eNNOUNCER April, 2010

Summer Meeting in Portland, Oregon

AAPT's summer meeting will occur July 17-21, 2010 in the Portland Hilton Executive Tower and Portland State University in beautiful Portland, Oregon.
Registration coming soon. Check http://www.aapt.org/Conferences/sm2010/registration.cfm for more information.

Past Successes and Future Directions: A National Two-Year College Physics Meeting will take place Saturday, July 17, 2010 in tandem with the AAPT Summer Meeting in Portland, OR. This national gathering of TYC physics instructors will include sessions on creating a virtual TYC community, the role of TYCs in teacher training, innovations in laboratory and distance education, adopting and adapting PER-based curriculum, and more. For more information, please see http://www.instruction.greenriver.edu/aapt/tyc/TandemMeeting071710.htm.
Workshop on Active Learning with Video Analysis
The LivePhoto Physics project is offering an NSF-funded 5-day workshop for university and college faculty interested in using digital video analysis in student research, lectures, tutorials, homework assignments, and laboratories. The workshop will cover capture and analysis techniques for a range of topic areas such as mechanics, thermal physics, wave propagation, electricity, magnetism, and optics and will be held in Portland, OR, July 12–16, 2010 prior to the AAPT Summer Meeting.
For more information visit: livephoto.rit.edu/workshops/ or contact Robert.Teese@rit.edu.

Call for Authors

The American Association of Physics Teachers seeks individuals interested in preparing a state-of-the-art, next generation manuscript for the American Journal of Physics or The Physics Teacher that takes full advantage of cutting edge technology, innovation, and R&D in electronic publishing. The selected individuals will be part of a working group that will design the features and determine what resources are needed to produce online manuscripts incorporating currently available digital technology. Example features could include, for example, animations embedded directly in the manuscript, accessible data tables associated with figures, capability to re-plot and analyze graphical data in different ways, access to intermediate derivation steps between equations, tags on symbols that reveal what the symbol stands for, and the ability to view the manuscript with different levels of detail. Individuals who are interested in participating in the working group to develop a manuscript should send a vita, a description of a proposed manuscript, and information on any prior relevant experience to Marilyn Gardner, Director of Communications, (mgardner@aapt.org) by May 31, 2010.

APS/AAPT PTEC Topical Workshop: Pedagogical Content Knowledge

Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ
April 19-20, 2010
Rutgers University, in cooperation with the APS/AAPT Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PTEC), invites you to attend a workshop that will change how you think about preparing physics teachers. This two-day topical workshop will highlight the unique Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK)-based curriculum developed at Rutgers. For more information, please see www.ptec.org/conferences/PCK2010.

2010 High School Physics Photo Contest

Entries are now being accepted for the popular High School Physics Photo Contest sponsored by Vernier! The contest is open to high school students in grades 9-12 (or equivalent international grade level). Photos may be entered in one of two categories: Natural and Contrived. Submit your entries online today! http://www.aapt.org/Programs/contests/photocontest.cfm

AAPT Announces e-Mentor for New Pre-College Physics and Physical Science Teachers

Are you a new physics or physical science teacher or do you know a new physics or physical science teacher who could benefit from mentoring by a master teacher?
To participate, register at http://www.aapt.org/Resources/ementor.cfm.
A mentor familiar with the subjects being taught will be assigned by the e-Mentor coordinator.

AIP Celebrates "World TeV Day" and Congratulates CERN on Latest Milestone

The American Institute of Physice (AIP) and its member societies, including AAPT, celebrated March 30, 2010 as "World TeV Day" in recognition of the major milestone achieved at CERN's Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at 1:06 p.m. CEST. At that moment, protons traveling at nearly the speed of light smashed together at energies of 7 TeV, the highest-ever energetic particle collisions achieved in a laboratory, marking the formal start of the LHC research program. Particle physicists around the world are looking forward to a potentially rich harvest of new physics as the LHC begins its first long run at an energy three and a half times higher than previously achieved at a particle accelerator. More information is available at http://public.web.cern.ch/public/.

APS/AAPT Joint Meeting a Hit with Students

SPS had four student reporters at the AAPT/APS meeting and their stories about the experience are now posted on the SPS website.
http://www.spsnational.org/meetings/reports/

Survey Participants Win Galileoscopes

Participants who took the 2010 APS/AAPT Joint Meeting Survey were entered into a drawing for a free Galileoscope. We thank all of the participants. Your opinions and suggestions are invaluable as we refine our national meetings to better meet your needs. Congratulations to the winners:
Eleanor Sayre, Wabash College, Crawfordsville, IN
Maxine Willis, Gettysburg, PA
Michael Fetsko, Mills Godwin High School, Henrico, VA
Deborah Lynn, Ithaca High School, Ithaca, NY

Need a Great Science Intern?

The AAPT Career Center is now offering a FREE online-only posting to employers recruiting seasonal interns. Get the word out and reach the future of the science community – AAPT's membership, as well as the members and student members of APS, AVS, and the IEEE Computer Society (if a computer-related internship). Your intern posting will also appear on the Physics Today Jobs site. Login to or create your Employer account at http://careers.aapt.org/hr/index.cfm to get started. Free posting valid on 60-day online-only internship postings ONLY. "Student/Internship" Career Level must be selected when posting to access this offer.

PHYSICSBOWL 2010

The 2010 PhysicsBowl exam is currently being administered between April 1-15. Stay tuned to http://www.aapt.org/Programs/contests/physicsbowl.cfm for results. Thanks to all those who registered and good luck to the participants.

uCOMP - A Collection of Computational Physics Resources

The UCOMP mission is to improve and update physics education through computational physics. Computers play an essential and vital role in physics research. They can—and should—play the same role in physics education. The collection’s primary, but not exclusive, target audience is undergraduate physics faculty. The collection will also have value to faculty and students at high schools and graduate schools. The collection will provide lessons, code, executable files, animations, tutorials, and facilities for faculty support (e.g. community building, electronic collaborations, etc.).

2010 Six Flags America Physics Day

Amusement parks all over the country will open their gates exclusively for physics students! The students have access to one of the world's largest laboratories for carrying out real-world science experiments. Throughout the day there are opportunities for students to collect data using accelerometers on selected rides, participate in demonstrations, and enter contests for prizes. For more information go to http://www.aapt.org/Programs/contests/physicsday.cfm

Save 40% on Amusement Park Physics

Save 40% on the member price, while supplies last, on this best seller edited by Carole Escobar. In recent years, there has been an explosion of interest in using amusement parks as laboratories. The AAPT Amusement Park Physics Handbook Committee collected the various educational materials written and circulated by individual teachers and created this complete handbook for amusement park physics. Amusement Park Physics presents all of the information you need both to plan a trip to a park and to use the physics of amusement park rides in your classes. The spiral-bound book includes a teacher's guide, practice problems, information on accelerometers, a measurement reference, laboratory exercises, reproducible student worksheets, and reprinted resource articles. Answer keys are provided. Get your copy now at the Physics Store.

Join Us on Facebook and Twitter

AAPT tweets, posts and discussions are ongoing at the following links.
Join us and stay informed.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/American-Association-of-Physics-Teachers/43948086085?ref=ts
http://twitter.com/physicsteachers

Physics News Update

Physics News Update is a digest of news items arising from physics meetings, physics journals, newspapers and magazines, and other news sources. Stay current on the world of physics. Sign up for the e-mail alerts at http://www.aip.org/pnu/.

An Activity Based Physics Chautauqua Short Course

is being offered at Dickinson College Carlisle, PA from June 19 ‐ 21, 2010.
This hands‐on course is designed for those interested in making learning in their introductory course more active. Participants will be introduced to research‐based strategies for each component of the course: lecture, lab, problem solving, analytic mathematical modeling and video analysis. Graduate credit is available. For more information and to register:
http://uoregon.edu/~sokoloff/chaut1.htm

Vernier 2-day, Hands-on Workshop

Vernier will offer one college subject-specific institute in a 2-day, hands-on workshop on August 9 - August 10, 2010 in Washington, DC. The 2-day College Physics Institute will survey all data-collection and video tools offered by Vernier. Participants will learn both basic and advanced skills in Logger Pro, including configuring graphs, performing custom curve fits, setting up calculated columns and customized data-collection modes. Video capture and analysis will be emphasized. Data collection will use LabQuest, LabQuest Mini, and wireless force sensors. All common physics sensors will be available, including rotary motion kits and optics devices. Included in the workshop fee of $199 is breakfast/lunch and a free copy of Physics with Video Analysis. Visit http://www.vernier.com/workshop/college.html?subject=physics for more information.

Toyota International Teacher Program

Toyota is pleased to announce that applications are now available for the 2010 Toyota International Teacher Program to the Galapagos Islands, a fully-funded professional development program for U.S. educators. Funded by Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. and administered by the Institute of International Education, the program aims to advance environmental stewardship and global connectedness in U.S. schools and communities. The program will take place November 20 – December 4, 2010 and the deadline to apply is May 26, 2010. Full-time classroom teachers and librarians of all subjects for grades 6 – 12 are eligible to apply! Please visit our website at www.toyota4education.com for application instructions, FAQs, and to apply online.

ALPhA to Offer "Laboratory Immersions"

During the summer of 2010, the Advanced Lab Physics Association (ALPhA) will be inaugurating their "Laboratory Immersions". Last year's AAPT/APS-sponsored Topical Conference on Advanced Laboratories highlighted the need for training opportunities which would broaden the expertise of advanced laboratory instructors. ALPhA's Laboratory Immersions offer an opportunity to spend three full days, with expert colleagues on hand, learning the details of a single experiment well enough to teach it with confidence. The 2010 Immersions are:
June 17-18, 2010 at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA. This is a special two day Immersion that will focus on single-photon quantum mechanics experiments.
July 17, 2010 at Reed College in Portland, OR. This is a special one day Immersion that will focus on LabVIEW Instruction for the Advanced Laboratory.
Aug. 2-4, 2010 at Buffalo State College, Buffalo, NY. Experiments offered: Pulsed NMR, Optical Pumping, Modern Interferometry, Mossbauer Spectroscopy, High Temperature Superconductivity.
Aug. 11-13, 2010 at Caltech, Pasadena, CA. Experiments offered: Vacuum Techniques/Thin Film Deposition, Low Noise Signal Detection with Lock-Ins,Saturated Absorption Spectroscopy, Resonant Absorption and Refraction.
For more information and to register, please visit www.advlab.org

Redesigned Discovery of Sound in the Sea is Launched!

The Discovery of Sound in the Sea (DOSITS) Project introduces the science and uses of underwater sound and provides easy, efficient access to timely peer reviewed content on the effects of underwater sound on marine animals. The DOSITS team, led by Gail Scowcroft of the University of Rhode Island Office of Marine Programs (OMP), announces the launch of a newly redesigned website (http://www.dosits.org) that takes advantage of the advances in web technology since the website was originally launched in November 2002.
The redesigned DOSITS site offers a much more interactive learning environment. The front page uses Flash-based interactives that allow users to quickly immerse themselves in exciting content, from the songs of humpback whales to interviews with cutting-edge scientists to the use of acoustics to measure waves. Interactives have also been created for the sites galleries, including an extensive Audio Gallery and Scientist Gallery. These two sections contain a variety of multimedia resources.
Please visit the site and let us know what you think via our public input survey (in the left hand navigation on the DOSITS homepage). To receive more information about the Discovery of Sound in the Sea Project, please contact OMP’s Holly Morin via email hmorin@gso.uri.edu.

ASA Seeking Education Coordinator

The Acoustical Society of America (ASA) invites applications for the newly-created position of ASA Education Coordinator. Application information and instructions can be found at http://asa.aip.org/coordinator.pdf. The review of applications will begin on April 15, 2010 and continue until the position is filled.

Homemade Musical Instruments at the ASA

A special session on "Homemade Musical Instruments for Teaching Acoustics" will be held on Monday, April 19th, 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. at the meeting of the Acoustical Society of America in Baltimore. The session, organized by Thomas Rossing (Stanford University), Preston Wilson (University of Texas), and Andrew Morrison (DePaul University), will include presentations by students from Westown School (Pennsylvania) and Mount Vernon High School (Virginia), as well as by several experienced physics teachers at high schools, colleges, and a science museum. The session will take place in the Dover A/B/C room at the Baltimore Waterfront Mariott Hotel. High school teachers and students may attend the session without charge but are required to register. If you register on-site, write "High School Teacher" or "High School Student" on the registration form so that the registration personnel do not charge you the registration fee.

SPORE Now Accepting Nominations

The Science Prize for Online Resources in Education (SPORE), established in 2009 to encourage innovation and excellence in education, as well as to encourage the use of high-quality on-line resources by students, teachers, and the public, is now accepting nominations for the 2010 awards cycle.
For a complete description of the The Science Prize for Online Resources in Education (SPORE), including rules for eligibility and nomination instructions, please visit the SPORE detail page at Science online.

2011 Siemens "We Can Change the World Challenge" Now Open for Entries

High school students from across the country are invited to GO GREEN by participating in the newest phase of the nationwide Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge.
In keeping with the Challenge's overall mission, students are given the opportunity, tools and inspiration to become those agents of change. Beginning August 17, 2010 through March 15, 2011, high school student teams from across the country will be challenged to create sustainable, reproducible energy-related environmental improvements that can be replicated by or impact others beyond their local community. Student teams, with a teacher or adult advisor can register for the Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge at www.wecanchange.com.

Kavli Science Video Contest

K-12 students: Tell us why Science is Cool! Enter now for the USA Science & Engineering Festival Kavli Science Video Contest! Have your video screened on the National Mall, win prize money and possibly even a trip to the Expo on the Mall!

To find out more about the contest and to submit your registration form go to the Festival website.

Professor of the Year Awards

The Council for Advancement and Support of Education and The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching have launched the nomination period for the 2010 U.S. Professors of the Year awards.
The deadline for 2010 program entries is Friday, April 16, 2010. Nomination material and information on the awards program are available at www.usprofessorsoftheyear.org.

Laserfest 2010

Laserfest is a yearlong celebration of the 50th anniversary of the laser, which was first demonstrated in 1960, and is a collaboration between the American Physical Society, the Optical Society, SPIE and IEEE Photonics Society.
Are you attending CLEO/QELS: 2010? Do you have musical talent? YES? Then consider performing at CLEO/QELS: 2010 LasersRock! Concert. Submit your MP3 or video music sample now for consideration!
AAPT is a proud supporting partner of Laserfest. Learn about Events and Activities at http://www.laserfest.org/.

National Lab Day (NLD)

While there will be an actual Lab Day on May 12, 2010 to celebrate our effort, the National Lab Day program has already begun—join us! Wondering what your class can do for National Lab Day? First, take a look at the great YouTube video below created specifically for the STEM community at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HOYFktLyk4.
Teachers are encouraged to sign up at https://www.nationallabday.org/teachers/new.Scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians are invited to sign up at https://www.nationallabday.org/scientists/new.
Organizations sign up at https://www.nationallabday.org/organizations/new.

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