Recently in Society of Physics Students Category

SPS Outstanding Student Award recipients Josh Fuchs and Gabriel Caceres represented SPS and the U.S. at the 2009 International Conference of Physics Students (ICPS), the annual conference of the International Association of Physics Students (IAPS). This year's conference was the 24th in a row and was held in Split, Croatia, August 10-18, 2009. It was organized entirely by the Student Section of the Croatian Physical Society. ICPS truly is a conference for physics students run by physics students.

Feature Articles: Josh Fuchs | Gabriel Caceres | ICPS Photos | SPS Program Info

"I want to be an astrophysicist!" exclaimed a seven-year old girl talking to a graduate-school-bound physics club member during Wooster College's first annual Community Science Day. Wooster, along with four other schools, are recipients of a 2009 Blake Lilly Prize. These annual awards recognize SPS chapters and individuals who make a genuine effort to positively influence the attitudes of school children and the general public about physics.

The Society of Physics Students (SPS) has awarded 20 Leadership Scholarships to undergraduate physics majors for the 2009-10 academic year. The five top awardees receiving $3,000 SPS Outstanding Leadership Scholarships are Maria Drout, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA; Logan Hancock, Angelo State University, San Angelo, TX; Michael Jokubaitis, Drew University, Madison, NJ; Tyler McCleery, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS; and Jenna Smith, Rhodes College, Memphis, TN. Fifteen $2,000 awards were also given in a variety of categories. The purpose of the SPS Scholarship program is to encourage the study of physics and the pursuit of high scholarship. SPS derives most of its support from the American Institute of Physics (AIP). SPS awards and scholarship programs are made possible, in part, through the generous contributions of Sigma Pi Sigma members and friends.

The American Physical Society (APS) Forum on Physics and Society (FPS), in partnership with the Society of Physics Students and the APS Forum on Graduate Student Affairs (FGSA), proudly announce the 2009 recipients of the Student Fellowships in Physics and Society. They are Kevin Thomas, University of Central Florida and Zhenyuan Zhao, University of Miami. The primary goal of the Fellowships is to provide research and project opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students interested in physics and society, and to raise the awareness of applying physics to problems in society as a career and as an important undertaking by members of the physics community.

Joshua Fuchs, Rhodes College, and Gabriel Caceres, Augustana College, are recipients of the 2009 SPS Outstanding Students Awards for Undergraduate Research. They will represent the United States and SPS and present their research at the 2009 International Conference of Physics Students (ICPS), August 10-18, 2009, in Split, Croatia. Expenses for transportation, room, board, and meeting registration will be paid by SPS. They will also receive a $500 honorarium and a $500 award for their SPS Chapter. In addition, they will be invited to give their research presentation at a SPS Research Session at a national meeting in 2009-10.

Dr. Karen Williams, professor of physics at East Central University, Ada, OK, has been awarded The Worth Seagondollar Service Award in recognition of her extraordinary level of service and commitment to the Society of Physics Students (SPS) and Sigma Pi Sigma, the physics honor society. Williams received the award at the 2008 Sigma Pi Sigma Quadrennial Congress, held at Fermilab in Batavia, IL. The award recognizes her "service as a chapter adviser, zone councilor and president of the SPS, overseeing a great expansion of the role of president and the precedent-setting 2004 Sigma Pi Sigma Congress."

The Society of Physics Students (SPS) and Sigma Pi Sigma are joining organizations around the country and the world in celebration of the International Year of Astronomy (IYA 2009) and the Year of Science (YoS 2009). The SPS National Council chose A Universe of Wonder as the theme for 2009 in honor of these celebrations.

IYA 2009 commemorates the 400 years since Galileo first turned a telescope to the skies and all that we have learned in that time. To spread the sense of wonder and surprise that Galileo must have felt at seeing craters on the Moon and satellites orbiting Jupiter, SPS joins other IYA 2009 participants in their cornerstone project to help one million students build a telescope similar to Galileo's and look out to the same objects that inspired him. Dubbed "Galileoscopes," these working scientific instruments will be an integral part of the 2009 SPS SOCKs (Science Outreach Catalyst Kits).

How do we know what we know? From astronomy to zoology, YoS 2009 aims to increase public understanding of the process and nature of science. SPS has collaborated with the APS and other organizations in the COPUS network (Coalition on the Public Understanding of Science) to produce experiments, stories, physicist profiles, games, videos and other content for March's "Physics & Technology" thematic hub on the YoS 2009 website. As part of this effort, SPS is spearheading an experiment on the science of rolling objects. Anyone can contribute data by doing a few rolling experiments and submitting the results on the YoS 2009 website.

Dr. Samuel Lofland, SPS Advisor and Director of Materials at Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ, has been honored as the 2008 SPS Outstanding Chapter Advisor. The Award, which was presented by SPS President Earl Blodgett during the February 16 Awards Ceremony at the 2009 AAPT Winter Meeting in Chicago, IL, consists of a plaque and a $5,000 prize; with $3,000 going to Dr. Lofland and $1,000 going to both the Rowan University physics department and the Rowan University Physic Club.

Andrew Roberts, President of the Rowan University Physics Club, notes that "[Professor Lofland's] steadfast belief in the Rowan chapter's potential and his infectious enthusiasm for physics has ensured that Rowan SPS isn't just another campus club, but rather a nationally recognized organization committed to the education of both its members and of its community." Robert Booth, the club's Treasurer, adds "Professor Lofland has a way of rallying the troops, so to speak. He has a talent for unifying our SPS chapter, with chants and catch phrases such as "top of the food chain" -- meaning that we can do anything. He commands a great respect from the student body perhaps because of the respect that he gives to students."

Fourteen Society of Physics Students (SPS) chapters have received 2009 Marsh W. White Outreach Awards to help fund their outreach projects during the coming academic year. Marsh W. White Awards are made to SPS chapters "to support projects designed to promote interest in physics among students and the general public."

Five Society of Physics Students (SPS) chapters have received Sigma Pi Sigma Undergraduate Research Awards to fund chapter research projects. The awards provide calendar year grants to support local chapter activities that are deemed imaginative and likely to contribute to the strengthening of the SPS program. The program is funded through income from the Sigma Pi Sigma Trust Endowment Fund.

COLLEGE PARK, MD - Dr. Thomas Olsen, former physics department chair at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon, will take on a new role as Assistant Director of the Society of Physics Students (SPS) and Sigma Pi Sigma, the physics honor society.

Olsen, an expert on chaotic patterns in fluid flow, will focus his attention on developing new resources for physics bachelor’s degree recipients as they plan their career trajectories.

"Tom has a great track record as a volunteer leader within SPS, and the excellent work of his students speaks volumes about the quality of his efforts," said SPS Director Gary White. “He brings a deep knowledge of physics, physics students, and mentorship to our work here.”

Olsen led his campus’s chapter of SPS to numerous national awards, and in 2006, he was recognized as Teacher of the Year at Lewis and Clark College. He has served on the SPS national Council for more than a decade, first as the faculty representative from Zone 17 (Northwest US), then as the President of Sigma Pi Sigma from 1998-2002; he currently serves as the SPS national Historian.

The Society of Physics Students (SPS) has awarded 26 scholarships to undergraduate physics majors for the 2008-09 academic year. The three top awardees receiving $3,000 SPS Outstanding Leadership Scholarships are Ann Deml, University of Wisconsin-River Falls, River Falls, WI; Jodie Tvedtnes, Utah State University, Logan, UT; and Tamela Maciel, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR. Twenty-three $2,000 awards were also given in a variety of categories. The SPS Scholarship program exists to encourage the study of physics and the pursuit of high scholarship. SPS derives most of its support from the American Institute of Physics (AIP). SPS awards and scholarship programs are made possible, in part, through the generous contributions of Sigma Pi Sigma members and friends.

The Society of Physics Students (SPS) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2008 SPS Outstanding Student Awards for Undergraduate Research: Therese Jones, Pennsylvania State University; Rachael Roettenbacher, Ohio Wesleyan University; and Jodie Barker-Tvedtnes, Utah State University. They will represent the United States and SPS and present their research at the 2008 International Conference of Physics Students (ICPS) in Cracow, Poland. August 6-13, 2008.

Eight Society of Physics Students (SPS) chapters have received Sigma Pi Sigma Undergraduate Research Awards to fund chapter research projects. The awards provide calendar year grants to support local chapter activities that are deemed imaginative and likely to contribute to the strengthening of the SPS program. The program is funded through income from the Sigma Pi Sigma Trust Endowment Fund.

The 2008 recipients are: California State University- Chico, Chico, CA; University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO; Rhodes College, Memphis, TN; Utah State University, Logan, UT; Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR; Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA; Towson University, Towson, MD; and Suffolk University, Boston, MA.

Thirteen Society of Physics Students (SPS) chapters have received Marsh W. White Outreach Awards to help fund their outreach projects during the coming academic year. Marsh W. White Awards are made to SPS chapters "to support projects designed to promote interest in physics among students and the general public."

The 2008 recipients are: Penn State University, University Park, PA; Randolph College, Lynchburg, VA; Augustana College, Rock Island, NY; University of Wisconsin - Platteville, Platteville, WI; Millikin University, Decatur, IL; Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA; University of Louisville, Louisville, KY; St. Mary's University, San Antonio, TX; University of Texas, Arlington, Arlington, TX; Mount San Antonio College, Walnut, CA; Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, OH; Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ; and Texas State University, San Marcos, TX.

The SPS National Council recently adopted "Future Faces of Physics" as the theme for the 2007-08 academic year. With this theme, the council aims to raise visibility and focus on issues of student diversity in physics. A thematic logo has been created to promote diversity, and the SPS national office is developing diversity workshops and quiz show games for use at zone and chapter meetings.

COLLEGE PARK, MD, Oct. 16 -- Dr. Toni Sauncy, Associate Professor of Physics and Society of Physics Students (SPS) Advisor at Angelo State University, San Angelo, TX, has been honored as the 2007 SPS Outstanding Chapter Advisor. The Award consists of a plaque and a $5,000 prize; with $3,000 going to Dr. Sauncy and $1,000 going to both the Angelo State physics department and the Angelo State SPS chapter.

The three recipients of the 2007 Society of Physics Students (SPS) Outstanding Student Awards for Undergraduate Research presented their research at the 2007 International Conference for Physics Students (ICPS) in London, England.