUM INFORMATION
"Educating Physics Teachers: A Call to Action for Physics Departments," the Fourth Annual AAPT Symposium on Physics Education, is organized by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) and sponsored in part by the PhysTEC Project, an NSF-funded partnership of APS, AAPT, and AIP.

The Symposium, dedicated to the memory of Dr. E. Leonard (Len) Jossem, will take place from 1:30 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. on Tuesday, February 16, 2010, in Salon 3 of the Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel.

MODERATOR
Philip Hammer, AAPT Associate Executive Officer.

PANELISTS
Mary Ann Rankin, Dean of the College of Natural Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin, will discuss the UTeach (UT) program for math and science teacher preparation, the UT Discovery Learning initiative, the Texas Interdisciplinary Plan, and the UT Austin Freshman Research Initiative.

Sheila Tobias, author, will examine Science Teaching as a Profession and discuss why it isn't and how it could be. Sheila Tobias has made a science and an art of being a curriculum outsider. Neither a mathematician nor a scientist, she has tackled the question of why intelligent and motivated college students have specific difficulties in certain disciplines, particularly mathematics and science.

Stamatas Vokos, Professor of Physics, Seattle Pacific University, will present findings and recommendations of the National Task Force on Teacher Education in Physics ( T-TEP Report) as he discusses Transforming the Professional Preparation of Physics Teachers in the United States. He is member of the APS Executive Committee of the Forum on Education and chair of the National Task Force on Teacher Education in Physics (T-TEP), sponsored by APS, AAPT, and AIP.

ABOUT THE JOINT APS/AAPT MEETING
The 2010 Joint APS/AAPT Winter Meeting takes place February 13-17 at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, DC. This year's theme is "Physics for the Nation's Future." Full meeting program, workshop, and job fair information, and directions to the hotel are at: http://www.aapt.org/Conferences/wm2010/

Journalists are invited to cover the meeting onsite. News releases describing meeting highlights, including this year's plenary lectures featuring several nationally renowned speakers, are available at: http://aapt.org/aboutaapt/PressReleases.cfm.

MEDIA CREDENTIALS
Members of the press can request information and are invited to cover the upcoming meeting onsite. Credentials can be obtained by sending an email to mgardner@aapt.org or by contacting Marilyn Gardner at 301-209-3306.

ABOUT AAPT
AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators -- with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Its mission is to enhance the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information, please contact:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers
301-209-3306 (office) mgardner@aapt.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, October 29, 2009. The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that the first AAPT J. D. Jackson Excellence in Graduate Education Award winner is Eugene Commins, physics professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. This award is given in recognition of contributions to graduate physics teaching and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students.

This prestigious award will be presented to Commins at a Ceremonial Session of the AAPT Winter Meeting at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park in Washington, DC, on Monday, February 15, 2010.

Warren Hein, AAPT Executive Officer noted, "It is a great honor to recognize an educator with such a distinguished career as the first recipient of the J. D. Jackson Award. Dr. Commins sets the standard for graduate physics around the world."

Commins earned his BA with Honors in Mathematics and Physics at Swarthmore College and his Ph.D. in Physics at Columbia University, New York, N.Y. He began his teaching career at Columbia University before moving to the University of California Berkeley in 1960.

Frances Hellman, Chair of the Department of Physics at University of California, Berkley said, "Eugene has been one of the pillars of the Berkeley Physics department for several decades. Over this period, he has taught and educated generations of physicists, many of whom have gone on to sterling careers in their own right: our current Energy Secretary, Nobel Laureate Steve Chu, is an outstanding example of a student who was taught and mentored by Eugene! But, by far, the biggest impact that Eugene has had is on the broad spectrum of graduate students from across the country and around the world."

Lila Adair, Awards Committee Chair, said that there were several reasons Commins was selected. "His nomination recognizes Eugene as a superb and dedicated teacher whose scientific brilliance is complemented by a great work ethic and dedication to the profession of teaching. His students are exuberant in their praise for his lectures, lecture notes, and concern for the students. He is an example of a great mentor. Many extremely distinguished scientists took classes from him, got their PhD's working with him, and speak passionately about him to their colleagues."

This award recognizes that great teaching CAN be done and should be expected of great scientists at leading institutions, not only from people whose primary or entire focus is on teaching.

Regarding his recognition as recipient of the First J.D. Jackson Excellence in Graduate Education Award, Commins said, "I am very grateful and honored to receive the J.D. Jackson Award, all the more so because it bears the name of a most highly esteemed friend and colleague, J.D. Jackson. He is a truly distinguished scholar and teacher, and if his name were not on the award, he would be first on my list of those who deserve to receive it."

About the Award
Named in honor of outstanding physicist and teacher, J. D. Jackson, this award recognizes physicists and physics educators who, like John David Jackson, have made outstanding contributions to curriculum development, mentorship, or classroom teaching in graduate physics education.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, October 29, 2009. The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that The Melba Newell Phillips Medal has been awarded to Mary Beth Monroe, Professor of Physics at Southwest Texas Junior College, in recognition of her creative leadership and dedicated service that have resulted in exceptional contributions within AAPT.

The Medal will be presented to at a Ceremonial Session of the AAPT Winter Meeting at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park in Washington, DC, on Monday, February 15, 2010.

Lila Adair, Chairman, AAPT Awards Committee, said, "Mary Beth is an amazing lady. She has dedicated her entire career to sharing her passion for physics and AAPT with her students, colleagues and fellow AAPT members. She is one of the few experts I turn to for the institutional history of AAPT, and I am so proud to be presenting the Phillips Medal to her."

As a long time AAPT member, Monroe has quietly and tenaciously served the organization at the state and national level for more than three decades. She served as AAPT Secretary and Chair of the Publications Committee from 2001-2007 and is currently serving as a member of the Committee on the Interests of Senior Physicists and as Chair of the Governance Review Committee. She has played a leading role in developing networks among physicists teaching in Two Year Colleges that have led both to their increasing involvement in AAPT and to better teaching for the students who study physics in these schools

"The Melba Newell Phillips Medal is AAPT's highest recognition for member leadership and service. Mary Beth personifies these qualities through her continuing role as a leader in our organization and in the Two Year College community," stated Warren Hein, AAPT's Executive Officer.

Monroe received her B.S. degree in physics from Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, and her M.S. in Physics (research field, plasma physics) with a double minor in Junior College Teaching (HEW intern) and Math, 1973. She is a dedicated proponent of quality physics education in Two Year and Community Colleges. She served on the AAPT Executive Board as Member-at-Large Representing Two Year Colleges and as a member of the Committee on Physics in the Two Year College. Additionally, she served as Principal Investigator and Project Director for TYC21 and as Co Principal Investigator for Strategic Programs for Innovations in Undergraduate Physics at Two Year Colleges from 2002-2005.

Regarding the award, Monroe stated, "I was stunned when I received word from the AAPT Awards Committee that I had been selected to receive the esteemed Melba Newell Phillips Medal! Melba was responsible for me attending my first AAPT national meeting in 1977 and she used her influence to help place me on some AAPT committees in my first years with the Association. She impressed upon me that I had a responsibility not only to my students, but also beyond my classroom to the physics education community. The AAPT has provided me ample opportunities to fulfill both. Therefore this award, which embodies the ideals that Melba had for physics education and AAPT, has a special significance for me. I am honored and humbled by this recognition."

About the Award
The Melba Newell Phillips Medal honors Melba Phillips for her leadership and dedicated service to physics education. She was the first woman President of the AAPT and a founder of the Federation of American Scientists. Professor Phillips' research was in nuclear physics, and she served on the faculty of Brooklyn College and the University of Chicago. She was a champion of physics education throughout her life. This Award is given only occasionally to subsequent AAPT leaders who display similar achievements and exceptional contributions. The first recipient of the Award was Melba Phillips herself (Emeritus, University of Chicago), in January 1982.

The previous medal recipients include Clifford Swartz, Judy R. Franz, Robert B. Clark, H. Richard Crane, and E. Leonard Jossem. The complete list of winners can be found at http://www.aapt.org/Grants/phillips.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, November 2, 2009 -- During their fall meeting, members of the AAPT Executive Board developed and adopted an official statement endorsing research experiences for undergraduates.

Rationale:
Research in the real world involves the intense and often exhilarating experience of studying nature, learning some new things, and then bouncing that knowledge off fellow workers within your discipline to see if they agree. Richard Feynman likened this to cooperatively observing a chess game without knowing the rules - and gradually learning and celebrating a few of those beautiful rules and the evolving simplicity that should make up physics.

Whether in basic or applied sciences, every undergraduate physics major depends on such an experience to mature toward an investigative state-of-mind and self-confidence that will serve them well in their next professional endeavor. While often learning new experimental, theoretical, or analytical skills, they will also experience the very human frustrations, successes, serendipity, and late nights that can take science totally out of the classroom and into the fabric of their lives. Whether in a graduate school application or a job interview, they will have stories to tell about when they really helped figure something out.

Research experiences will necessarily take on different forms depending on the interests and goals of the student and on the resources and capabilities of their department and may begin early or late during the undergraduate years. Thus undergraduate research will not always involve sophisticated equipment or methodology, but it should be both meaningful and appropriate for the student and situation. On-campus faculty-mentored projects, participation in research at NSF-funded REU sites, research opportunities at national and corporate laboratories, and research opportunities provided through other federal agencies and private foundations should be strategically utilized to meet the needs of our students and departments.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 31, 2009, College Park, MD--Dr. E. Leonard (Len) Jossem passed away Saturday, August 29, 2009. He served as AAPT President from 1973-74. Warren Hein, AAPT Executive Office, said, "Len was a champion of physics education and a long-time supporter of AAPT. He was generous when it was most critical to the success of our programs. We have lost a very good friend."

Born in Camden, NJ, May 19, 1919, Dr. E. Leonard Jossem received his B.S. in Physics from City College of New York in 1938. During World War II he was a member of the scientific staff at Los Alamos in the Advanced Developments Division. He received his master's degree in 1939 from Cornell University. His Ph.D., also from from Cornell University in 1950, was for his research on experimental condensed matter physics. His long and productive career included nine years on the faculty at Cornell University, and two years with the commission on College Physics. In 1956 he joined the physics faculty at The Ohio State University where he taught for thirty-three years, serving as the Chairman of OSU's Physics Department from 1967-1989. The department is well known for its efforts in insuring that all graduate students are introduced to and schooled in the good practices of exemplary teaching. This program is part of the legacy of Len Jossem.

Jossem was a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the New York Academy of Sciences, the Royal Academy of Arts, and the Institute of Physics [London]. He held the Howard E. Maxwell Award for Distinguished Service to the Ohio Section of the American Physical Society.

An active member of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) since 1948, Jossem received the AAPT Distinguished Service Award in 1970, the Melba Newell Phillips Award in 1985, and the Oersted Medal in 1994. In presenting the medal, James H. Stith noted, "Leonard Jossem is a master teacher and educator in the broadest sense of the word."

Long interested in physics education, he was a member of the Commission on College Physics, serving as chair from 1966 to 1971, during which time the commission's work fundamentally changed the way physics was taught in this country. In 1995 Jossem was awarded the International Commission on Physics Education Medal for Excellence. He is an editor of the International Commission on Physic Education books, Connecting the Results of Research in Physics Education with Teacher Education, and Physics 2000: Physics at It Enters a New Millennium.

His volunteer service to AAPT included chairing and working on many AAPT committees including, most recently, the Committee on Teacher Preparation 2003-04, the Investment Advisory Committee 2005-06, and the Committee on the Interests of Senior Physicists 2005-06.

He was been a consultant for UNESCO projects in Thailand, and a consultant for the World Bank-Chinese University Development Project in China. He holds honorary professorships in Physics at Beijing Normal University, at Beijing Teachers College, and at Southeast University in Nanjing, China. Deeply involved in International Physics Education, he was recognized on his 70th birthday in an International Newsletter on Physics Education article, "He is at home in schools as well as in research laboratories, he moves among students and teachers as naturally as among professors and Nobel laureates. To have a teaching career with such a fresh innovative spirit during half a century--this is a privilege only a few of the greatest can enjoy."

In his 90 years of life Dr. E Leonard Jossem set a standard for generations of physics students and teachers that incorporates learning through play and exploration as the pathway to understanding. He will be especially remembered for his kindness, compassion, and contributions as a peacemaker.

About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

CONTACT: Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers, mgardner@aapt.org 301-209-3306.

College Park, MD, July 22, 2009. Defying all the research studies proclaiming that U.S. students lag far behind the rest of the developed world in science and math, the five student representatives of the United States Physics Team competed with teams of high school students from 70 nations and struck gold winning four gold medals and one silver medal at the 40th International Physics Olympiad held in Merida, Mexico in July of 2009.

Students from China won five gold medals, coming in first on the overall medal count; while India and Korea also won four gold medals and one silver medal, tying for second with the United States on the overall medal count. Taiwan, Russia, and Romania each earned three gold and two silver medals. Countries winning at least two gold medals included Singapore, Kazakhstan and Japan; countries winning at least one gold medal included Thailand, Indonesia, Hungary, Hong Kong, Turkey, Serbia, Israel, Poland, and Slovakia.

Traveling to Merida, Mexico for the 40th International Physics Olympiad were:
David Field, of Andover, MA, a sophomore at the Phillips Andover Academy in Andover, MA;
Bowei Liu, of Freemont, CA, a sophomore at Mission San Jose High School in Freemont, CA;
Marianna Mao, of Freemont, CA, a senior at Mission San Jose High School in Freemont, CA;
Anand Natarajan, a senior at The Harker School, San Jose, CA;
Joshua Oreman, a senior at Harvard Westlake School, Los Angeles, CA;
Paul Stanley, Academic Director, Dobson Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Beloit College;
Warren Turner, Senior Coach, Assistant Professor at Westfield State, College in Massachusetts.

The three graduating seniors will be going to Harvard (Marianna), MIT (Joshua), and Stanford (Anand) next year.

The US team gold medal winners included Anand Nataranjan (with 14th highest theory score), Bowei Liu, Joshua Oreman (with 11th highest overall score), and Marianna Mao (with 6th highest experimental score). David Field won the silver medal. The overall highest score this year was Handuo Shi from China, marking the first time in the history of the Physics Olympiad that the top score was obtained by a female. Accompanying the US Physics Team to Mexico was Academic Director Paul Stanley of Beloit College and Senior Lab Coach Warren Turner of Westfield State College.

"They all did very well," said Paul Stanley, Academic Director. " Much of the success of the traveling five can be attributed to the collegial, supportive atmosphere of training camp; I thank each of the nineteen team members for working so hard to make this one of the best teams ever!"

The three theoretical problems this year included a question on the tidal drag affecting the moon, a question on laser cooling and optical molasses, and a question on the mass to radius ratio of stars and estimating a lower limit to the size of a star. The two experimental problems included measuring the wavelength of light using a razor blade and vernier calipers, and determining the index of refraction difference of a birefringent material. 316 students from around the world took part in the examination.

The US physics team has participated in the International Physics Olympiad since 1986. On four occasions the team has won four gold medals: in Australia (1995), Singapore (2006), Vietnam (2008), and Mexico (2009). The United States hosted the International Physics Olympiad in 1993. In 2010 the Olympiad will be held in Croatia.

The US Physics Team is sponsored by the generous support of private donors and the member societies of the American Institute for Physics:
Acoustical Society of America
American Association of Physicists in Medicine
American Association of Physics Teachers
American Astronomical Society
American Crystallographic Association
American Geophysical Union
American Physical Society
AVS: Science & Technology of Materials, Interfaces, and Processing
Optical Society of America
The Society of Rheology

MORE ON THE WEB
Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/olympiad2009/
History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/Contests/olympiad.cfm

The official website of the International Physics Olympiad: http://ipho2009.smf.mx/home.
About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, July 13, 2009. As physics educators from around the world convene at the University of Michigan Campus in Ann Arbor, MI, from July 25-29 for The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) 2009 Summer Meeting they will be participating in Michigan state's official Physics Education Week.

In the official Proclamation, Governor Jennifer M. Granholm "encourages all residents of this state to learn more about physics education and to encourage our youth to become involved in this exciting field." The proclamation will be read as part of the opening ceremonies of the 2009 Summer Meeting.

Onsite registration is available to all interested science scholars at the University of Michigan, Michigan League. The meeting program includes plenary sessions featuring nationally renowned speakers, award winning educators, and a salute to the 400th anniversary of the telescope. As an added attraction, David Saltzberg, physics consultant for the popular television situation-comedy "The Big Bang Theory" will join the program.

Monday, July 27
Special Session
A Physicist Scattering on Hollywood
David Saltzberg, (University of California, Los Angeles) has served for the past two years as the physics consultant for the popular television situation-comedy "The Big Bang Theory" which features physicists as its main characters. He will describe his experiences with production of the show.

APS/DPP Symposium on Plasma Physics
The Electrical Charge and Motion of Objects Inserted into a Plasma
John Goree, (The University of Iowa's Department of Physics and Astronomy) conducts research experiments with Plasma, a gas that has been ionized, with freely moving electrons and ions. Objects immersed in plasma develop an electric charge by collecting electrons and ions. Experiments in the laboratory and on board the International Space Station where micron-size plastic spheres are immersed in plasma will be described, including videos of the microspheres in experiments, showing the rich variety of their collective motion.
Turbulent Liquid Metal Dynamo Experiments
Cary Forest (University of Wisconsin) focuses on understanding how electrical currents are generated in plasmas and other MHD systems. This talk will address how dynamo experiments, using high speed flows of liquid sodium, have been investigating the key processes of the geodynamo and solar dynamo. Understanding the conversion of turbulent kinetic energy in the fluid motion into electrical currents and thus magnetic fields, is the biggest challenge for both experiments and theory at this time. Experimental evidence for these currents and future directions, including the possibility of a plasma dynamo experiment, will be discussed.

Robert A. Millikan Medal
Physics for All: From Special Needs to Olympiads
Arthur Eisenkraft, Distinguished Professor of Science Education and Director of the Center of Science and Math in Context (COSMIC), at University of Massachusetts, Boston will present the Millikan Medal Address. He helped created the process that identifies and supports U.S. Physics Olympics Team to compete in the International Physics Olympiad. In 1991, Eisenkraft became the Executive Director of the XXIV International Physics Olympiad, hosted by the U.S. for teams from 40 countries. He was one of the originators of Quantum magazine, and also developed the Active Physics curriculum project, which was funded by research grants from the National Science Foundation. He has appeared on numerous television radio shows and his work has been featured in The New York Times, Education Week, Physics Today, American Journal of Physics, and The Physics Teacher.

Tuesday, July 28
Klopsteg Memorial Award
The Role of the Scientist as a Public Intellectual
Lee Smolin, a theoretical physicist, is a founding and senior faculty member at Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Canada. He is also Adjunct Professor of Physics at the University of Waterloo. His research and writings have made major contributions to the quantum theory of gravity, being a co-inventor of loop quantum gravity and deformed special relativity. He has also worked in cosmology and is the inventor of a theory called cosmological natural selection, which applies a Darwinian methodology to the question of how the laws of physics are chosen. He has research interests also in elementary particle physics, the foundations of quantum mechanics, astrophysics, theoretical biology, and economics.

Excellence in Pre-College Physics Teaching Award
What Your Mother Never Told You About... Physics Teaching
Deborah Roudebush (Oakton High School, Herndon, VA) shares her experiences as a Physics Teacher as she is recognized with this prestigious award. She became a National Board Certified Teacher in 2001 and has served as an AAPT Physics Teaching Resource Agent (PTRA) since 1992, participated in the D.C. Urban initiative, served as Rural Initiative-James Madison University Lead Teacher, and D.C. MSP Lead Teacher in 2008. She has been active in QuarkNet since 2000, serving as Teaching & Learning Fellow with QuarkNet centers. She has participated in the National Academy of Sciences since 2004 and is a member of the College Board AP Physics Redesign Commission. She was recognized as a Presidential Awardee for Excellence in Science Teaching in 2001.

Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Award
Using Technology to Increase Student Engagement Inside and Outside of the Classroom
Mario Belloni (Davidson College, Davidson, NC) is well known as an author, public speaker, researcher, workshop leader, motivator of students, award winning professor, and an innovator in the use of technology for teaching physics. He received the AAPT Distinguished Service Citation in 2006 and has served as a member of the Planning Committee for the Section Representative/Area Chair Governance (2007), as a member of the AAPT Meetings Committee (2007-08), and as a member of the AAPT Membership and Benefits Committee (2004-07). Belloni is currently Chair of the AAPT Committee on Educational Technologies, North Carolina AAPT Section Representative, and a member of the ComPADRE Quantum Physics Editorial Board.

Wednesday, July 29
Something Incredible Wonderful Happens: Frank Oppenheimer and the world He Made Up
K. C. Cole (Southern California's Annenberg School of Journalism) is the author of eight nonfiction books, including The Universe and the Teacup: The Mathematics of Truth and Beauty. She covered math, physics, cosmology and psychology at The Los Angeles Times for 10 years, often exploring connections between science, art, and society, and wrote the column "Mind Over Matter." Cole has taught at UCLA, Wesleyan and Yale Universities, and has been an editor, writer, and columnist at Discover Magazine. Her most recent book is Something Incredibly Wonderful Happens: Frank Oppenheimer and the World He Made Up, to be published this summer by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

About AAPT:
AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics education. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

CONTACT:
Journalists are invited to contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, American Association of Physics Teachers, mgardner@aapt org, 301-209-3306 regarding press registration and materials regarding this meeting.

July 13, 2009, College Park, MD - The five students representing the U.S. Physics Team as the 2009 Traveling Team, and two of their coaches, are competing with high school students from 84 nations this week at the 40th International Physics Olympiad in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico.

The U.S. Traveling Team Representatives are:
David Field, of Andover, MA, a sophomore at the Phillips Andover Academy in Andover, MA;
Bowei Liu, of Freemont, CA, a sophomore at Mission San Jose High School in Freemont, CA;
Marianna Mao, of Freemont, CA, a senior at Mission San Jose High School in Freemont, CA;
Anand Natarajan, of San Jose, CA, a senior at The Harker School;
Joshua Oreman, of Los Angeles, CA a senior at Harvard Westlake School, Los Angeles, CA;

The traveling team coaches are:
Paul Stanley, Academic Director, Dobson Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Beloit College;
Warren Turner, Senior Coach, Assistant Professor at Westfield State College in Massachusetts.

The US Physics Team Traveling Representatives participated in a two-day mini-camp at the University of Maryland, College Park, where they reviewed problem solving skills and sharpened their laboratory skills. The mini-camp ended with a visit to the Mexican Embassy in Washington, DC where the students met with Antonio Ortiz-Mena, Head of Section Economic Affairs. The team members presented an art glass globe representing the world, as a gift to the people of Mexico during their embassy visit.

The Traveling Representatives arrived in Merida on July 11 and will spend the next week participating in a unique opportunity to meet with other high school students, demonstrate their abilities in physics, exchange experiences, and build cross-cultural contacts. They will have the opportunity to make new and lasting friendships with peers from all over the world; visit archeological sites full of ancient history; and to attend talks by world renowned scientists regarding interesting research in physics.

Team members will have the opportunity to add to the medals received by previous U.S. Physics Teams. Last year's team brought home one silver medal and four gold medals. This year's awards will be presented on July 19, 2009.

MORE ON THE WEB: Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/olympiad2009/
History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/Contests/olympiad.cfm
The official website of the International Physics Olympiad: http://ipho2009.smf.mx/home
Donations to support the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/donate.cfm

About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, MD, May 27, 2009. The physics community and AAPT lost a friend and advocate on May 17 with the death of Betty Preece of Indialantic, FL. A long-time member of AAPT, Betty was recognized for her years of dedicated service with a Distinguished Service Citation in 1997. She served on many committees, including the Committee on Minorities, the Committee on Women in Physics, and the Committee on International Education.

Betty organized events for under privileged elementary children at AAPT's Winter Meetings for many years. She enlisted volunteers including local Society of Women Engineers (SWE) chapters in these activities for students. Betty was a recipient of the 2007 SWE Distinguished Service Award.

"Not only was Betty the living standard of a loyal AAPT member, but she was also a personal friend to many of us. She never said NO, and it was very hard to tell her No also. You could always count on her to do anything for the good of AAPT, children and women," said Lila Adair, AAPT Past President.

Betty was the first woman to graduate from the University of Kentucky with a degree in electrical engineering, was inducted into the University of Kentucky Hall of Distinction and was, in 1950, the first woman engineer at the Eastern Test Range, Cape Canaveral.

Betty was an organizing member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) in 1950. She was a civil engineer with over 10,000 volunteer hours as the Handicap and Accessibility Coordinator at Patrick Air Force Base, an Adjunct Professor at Florida Institute of Technology, a physics teacher at Melbourne High for 18 years, and a science fair judge for state and county competitions.

She was a Mentor for Take Stock in Children and she was a member of and held local, state, and national office in the following: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), Phi Delta Kappa, Delta Kappa Gamma, Environmentally Endangered Land Society (EELS), Abigail Wright Chamberlin Chapter NSDAR, Daughters of 1812, Daughters of American Colonists, American Association of Physics Teachers, National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), Women in Engineering ProActive Network (WEPAN), Junior Engineering Technical Society (JETS), South Brevard Historical Society, SCSEA, Scots-American Society of Brevard and Women Engineering Society in United Kingdom (WES).

She traveled the world as a speaker and teacher to show children that "Science could be fun." Betty was a cherished member in all of these organizations and will be missed by her many friends and family.

About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

CONTACT:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers, mgardner@aapt.org 301-209-3306.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 26, 2009

(College Park, MD) -- Five students have been selected to represent the U.S Physics Team as the 2009 Traveling Team at the 40th International Physics Olympiad, a competition among high-school physics students, held this summer in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico.

The students are:
David Field, of Andover, MA, a sophomore at the Phillips Andover Academy in Andover, MA; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/team.cfm?id=495&year=2009
Bowei Liu, of Freemont, CA, a sophomore at Mission San Jose High School in Freemont, CA; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/team.cfm?id=612&year=2009
Marianna Mao, of Freemont, CA, a senior at Mission San Jose High School in Freemont, CA; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/team.cfm?id=627&year=2009
Anand Natarajan, of San Jose, CA, a senior at The Harker School; bio at http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/team.cfm?id=654&year=2009
Joshua Oreman, of Los Angeles, CA a senior at Harvard Westlake School, Los Angeles, CA; bio at: http://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/team.cfm?id=663&year=2009

"We are very proud of all nineteen students who participated in the training camp. They have tested themselves with the best of their peers for ten days and have proven to be an outstanding group of young people," said Warren Hein, Executive Officer of the American Association of Physics Teachers, which sponsors the team. "We are sure that the five Traveling Team members will uphold the tradition of success for the United States as they represent the U.S. Physics Team in Merida."

The students attended a training camp at the University of Maryland, where, through classes, labs and special lectures, they were coached on difficult physics concepts, then took a series of exams. They also made a trip to nearby Washington, DC, to see the Smithsonian Museums and to NASA's Goddard Space Center in Greenbelt, MD.

The coaches for the 2009 U.S. Physics team are: Paul Stanley, Academic Director/Senior Coach, Warren Turner, Senior Coach/Lab Coach, Andrew Lin, David Jones, and David Fallest.

Last year, the team brought home one silver and four gold medals. Joshua Oreman, a returning team member, brought home a gold medal for the 2008 Team.

The U.S. Physics Olympiad Program was started in 1986 by AAPT to promote and demonstrate academic excellence. It continues to be supported as a joint initiative between AAPT and AIP. The nine-day international competition brings together pre-university students from more than 60 nations. This year's event is sponsored by the Mexico Ministry of Education, the National Council of Science and Technology, and the Yucatan State Government with the support of the National University of Mexico, the National Polytechnical Institute, the Metropolitan Autonomous University, and the Institute for Scientific and Technological Research of San Luis Potosi. The 2009 International Physics Olympiad is being organized by the Mexican Physical Society, the University of Yucatan, and the Merida Campus of the Center for Research and Advanced Studies of the National Polytechnical Institute.

LIST OF EVENTS:
May 16-26 -- Physics Team students visit University of Maryland for their intensive training camp.
May 26 -- Five students chosen as the Traveling Team to represent the US Team at the international competition.
July 3-7 --Traveling Team Mini-Boot Camp, College Park, MD
July 11 -- Traveling Team arrives in Merida for the international competition.
July 19 -- The International Olympiad's final awards given.

MORE ON THE WEB
• Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/olympiad2009/
• History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/Contests/olympiad.cfm
• The official website of the International Physics Olympiad: http://ipho2009.smf.mx/home
• Screening exams the students had to pass to place on the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.compadre.org/psrc/evals/olympiad.cfm

CONTACT:
Marilyn Gardner, American Association of Physics Teachers, mgardner@aapt.org, 301-209-3306

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, MD, April 27, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that Philip Walker "Bo" Hammer, Ph.D., has joined the National Office as Associate Executive Officer. In this role, Dr. Hammer will work closely with Warren Hein, Executive Officer, to support AAPT's educational programs.

"Bo Hammer brings a unique skill set and knowledge about physics education to AAPT. He is familiar with our programs and the AAPT community and will be a significant addition to AAPT's National Office. I am looking forward to the opportunity to work with such a gifted physics educator," said Dr. Warren Hein, AAPT's Executive Officer.

Dr. Hammer comes to AAPT from his position as Vice President of the Franklin Institute Science Museum's Benjamin Franklin Center, where he was responsible for the international Benjamin Franklin Medals and Bower Awards Programs, the Journal of the Franklin Institute, the Institute's Collections and Library, and its public astronomy programs.

Hammer received his BS in Physics in 1987 from Humboldt State University in Arcata, California, and his Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Oregon in 1991. After being a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Hammer spent the '93-'94 academic year as an American Physical Society (APS) Congressional Science Fellow working on the staff of the Subcommittee on Science in the U.S. House of Representatives.

"Excellence in science education is key to our nation's competitive and intellectual future," said Hammer, "and I am excited to join AAPT as it leads the science community's efforts to improve physics teaching and advance the understanding of physics."

Formerly Director of the Society of Physics Students and Sigma Pi Sigma--The Physics Honor Society, and Assistant Manager of the Education Division of the American Institute of Physics (AIP), Hammer participated in President Clinton's Forum on Science in the Public Interest, served on the American Physical Society (APS) Panel on Public Affairs, and on the U.S. House of Representatives 1997 roundtable on Early Career Scientists. Hammer is past chair of the APS Forum on Physics and Society, currently serves on the APS Council, and is president of the Haddon Heights, NJ, Board of Education. Hammer is well-known in the physics education community for his significant contributions and relationships across the spectrum of science education and science policy.

"We are delighted that Dr. Hammer has agreed to come to AAPT. His efforts will allow us to better serve our members and help us reach our goal of becoming a stronger voice for physics education," said Alex Dickison, AAPT President.

About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, MD, April 20, 2009

Twenty students from across the U.S. have emerged through a rigorous exam process that began last January with approximately 4,000 students who participated in the Fnet=ma exam to become the 2009 U.S. Physics Team. These students will continue to train for the mentally grueling exams and lab tests they'll face at the 40th International Physics Olympiad, held this year July 12-19 in Merida Yucatan, Mexico.

" AAPT is pleased to recognize all of the physics students who participated in the 2009 Physics Team selection process. They are the future of physics and physics education in the United States. The students who qualified for the team have proven to be exceptional scholars. It is AAPT's honor to support their further participation in the International Physics Olympiad," said Dr. Warren Hein, Executive Officer of the American Association of Physics Teachers in College Park, MD, which selects the students and organizes their training.

In preparation for the International Physics Olympiad, the students will spend ten days at a physics training camp at the University of Maryland, College Park, conducting lab experiments, taking exams, and hearing presentations from prominent scientists. At the end of the training camp, five students will be selected to travel to the Mexico for international competition.

The coaches for the 2009 U.S. Physics team are: Paul Stanley, Academic Director/Senior Coach, Warren Turner, Senior Coach/Lab Coach, Andrew Lin, David Jones, and David Fallest are all Coaches.

Last year, the team brought home one silver and four gold medals.

The U.S. Physics Olympiad Program was started in 1986 by AAPT to promote and demonstrate academic excellence. The nine-day international competition brings together pre-university students from more than 60 nations. This year's event is sponsored by the Mexico Ministry of Education, the National Council of Science and Technology, and the Yucatan State Government with the support of the National University of Mexico, the National Polytechnical Institute, the Metropolitan Autonomous University, and the Institute for Scientific and Technological Research of San Luis Potosi. The 2009 International Physics Olympiad is being organized by the Mexican Physical Society, the University of Yucatan, and the Merida Campus of the Center for Research and Advanced Studies of the National Polytechnical Institute.

LIST OF EVENTS:
May 16-26 -- Students visit University of Maryland for their intensive training camp.
May 26 -- Five students chosen to represent the US at the international competition.
July 11 -- Students arrive in Merida for the international competition.
July 19 -- The International Competition's final awards given.

MORE ON THE WEB
Main website of the U.S. Physics Team: http://www.aapt.org/olympiad2009/
History of the physics team, including past winners: http://www.aapt.org/Contests/olympiad.cfm
The official website of the International Physics Olympiad: http://ipho2009.smf.mx/home.

About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

College Park, Maryland, United States, March 25, 2009

Distinguished Service Citations are presented to AAPT members in recognition of their exceptional contributions (e.g., committee, section, or editorial work) to physics teaching. The Summer 2009 Citations will be presented during AAPT's Summer Meeting in Ann Arbor, MI.

Alan Gibson is a selfless and tireless warrior in the ongoing war against ignorance, a model educator-citizen, a loyal friend, and an outstanding leader in the MI AAPT as well as the Detroit Metro Area Physics Teacher groups in the past 30 years. He has served for the MI Section Representative, as Vice Chair of the Section Representatives from 2005-2007, as Chair of the Section Representatives from 2007-2009, and as a member of the AAPT Executive Board 2005-2009. Al was in the original PTRA program of 1985 and has been active in the Rural PTRA program. He has served as chair of the International Education Committee and the High School Committee as well as a member of several other committees. In addition to all of his contribution at the local, state, and national levels, Al has served as an ambassador on Physics 'missions' to the Far East."

Al was recognized as a Technology Scholar by Radio Shack. He is recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching (1988) and was a finalist for the Michigan Science Teacher of the Year. He has received the highest awards of Outstanding Leadership/Service from the DMAPT and the MI AAPT where they recognized him saying, "Al has inspired thousands of students and teachers by his dedication to his profession. His amazing talents as an educational leader are only surpassed by his humbleness."

David Maiullo is best known for the many public physics demo shows he performs in his community, both in the usual locations (libraries, schools, senior centers, science fairs, etc.) and in the unusual (bars, outdoors before rock bands play, street fairs, Coney Island). These efforts led to his recognition with the Ernest E. McMahon Award for Public Outreach from Rutgers University in 2000 and Rutgers University's President's Staff Excellence in Service award in 2006.

David plays an invaluable role in the preparation of physics teachers in New Jersey and in the greater physics teaching community. He leads workshops for New Jersey teachers and his efforts are integral to the NJAAPT and Rutgers relationship. David was the 2006 recipient of the, NJAAPT Lifetime Achievement Award.

He has served as Past-president and as a member of the Physics Instructional Resource Association (PIRA), an AAPT affiliate, and continues his work at the Summer Meeting with the Lecture Demo Workshop(s), which he led for 5 years. Additionally, David has provided outstanding service as an Apparatus Committee Chair, as well as serving on the committee for years.

Bruce Mason is a faculty member of the Homer L. Dodge Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Oklahoma. He received a BA degree in Physics from Oberlin College and MS and PhD degrees from the University of Maryland. He also held a postdoctoral research position at the University of Illinois in condensed matter theory before coming to Oklahoma. In the mid-1990's, Bruce became interested in the potential for technology to engage students in new ways and in the possibility of encouraging faculty to make use of these new tools. Through this interest, he became the founding editor of the MERLOT-Physics resource collection and the director of the ComPADRE Digital Library, a collaboration of the AAPT, APS, AIP, and AAS. ComPADRE is part of the National STEM Digital Library funded by the US National Science Foundation. The editors and staff of the ComPADRE project have developed a network of resource collections to provide, online, resources and information to support communities of instructors and students in physics and astronomy. Bruce serves on the AAPT Publications Committee and the Educational Technologies Committee. He has given numerous workshops, tutorials, and talks at AAPT national and section meetings and at other local, national, and international conferences. Bruce is also the Secretary/Treasurer of the American Physical Society's Forum on Education.

Mary Winn taught high school physics for 30 years (20 of them as Science Department Chair) after earning her BS in physics at Tulane University and her MA in Physics Education at University of South Florida. Mary has been an active Physics Teacher Resource Agent (PTRA) since 1992, regularly gives workshops to high school teachers in her state, and co-authored the PTRA workshop manual "The Role of Demonstrations in Physics."

Mary Co-authored AAPT's popular book, "Teaching Physics for the First Time" and has presented several PTRA workshops on this topic. She has, also, served on the Committee on Minorities in Physics, the Committee on Membership and Benefits, and the Committee on Physics in Pre-High School. Mary has been a member of Florida AAPT for more than 30 years. Additionally she is a mentor for new physics teachers in Hillsborough County, FL.

Perhaps her most unique and respected contribution to AAPT is her heroic work for the annual High School Photo Contest. She has worked tirelessly, promoting and submissions, arranging viewing times, and determining awards each spring since 2001 and her success is easily measured in the growth of the contest from 35 to over 800 photos.

Mel Steinberg, conducted the first training for Comprehensive Conceptual Curriculum Project (C3P) developers in the use of the project he designed and spearheaded called CASTLE. CASTLE a powerful curriculum that helps students and teachers understand electricity in a concrete way. Over the years CASTLE became a cornerstone of the training for the AAPT/PTRA program as well as the C3P workshops. It is one of the most requested AAPT/PTRA teacher workshops. Mel made an overwhelming difference in physics education. (This award will be presented posthumously.)

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845
(Fax), www.aapt.org.

Technorati Profile

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, March 25, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that Dr. Arthur Eisenkraft is the 2009 recipient of the Robert A. Millikan Medal. Eisenkraft is Distinguished Professor of Science Education and Director of the Center of Science and Math in Context (COSMIC), University of Massachusetts, Boston. This award recognizes educators who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics. It will be presented during the AAPT Summer Meeting at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI.

Lila Adair, Chairman, AAPT Awards Committee said, "Arthur Eisenkraft's active involvement with AAPT began in the late '80s, when he and a group of high school teachers began writing his popular Active Physics textbook. Due to his many achievements and his high level of activity in the area of physics education through the years, the Awards Committee is pleased to present him with the Millikan Medal."

Eisenkraft began his physics education at SUNY, Stony Brook where he earned both his B.S. and M.A before moving to New York University for his Ph.D in Science Education.

His teaching career began in Nepal while he was serving in the Peace Corp where he decided he wanted to teach physics. After completion of his studies, Eisenkraft began teaching at Fox Lane High School in Bedford, NY where he met AAPT Executive Director, Jack Wilson. Together the two educators created the process that identified and supported the first U.S. Physics Olympics Team to compete in the 1986 International Physics Olympiad. In 1991 Eisenkraft became the Executive Director of the XXIV International Physics Olympiad, hosted by the US for teams from 40 countries. He also served as academic director of the U.S. Physics Team for seven years. As an outgrowth of this work, he also helped found Quantum magazine. Dr. Eisenkraft was also the creator and director of the prestigious Toshiba Exploravision Awards; he has served as Chair of the Duracell Science Scholarship Competition for many years, and was the originator of the Toyota Tapestry Awards.

Perhaps Arthur Eisenkraft's single most significant contribution to AAPT and physics teaching has been his development of the Active Physics curriculum project, which was funded by research grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The goal of the project was to make physics interesting to students of all backgrounds so that they not only learn the material, but understand its application to their daily lives.

Warren Hein, Executive Officer of AAPT said, "AAPT is pleased and honored to recognize Arthur Eisenkraft with the Millikan Medal. Dr. Eisenkraft has made significant contributions to physics education as a teacher, textbook author, administrator, and through service to the profession as president of the National Science Teachers Association." He is very deserving of this honor for his many scholarly contributions to physics education and science education in general."

Dr. Eisenkraft is a previous recipient of AAPT's Distinguished Service Citation (1989) and the AAPT Excellence in Pre-College Teaching Award (1999).

Regarding the Millikan Medal, Eisenkraft stated, "It is hard to reconcile the wave of humility and sheer exuberance that I am feeling at having received this honor. It is an extraordinary recognition of the important work that involves so many of my fellow physics teachers. Two passions drive my professional life - my passion for physics and my passion for teaching. In the pursuit of my passions, I too often am confronted with inequities in our schools, inequities that prevent many of our students from getting access to a quality physics course, a quality physics teacher or an opportunity to discover and experience the joy of science. Addressing equity issues has become my third passion, because justice for children demands it."

About the Award
The Robert A Millikan Medal, established in 1962, recognizes teachers who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics. The recipient is asked to make a presentation at the Ceremonial Session of an AAPT Summer Meeting. A monetary award, The Millikan Medal, an Award Certificate, and travel expenses to the meeting are presented to the recipient.

Previous Awardees
2008, Eric Mazur, Harvard University
2007, David R. Sokoloff, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
2006, Art Hobson, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
2005, John S. Rigden, Washington University in St. Louis, MO
2004, Kenneth S. Krane, Oregon State University, Corvallis
http://www.aapt.org/Grants/millikan.cfm

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, March 25, 2009

Dr. Lee Smolin, a founding and senior faculty member at Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Canada and Adjunct Professor of Physics at the University of Waterloo, is the 2009 recipient of the Klopsteg Memorial Award from the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). Klopsteg awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to the general public. The Klopsteg awardee presents a lecture on a physics topic of current significance suitable for non-specialists, in memory of Paul Klopsteg, AAPT Past President. Dr. Smolin will receive the award at the 2009 AAPT Summer Meeting in Ann Arbor, MI.

"Lee Smolin, a founding member and research physicist at the Perimeter Institute in Waterloo Canada, is well known as a popular author and lecturer, and for his many world-wide appearances on television and radio. For his outstanding contributions in the communication of the excitement of contemporary physics to the general public, the awards committee is proud to present the Klopsteg Memorial Award," says Lila Adair, AAPT Awards Chair, and 2009 AAPT Past President.

Dr. Smolin has written three books, The Life of the Cosmos (1977), Three Roads to Quantum Gravity (2001), and The Trouble with Physics (2006), which explore the philosophical ramifications of developments in contemporary physics and cosmology.

Dr. Smolin has also authored more than 140 scientific papers and has made major contributions to the quantum theory of gravity, being a co-inventor of loop quantum gravity and deformed special relativity. He is well known for his work in cosmology and is the inventor of a theory called cosmological natural selection, which applies a Darwinian methodology to the question of how the laws of physics are chosen. He also has research interests in elementary particle physics, the foundations of quantum mechanics, astrophysics, theoretical biology and economics.

AAPT is the leading organization for physics teachers and physics education and provides services that help enhance teaching skills and publishes scholarly journals documenting best teaching practices. APPT is committed to providing the most current resources and up-to-date research needed to enhance a physics educator's professional development. The results are not only a deeper appreciation of the teaching profession, but most importantly, more enthusiastic involvement from their students.

About the Award
Established in 1990, this award is given to a notable physicist in memory of Paul Klopsteg. The Klopsteg Memorial Award recipient is asked to make a major presentation at an AAPT Summer Meeting on a topic of current significance suitable for non-specialists.

Previous Awardees:
2008 Michio Kaku, Henry Semat Professor at the City college of New York
2007 Neil deGrasse Tyson, Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History, New York
2006 Lisa Randall, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA,
2005 Wendy Freedman, Carnegie Observatories, Pasadena, CA
2004 Anton Zeilinger, University of Vienna, Austria
www.aapt.org/Grants/klopsteg.cfm

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage teaching practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301) 209-3306, (301) 209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
College Park, Maryland, United States, March 25, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today Mario Belloni is the recipient of the 2009 AAPT Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Award. Belloni is Associate Professor of Physics at Davidson College. This award is in recognition of contributions to undergraduate physics teaching and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students.

This prestigious award will be presented to Belloni during the AAPT Summer Meeting in Ann Arbor, MI where he will also present a paper.

Lila Adair, Awards Committee Chair, said, "At Davidson College Mario Belloni is well known as an author, public speaker, researcher, workshop leader, motivator of students, award winning professor, and an innovator in the use of technology for teaching. For his outstanding achievement in teaching undergraduate physics, the AAPT Awards committee is pleased to present him the Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Award."

Dr. Belloni earned his Bachelor of Arts in Physics and Economics at the University of California, Berkeley. He received his Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Physics at the University of Connecticut.

Belloni began his teaching career in 1997 as Visiting Assistant Professor of Physics at Eckerd College, moving to Davidson College in 1998 where he is currently Associate Professor of Physics.

He received the AAPT Distinguished Service Citation in 2006 and has served as a member of the Planning Committee for the Section Representative/Area Chair Governance (2007), a member of the AAPT Meetings Committee (2007-08), and a member of the AAPT Membership and Benefits Committee (2004-07). Belloni is currently Chair of the AAPT Committee on Educational Technologies, North Carolina AAPT Section Representative, and a member of the ComPADRE Quantum Physics Editorial Board.

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, March 25, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that the 2009 AAPT Excellence in Pre-College Physics Teaching Award winner is Deborah Roudebush, a high school physics teacher at Oakton High School in Herndon, VA. This award is in recognition of contributions to pre-college physics teaching and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students.

This prestigious award will be presented to Roudebush on during the AAPT Summer Meeting in Ann Arbor, MI where she will present a paper and accept a monetary award.

Lila Adair, Awards Committee Chair, said Roudebush, one of five finalists, was chosen for many reasons. "Deborah is an outstanding high school teacher who has demonstrated her excellent skills in the classroom as well as outside. She has been providing teacher workshops and making presentations for many years. She is personable, enthusiastic, motivating and, obviously, loves physics. Deborah is a great role model for all physics teachers, especially women. She embodies the spirit of AAPT."

Roudebush earned her Bachelors of Science degree in Physics at Ohio University. She received a Masters of Science degree from Michigan State University in 1979 with an emphasis in Physics Education and her Ed.D. in Adult and Community Education from Ball State University in 1984. She became a National Board Certified Teacher in 2001.

Roudebush has served as an AAPT Physics Teaching Resource Agent (PTRA) since 1992, participated in the DC Urban initiative, served as Rural Initiative - James Madison University Lead Teacher, and DC MSP Lead Teacher in 2008. She has been active in QuarkNet since 2000, serving as Teaching & Learning Fellow with QuarkNet centers. She has participated in the National Academy of Sciences since 2004 and is a member of the College Board AP Physics Redesign Commission. She was recognized as a Presidential Awardee for Excellence in Science Teaching in 2001.

Regarding her recognition as recipient of the 2009 AAPT Excellence in Pre-College Physics Teaching Award, Roudebush said, "I am pleased and thrilled to be so honored by the people who make up AAPT. I have found the AAPT members to be supportive and helpful in my personal journey towards improved physics education. I love working with my teen-aged students to help them discover the joy of understanding the world around them. I equally value my work with fellow teachers to help them establish a connection with other physics teachers in working towards better understanding of physics content and how people learn. I have been able to contribute in this way due in large part to the wonderful support structure of my PTRA and AAPT colleagues. I can't thank you enough."

About AAPT
AAPT is an international organization for physics educators, physicists, and industrial scientists--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching, AAPT provides awards, publications, and programs that encourage practical application of physics principles, support continuing professional development, and reward excellence in physics education. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax), www.aapt.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, March 20, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that the Barbara Lotze Scholarship for Future Teachers has been awarded to Douglass A. Endrizzi and Shaun Piazza with Honorable Mention to Rebekah Myler. Supported by an endowment funded by AAPT Member Barbara Lotze, the scholarship provides a $2,000 stipend to outstanding future high school physics teachers.

About the Recipients
Douglass A. Endrizzi is a member of the class of 2010 at Yale University. "What makes physics interesting is that often one's innate intuition about how the world works is wrong. Moments when you correct your frame of the world, the Aha! moments, are some of the most gratifying moments in school," Douglass says. "My drive to become a teacher derives from wanting to help students realize their own Aha! moments."

Jonathon H. Gillette, Director of Yale University Teacher Preparation & Education Studies, says, "Doug routinely reads beyond an assignment that is excerpted from a book and asks for supplemental work that specifically connects to his interests as a future science teacher. He is relentlessly upbeat and eager to share new insight whether from my class or a moment of clarity in a physics class. He is a real joy to teach and I cannot imagine a better prospect as a science teacher."

Shaun Piazza is a member of the class of Fall 2009 at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Reflecting on his very positive personal experience at Upland Hills Middle School in Michigan, Shaun says, "I have a commitment to teach physics/science in an 'at need' school district. This commitment comes from involvement in the STEM program and NOYCE fellowship. I plan to fully give myself to teaching and to employ the methods used at Upland Hills."

William McGinley, Associate Professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder's School of Education said, "I am most impressed not only by Shaun's knowledge of science and physics, but by his commitment to helping all students through the use of innovative and thoughtful approaches to teaching. Throughout his experience in my classroom, Shaun held himself and his peers to the highest of standards with a combination of inventive playfulness and more serious academic inquiry."

Honorable Mention went to Rebekah Myler, Lipscomb University Class of 2010.

Previous Scholarship Winners
A list of previous winners can be found on the AAPT website at: http://aapt.org/Grants/lotze.cfm.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
College Park, Maryland, United States, March 12, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) today announced the top 200 students chosen to advance to the Semifinal round of U.S. Physics Team selection. Nearly 4,000 students participated in the Fnet=ma Exam in January. The top 400 students took the follow up exam during February. Qualifying semifinalists have been posted by AAPT at www.aapt.org/physicsteam/semifinalists.cfm.

About the Olympiad: The U.S. Physics Olympiad Program is a joint initiative of AAPT and the American Institute for Physics (AIP). AAPT began the program in 1986 to promote and demonstrate academic excellence. The International Olympiad is a nine-day competition among pre-university students from more than 80 nations. This year's Olympiad, the 40th, will be held in Mérida Yucatán, México, July 11th to 19th, 2009.

U.S. Physics Team Selection: AAPT is responsible for recruiting, selecting and training teams each year to compete in the International Physics Olympiad Competition. This selection process begins in early January when high schools register their students to participate in the Fnet=ma exam. Each year approximately 400 top scorers on this first test advance to the semifinal round of competition.

A third exam, student transcripts, and letters of recommendation are used as the basis for selection of the 24 members of the U.S. Physics Team. In May these students travel from schools all over the United States, to the University of Maryland-College Park to the Physics Team Training Camp. There they engage in nine days of intense studying, mystery lab, daily exams and problem solving.

At the end of that training camp, five students and an alternate will be selected as the "Traveling Team" to represent the United States at the International Physics Olympiad (IPhO). In July, the Traveling Team will attend a three day Mini Camp of intense laboratory work. At the end of the Mini Camp the five member Traveling Team and two coaches will go on to the IPhO.

Support the U.S. Physics Olympics Team: Funding for the U.S. Physics Olympics team is supported through donations from concerned individuals and organizations. Contributions are entirely used to support the selection, training, and travel of the team. Donations to the U.S. Physics Olympics team are accepted at www.aapt.org/physicsteam/donate.cfm.

About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
College Park, Maryland, United States, February 16, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers announced that Marina Milner-Bolotin has assumed the role of Vice Chair, Section Representatives.

Marina Milner-Bolotin has been a physics teacher for 17 years. She has taught in middle schools, high schools and universities in four different countries: Ukraine, Israel, U.S. (TX and NJ) and Canada (BC and ON). Currently she teaches physics at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada.

Her involvement with the AAPT started almost ten years ago when, as a graduate student at the University of TX, Austin, she was invited to attend a Fall Meeting of the TX section. For the past eight years she has been an active AAPT member and a Section Representative of the BCAPT (2005-2007) and OAPT (2007-current) sections. Dr. Milner-Bolotin has also served on a number of the AAPT Committees, attending and helping to organize National and Section meetings.

Recognizing AAPT as a very important component her professional life, Dr. Milner-Bolotin says, " Physics teaching gives me the opportunity to bring the excitement of science into my students' lives; to teach them not be afraid to ask "obvious" questions and together try new ideas. I feel very fortunate that I can do for a living what I am passionate about. It is great to see how AAPT transcends the high school-university boundary by providing a forum for all physics teachers to share ideas and figure out solutions together."
About AAPT: AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, February 24, 2009

Recognizing the importance of increasing participation from members of all underrepresented groups in the physics community the AAPT Executive Board approved the following statement during the 2009 Winter Meeting, February 12-16, in Chicago, IL:

The American Association of Physics Teachers is committed to making physics more accessible to everyone. We support efforts to encourage greater participation from members of all under-represented groups in every part of the physics community. We strive to provide open access and employment opportunities to all without discrimination. In this commitment we join other organizations engaged in physics and physics education: government agencies; K-12 institutions; colleges and universities; national laboratories and industry.

About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, February 24, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) today announced the top 400 students chosen to advance to the Quarter-Final round of U.S. Physics Team selection. Nearly 4,000 students participated in the Fnet=ma Exam in January. The top 400 students have been posted by AAPT at www.aapt.org/physicsteam/quarterfinalists.cfm.

About the Olympiad: The U.S. Physics Olympiad Program is a joint initiative of AAPT and the American Institute for Physics (AIP). AAPT began the program in 1986 to promote and demonstrate academic excellence. The International Olympiad is a nine-day competition among pre-university students from more than 80 nations. This year's Olympiad, the 40th, will be held in Mérida Yucatán, México, July 11th to 19th, 2009.

U.S. Physics Team Selection: AAPT is responsible for recruiting, selecting and training teams each year to compete in the International Physics Olympiad Competition. This selection process begins in early January when high schools register their students to participate in the Fnet=ma exam. Each year approximately 400 top scorers on this first test advance to the quarter-final round of competition.

A third exam, student transcripts, and letters of recommendation are used as the basis for selection of the 24 members of the U.S. Physics Team. In May these students travel from schools all over the United States, to the University of Maryland-College Park to the Physics Team Training Camp. There they engage in nine days of intense studying, mystery lab, daily exams and problem solving.

At the end of that training camp, five students and an alternate will be selected as the "Traveling Team" to represent the United States at the International Physics Olympiad (IPhO). In July, the Traveling Team will attend a three day Mini Camp of intense laboratory work. At the end of the Mini Camp the five member Traveling Team and two coaches will go on to the IPhO.

Funding for the U.S. Physics Olympics team is supported through donations from concerned individuals and organizations. Contributions are entirely used to support the selection, training, and travel of the team. Donations to the U.S. Physics Olympics team are accepted at www.aapt.org/physicsteam/donate.cfm.

About AAPT: AAPT (www.aapt.org) is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, February 16, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers announced that Steve Iona has been re-elected to the role of Executive Board Secretary. Dr. Iona, will serve an additional two-year term as Secretary.

Iona has also previously served on the AAPT Board, most recently as Chair of Section Representatives (1999-2005). Iona has also served AAPT as Chair of a Meetings Committee and the Membership and Benefits Committee. He has also served on the High School Committee; the Pre-High School Committee; the Awards Committee; The Physics Teacher Advisory Board; the AAPT national Nominating Committee; and as one of the first PTRAs.

Over a thirty year career as a K-12 teacher, Iona taught Physics, AP Physics, Chemistry, Astronomy, mathematics, a G/T Research Class, and served as the department chair. His professional experience after "retirement" includes Lecturer in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Denver (2003-present) and Instructor, Learning Assistant Seminar on Mathematics and Science Teaching University of Colorado (2003-present). His previous higher education experience included adjunct work at Front Range Community College (Physics), Metropolitan State College of Denver (Science Methods), Teacher in Residence, Metropolitan State College of Denver and University of Colorado (PhysTEC).

His is the recipient of the Radio Shack National Awards for Teaching (1999); Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching Mathematics and Science (2001); AAPT Distinguished Service Citation (2006)

Iona says of his service, "AAPT is a thriving professional organization because of the good ideas that come from individuals and the dedication of its membership to see them implemented. The most successful programs have been those that have helped strengthen relationships among the physics teaching communities. I bring to the Executive Board a historical memory based on my strong participation in past activities and the enthusiasm to explore future opportunities so that AAPT can continue its mission to enhance the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching."

About AAPT: AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
College Park, Maryland, United States, February 16, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers announced that Alexander K. Dickison has assumed the role of Executive Board President. Dr. Dickison, Professor of Physics, Semonole Community College, will serve as President in 2009, and Past President in 2010.

Dr. Dickison has served as a Physics Instructor (1973-present) and Chairman of the Physical Sciences Department (1986-present) at Seminole Community College. He was also an instructor at the University of Wisconsin, Green Bay (1969-72).

His AAPT service includes: Committee on the History and Philosophy of Physics (2002-Present); Treasurer (1996-2002); Chair of Section Representatives (1991-1995); Section Representative (1978-1996); Two-Year College Committee (1987-1990); Building Fund Committee (1986-1988); Science Education for the Public Committee (1981-1985); and TPT Review Committee (1979).

A member of AAPT, the American Physical Society, Florida Section of AAPT, NSTA, Florida Academy of Sciences, and Sigma Pi Sigma, Dr. Dickison has received numerous honors including the AAPT Distinguished Service Award. He serves as the Principal Investigator for Introductory College Physics/21st Century (ICP/21) project; member of the Advisory Committee for SPIN-UP/TYC; Co-Chair of the Florida State Physics and Astronomy Leveling Committee (1996-present); AP Physics Summer Workshops Coordinator (1987-present); Florida Statewide Committee on Common Course Numbering (1984-present); AIP Committee on Career Planning and Placement (1992-present); Summer Eisenhower Grant Institutes for K-12 Teachers Coordinator (1985-92); and the Steering Committee for TYC21.

Recognizing AAPT as a very important component his professional life, Dr. Dickison says, "It provides me a source of rejuvenation. I always leave the section and national meetings with renewed enthusiasm and new teaching ideas to try in my classroom. AAPT is unique in bringing together teachers, from high school through university, to work together to improve student understanding of physics. The strength of APPT resides in its members and their initiatives."

About AAPT: AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, February 16, 2009

The American Association of Physics Teachers announced that David R. Sokoloff has assumed the role of Executive Board Vice President. Dr. Sokoloff, Professor of Physics, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, will serve as Vice President in 2009, President-Elect in 2010, President in 2011, and Past President in 2012.

Sokoloff began his physics education at Queens College of the City University of New York, and went on to earn his Ph.D. in AMO physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1972. He has been on the physics faculty of the University of Oregon since 1978.

For more than two decades, he has conducted research into students' understanding of physics, and used the results of physics education research to develop active learning laboratories and interactive lecture demonstrations that connect students to the behavior of the physical world. He has also been active sharing these active learning approaches with colleagues.

Since 1999, he has been part of UNESCO teams presenting active learning workshops in Australia, Vietnam, Korea, Sri Lanka, The Philippines, Malaysia, Ghana, Tunisia, Morocco, India, Tanzania, Brazil, Mexico, Zambia, and Cameroon, most recently as part of the UNESCO program for developing countries, Active Learning in Optics and Photonics. He is editor/contributor to Active Learning in Optics and Photonics Training Manual (UNESCO, 2006).

A previous recipient of AAPT's Distinguished Service Citation (1997) and Robert A. Millikan Award (2007), Dr. Sololoff has been an active member of AAPT since 1972. He has served as a New Faculty Workshop presenter (2006-present); Co-chair of the Committee on Research in Physics Education (1992-95); PTRA workshop presenter, and done many other national and international presentations. He also has a long career as an author, including RealTime Physics and Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (Wiley, 2004), and is the designer and presenter of optics magic shows for college, elementary school and informal, public audiences.

Sokoloff says of his new role, "With my years of administrative experience at the departmental level and on grant-funded projects, I believe that I can help the AAPT continue to flourish. Having worked, over the years, with high school, two-year college, college and university faculty, I believe that I am sensitive to the needs of each of these groups. I look forward to working more closely with an organization that has given me so many opportunities over the years to grow professionally.

About AAPT: AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information: Contact Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, mgardner@aapt.org, (301)209-3306, (301)209-0845 (Fax).

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, December 15, 2008

Established in 1953, the Distinguished Service Citations are presented to members in recognition of their exceptional contributions (e.g., committee, section, or editorial work) to physics teaching. The Winter 2009 Distinguished Service Awards will be presented at the Winter 2009 meeting in Chicago, Illinois:

Paul Hickman has had a distinguished career as an optical engineer, a high school physics teacher and associate professor of education. His long years of service to AAPT include leadership in PTRA, PhysTEC, the Teacher Preparation Committee, and being the first recipient of AAPT's Excellence in Pre-College Physics Education award.

Charles Holbrow, Dana Professor of Physics Emeritus at Colgate University and Adjunct Professor at MIT, has had a distinguished career as a physics teacher, textbook author, nuclear physics researcher, and physics historian. He served as Associate Editor of Physics Today, AAPT President, AAPT Senior Staff Physicist and AAPT Interim Executive Officer.

Bob Shurtz has been a distinguished physics teacher at the Hawken School for many years, and served as Academic Director of the US Physics Olympiad Team. Other service to AAPT contribution to PTRA , serving as Ohio Section President, and chairing the High School Committee. One of his many awards includes the Tandy Prize.

Gary White is Director of the Society of Physics Students and Sigma Pi Sigma, and Assistant Director of the Education Division of the American Institute of Physics. Prior to his post at AIP, he taught at Northwestern State University, Natchitoches, Louisiana, where he was voted 1996 Outstanding Teacher of the Year.

Courtney Willis teaches at the University of Northern Colorado, after having a distinguished career as a high school teacher. He served as AAPT Examinations Director, Chair of the High School Committee, presented AAPT workshops, contributed frequently to The Physics Teacher, and as the President and Secretary-Treasurer of the Colorado-Wyoming Section.

About AAPT

AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information:
Contact Linda Dylla, AAPT Communications Department, 
ldylla@aapt.org, (301)209-3622, 
(301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, December 15, 2008

Established in 1953, the Distinguished Service Citations are presented to members in recognition of their exceptional contributions (e.g., committee, section, or editorial work) to physics teaching. The Winter 2009 Distinguished Service Awards will be presented at the Winter 2009 meeting in Chicago, Illinois:

Paul Hickman has had a distinguished career as an optical engineer, a high school physics teacher and associate professor of education. His long years of service to AAPT include leadership in PTRA, PhysTEC, the Teacher Preparation Committee, and being the first recipient of AAPT's Excellence in Pre-College Physics Education award.

Charles Holbrow, Dana Professor of Physics Emeritus at Colgate University and Adjunct Professor at MIT, has had a distinguished career as a physics teacher, textbook author, nuclear physics researcher, and physics historian. He served as Associate Editor of Physics Today, AAPT President, AAPT Senior Staff Physicist and AAPT Interim Executive Officer.

Bob Shurtz has been a distinguished physics teacher at the Hawken School for many years, and served as Academic Director of the US Physics Olympiad Team. Other service to AAPT contribution to PTRA , serving as Ohio Section President, and chairing the High School Committee. One of his many awards includes the Tandy Prize.

Gary White is Director of the Society of Physics Students and Sigma Pi Sigma, and Assistant Director of the Education Division of the American Institute of Physics. Prior to his post at AIP, he taught at Northwestern State University, Natchitoches, Louisiana, where he was voted 1996 Outstanding Teacher of the Year.

Courtney Willis teaches at the University of Northern Colorado, after having a distinguished career as a high school teacher. He served as AAPT Examinations Director, Chair of the High School Committee, presented AAPT workshops, contributed frequently to The Physics Teacher, and as the President and Secretary-Treasurer of the Colorado-Wyoming Section.

About AAPT

AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information:
Contact Linda Dylla, AAPT Communications Department, 
ldylla@aapt.org, (301)209-3622, 
(301)209-0845 (Fax)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

College Park, Maryland, United States, December 15, 2008

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that the Oersted Medal will be awarded to George F. Smoot, Nobel Laureate, an astrophysicist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory since 1974 and a University of California at Berkeley physics professor since 1994, in recognition of his outstanding, widespread, and lasting impact on the teaching of physics.

The Oersted Medal will be presented to Dr. Smoot at a Ceremonial Session of the AAPT Winter Meeting in Chicago, Illinois, on Saturday, February 14, 2009. Following the presentation, Dr. Smoot will deliver his keynote address titled, "The History and Fate of the Universe."

Regarding the award, Smoot stated, " Thank you for this esteemed award. I am honored to be part of this recognized group of scientists. It is special to me since I recently taught my freshman physics class about Oersted's discovery that electric currents cause magnetic fields. It is wonderful to show the relation between teaching and research. The past two years have been very memorable and exciting for me, and this award is part of that process. I hope that my contribution will help pave the way for the next generation and for their teachers.''

Dr. Harvey Leff, Chairman, AAPT Awards Committee, said, "It is a great honor to present the Oersted Medal to Dr. George Smoot, who has measured properties of the universe as it existed nearly 14 billion years ago. His detailed study of fluctuations in the cosmic background radiation has led to an understanding of why galaxies formed as they did. This is remarkable physics of the most fundamental kind."

"AAPT is very pleased to present the Oersted Medal, AAPT's highest award, to Dr. Smoot for his significant contributions to our understanding of the universe and for communicating the importance of these discoveries to the general public." stated Warren Hein, AAPT's Executive Officer.

Professor Smoot was born in Yukon, Florida. His father was a hydrologist for the U.S. Geological Survey and his mother was a science teacher and school principal. Smoot says his parents instilled in him a joy for learning and an interest in science and math. He received his Ph.D. in physics at MIT in 1970 and decided to enter the field of cosmology, a frontier of fundamental science that was ripe for exploration.

Smoot was one of the first pioneering astrophysicists who devised ways to conduct experiments that produced data and information about the early universe. "People have contemplated the origin and evolution of the universe long before the time of Aristotle," he says. "Although cosmology has been around since the time of the ancients, historically it has been dominated by theory and speculation. Very recently, the era of speculation has given way to a time of science. The advance of knowledge and of scientific ingenuity means that at long last, we can actually test our theories."

Professor Smoot is an author of more than 200 science papers and is also coauthor
(with Keay Davidson) of the popularized scientific book Wrinkles in Time (Harper, 1994) that elucidates cosmology and the COBE discovery. Another essay entitled "My Einstein Suspenders" appears in My Einstein: Essays by Twenty-four of the World's Leading Thinkers on the Man, His Work, and His Legacy (Ed. John Brockman, Pantheon, 2006).

About the Award

The Oersted Medal is named for Hans Christian Oersted (1777-1851), a Danish physicist who, in the course of creating a demonstration for teaching his class, discovered that electric currents caused a magnetic field. This was a crucial step in establishing the theory of electromagnetism so important in building modern technology and modern physics. The award was established by AAPT in 1936 and is given annually to a person who has had outstanding, widespread, and lasting impact on the teaching of physics.

The previous Oersted award went to Mildred Dresselhaus. Other recipients include Arnold Arons, and Nobel Laureates Hans Bethe and Richard Feynman.

The complete list of winners can be found at http://www.aapt.org/Grants/oersted.cfm.

About AAPT
AAPT is the leading organization for physics educators--with more than 10,000 members worldwide. Our mission is to advance the greater good through physics teaching. We provide our members with many opportunities for professional development, communication, and student enrichment. We serve the larger community through a variety of programs and publications. AAPT was founded in 1930 and is headquartered in the American Center for Physics in College Park, Maryland.

For more information:
Contact Linda Dylla, AAPT Communications Department, 
ldylla@aapt.org, (301)209-3622, 
(301)209-0845 (Fax)


The American Association of Physics Teachers is offering three $2,000 scholarships for future high-school physics teachers. This scholarship, supported by an endowment funded by Barbara Lotze, is available only to U.S. citizens attending a U.S. school. Undergraduate students in, or planning to enter, physics teacher preparation curricula and high-school seniors planning to enter such curricula are eligible.

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced that Vera Rubin, Ph.D., will receive the Richtmyer Memorial Award. Rubin, Senior Fellow of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, will receive the award for outstanding contributions to physics and effectively communicating those contributions to physics educators.

Arlington, Va. – As school doors swing open, students have a terrific opportunity to look forward to — the Team America Rocketry Challenge.

Registration is now open for the world’s largest rocket contest challenging participants to compete for $60,000 in prizes and scholarships and a trip to next year’s international air show in Paris.

The contest rules and registration are at http://www.rocketcontest.org. Participants must design and build a rocket that will climb to 750 feet and stay aloft for 45 seconds. This year’s new task is transporting the one-egg payload lying on its side rather than positioned vertically, mimicking the position of an astronaut.

Teams have until Dec.1 to register. April 6 is the deadline to conduct a qualifying launch and earn a trip to the finals, scheduled for May 16 at the Great Meadow in The Plains, Va. The registration fee is $105.

AIA sponsors the contest with the National Association of Rocketry, NASA, the Defense Department, the American Association of Physics Teachers and AIA member companies.

Students in grades 7-12 in any U.S. school or non-profit youth organization are eligible to compete. About 7,000 students from across the country took part in the contest last year, and since TARC’s first contest in 2003, almost 50,000 students have taken the challenge. A team from Enloe High School in North Carolina was crowned champion in 2008.

The contest gives future engineers the opportunity to demonstrate their math and physics skills. Working together in a team environment, they will design a real aerospace product, which will be put through the rigors of testing and evaluation.

The aerospace industry is actively looking for young people to join its ranks. The industry is facing a potential workforce crisis as scores of employees reach retirement age. According to AIA statistics, almost 60 percent of the U.S. aerospace workforce was age 45 or older in 2007.

For more information on careers in aerospace, visit http://www.launchintoaerospace.org.

As Associate Executive Officer, Warren oversaw management, budgeting and funding in the national office. He worked with members, officers, staff and leaders of sister societies to foster the dissemination of physics knowledge, particularly through teaching.

Hein also oversaw grants, interfaced with AAPT committees and state and regional sections, and advised the Executive Officer.

Warren received his B.S. degree from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in 1966 and his Ph.D. in Nuclear Physics from Iowa State University in 1970. Prior to joining the AAPT in 1997, Warren taught physics at Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota, from 1970-1979, and South Dakota State University from 1979-1997. He also served as Department Head from 1985-1997. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

College Park, Maryland, United States, November 27, 2007

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT; http://www.aapt.org) announced today that Vera Rubin, Ph.D., has been selected to receive The Richtmyer Memorial Award. Rubin, Senior Fellow of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, received the Award for outstanding contributions to physics and effectively communicating those contributions to physics educators.

College Park, Maryland, United States, November 19, 2007

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT; http://www.aapt.org) announced today that The Melba Newell Phillips Medal has been awarded to Judy R. Franz, Ph.D., Executive Officer of the American Physical Society (APS), in recognition of her creative leadership and dedicated service that have resulted in exceptional contributions within AAPT.

College Park, Maryland, United States, November 19, 2007

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT; http://www.aapt.org) announced today that the Oersted Medal has been awarded to Mildred S. Dresselhaus, Ph.D., MIT Institute Professor of Physics and Electrical Engineering, in recognition of her outstanding, widespread, and lasting impact on the teaching of physics.

The American Association of Physics Teachers announced today that Warren W. Hein, PhD, Chief Academic Officer for AAPT, has been awarded the distinction of a 2007 Fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). This esteemed honor is bestowed upon Dr. Hein by his peers for his outstanding contributions to K-16 education, for sustained and exemplary leadership in the physics education community, and for national advocacy of professional development for all teachers.

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that the 2007 AAPT Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching Award has been awarded to Dr. Steven L. Manly, Associate Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Rochester, NY. This award is in recognition of contributions to undergraduate physics teaching and awardees are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments in communicating the excitement of physics to their students.

College Park, Maryland, United States, April 6, 2007

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT; ) announced today that the 2007 Robert A. Millikan Award has been awarded to Dr. David R. Sokoloff, Professor of Physics, University of Oregon, Eugene. This award recognizes educators who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics.

College Park, Maryland, United States, April 6, 2007

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT; ) announced today that the 2007 Robert A. Millikan Award has been awarded to Dr. David R. Sokoloff, Professor of Physics, University of Oregon, Eugene. This award recognizes educators who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics.

BERKELEY – The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) this week honored two University of California, Berkeley, physics professors for their undergraduate and public teaching.

Eugene Commins	Carlos Bustamante
(Photos courtesy Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)

The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) has announced that Dr. Robert Hilborn has joined the National Office as Senior Physics Fellow for College and University Programming. In this role, Dr. Hilborn will work closely with physics departments to support educational improvements in undergraduate and graduate physics programs. He will expand upon AAPT’s programs that currently involve department chairs, directors of graduate programs, new professors, and teaching assistants. These programs have recently addressed the inclusion of advanced topics such as general relativity and computational physics in the undergraduate curriculum, the education of teaching assistants, and systemic changes in teaching introductory physics at research universities.