eNNOUNCER July 2017
AAPT News
First AAPT/ALPhA Awardees Named
The AAPT/ALPhA Award recognizes outstanding work in the development of an advanced laboratory apparatus/experiment by an undergraduate physics student at his/her home institution within the greater United States. The AAPT/ALPhA Award Committee has announced the first recipients of the award - Brandon Thacker, California State University, Chico (2015), and Ryan Scott, Rochester Institute of Technology (2016). TeachSpin is currently funding the award. Read more.
2017 Summer Meeting
Registration
It's not too late! On-site registration is still available for the summer meeting. Please click here for more information
Program
The AAPT Summer Meeting Program is now available online. Click here to view the scheduled date and time for sessions, plenaries, committee meetings and special events.
Plenary Speakers
Julianne M. Pollard-Larkin and Francis Slakey
Workshops
It is not too late to add a workshop to your registration. Please click here for a list of workshops being offered in Cincinnati.
Special Events
AAPT is offering a number of exciting special events in Cincinnati. Don’t miss out on a dinner cruise on the Ohio River, a tour of the Cincinnati Observatory, a pub crawl with your colleagues or early career networking with seasoned physicists. Click here for a full list of activities. We encourage you to register early, since on-site registration will not be available for most events.
High School Teachers’ Day
A special day has been prepared on Monday, July 24 for high school physics teachers that have never attended a national AAPT Meeting. Qualified teachers will receive a discounted registration fee of $85. AAPT is offering this special registration fee, because we want to encourage you to sample what AAPT has to offer high school physics teachers. We are confident that once you see what AAPT has to offer, you will become an active AAPT member. Please click here for more information.
Room/Ride Childcare Share Form
Are you looking to share a room, ride or childcare responsibilities at the at the summer meeting? Please click here to register and view a list of potential candidates.
The 2017 AAPT Fellows
The 2017 AAPT Fellows Awardees have been announced.Read more »
AAPT Honors Five Members with Distinguished Service Citations
The Homer L. Dodge Citation for Distinguished Service to AAPT will be presented to Joseph Kozminski, Duane Merrell, Paul Stanley, Toni Sauncy, and William Reitz during the 2017 Summer Meeting in Cincinatti.
2017 Summer Meeting Awardees
John C. Brown Named as Recipient of the 2017 Klopsteg Memorial Lecture Award
The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that John C. Brown, University of Glasgow Scotland, School of Physics and Astronomy, is the 2017 recipient of the Klopsteg Memorial Lecture Award.
Read more.
2017 Millikan Medal Awarded to Kenneth Heller
AAPT has announced that Kenneth Heller will receive the Robert A. Millikan Medal during the 2017 Summer Meeting in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Read more.
Cindy Schwarz to Receive the AAPT 2017 Halliday and Resnick Award
The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that Cindy Schwarz will receive the 2017 David Halliday and Robert Resnick Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching.
Read more.
J. Mark Schober to Receive 2017 Paul W. Zitzewitz Excellence in K-12 Teaching Award
The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced today that the 2017 Paul Zitzewitz Excellence in K-12 Physics Teaching Award winner is J. Mark Schober, a science teacher at Trinity School in New York City.
Read more.
AAPT Seeks Volunteers to Direct AAPT High School Contests
AAPT seeks volunteers to apply for directors of two of AAPT's high school contests: PhysicsBowl and the US Physics Team. The PhysicsBowl Academic Coordinator provides general oversight of the competition and has the responsibility for preparing the yearly exam. We anticipate that the individual selected for the PhysicsBowl Academic Coordinator position will start later this year. The U.S. Physics Team Academic Director position provides general oversight of the U.S. competition including recruiting and training team coaches, preparing and grading exams, training of the U.S. Physics Team during training camp, and traveling with the Team to the International Physics Olympiad. We anticipate that the individual selected will serve as co-director during the 2017-18 year and transition to director in Fall 2018. Click here for more information.
eAlliances: Uniting Isolated Women Physicists and Astronomers - Registration site now LIVE!
Everyone needs mentors, but how do you find other women physicists who understand your experience-- as the only Hispanic in the department, the only PER researcher, the only full-time physicist at your TYC, the only one who brings a newborn in a sling to department meetings? Join eAlliances, an NSF-sponsored faculty development project for women physics faculty, and become part of a peer-mentoring alliance with other women who share many of your same experiences.
Why me?
• Connect with other women physicists and astronomers
• Get and give advice and affirmation
• Gather a variety of insights to help you address professional issues
• Address work-life balance issues
• Receive encouragement and support in achieving your goals
This is professional development for your career stage: whether you are teaching your first or hundredth section of intro physics; mentoring your first or hundredth research associate; or leading your first or hundredth committee meeting. Someone else has a similar experience and can share insights, frustrations, and successes.
To join: Register at eAlliances.aapt.org
AAPT Career Center Offers FREE Postings
The AAPT Career Center offers FREE postings to employers recruiting seasonal interns. Locate the best fit for your organization by reaching the future of the science community - the AAPT membership, as well as the members and student members of the American Physical Society (APS Physics), AVS Science and Technology, and the Society of Physics Students and Sigma Pi Sigma.
Get the word out! Your posting will also appear on the Physics Today Jobs site, which when combined with the job sites of the organizations mentioned above forms the ultimate online science, engineering, and computing career network, ensuring maximum relevant visibility for your internship.
Visit jobs.aapt.org to get started.
PTRA Professional Development Activities
Physics Teaching Resource Agents (PTRAs) have been providing professional development to colleagues during the month of June. A short PTRA workshop on using TiPERS in the classroom was presented to New York teachers in conjunction with the Math for America program. Two week long PTRA workshops were presented to teachers in Utah; Astronomy topics were the focus for a workshop at Capital Reef National Monument; a variety of topics including Atomic Nature of Matter, Heat, Electricity, Light and Color were covered at the workshop at Brigham Young University. The workshops were offered through the Utah Science Teachers Association. Teachers in Wisconsin participated in a course at the University of Wisconsin River Falls. The course topics were Electromagnetic Forces and Interactions as well as electricity from the CASTLE curriculum. Elementary science specialists concentrated on integrating photosynthesis and energy to core science content areas in a week long course for the Baltimore City School District hosted by Katya Denisova at John Hopkins University.
There are still openings for physics instructors or teachers to register for a week-long workshop hosted by Tom O’Kuma at Lee College on quantum topics such as dark matter, GPS, photoelectric effect, and black holes. Registration site is www.aaptptra.com
If your institution is interested in providing professional development activities for teachers in your region you are encouraged to contact AAPT/PTRA Director Karen Jo Matsler karen@aaptptra.com or AAPT/PTRA Oversight Committee Chair Pat Callahan ptcallahan3537@gmail.com to discuss arrangements for having AAPT/PTRA workshops scheduled.
AAPT Programs
U.S. Physics Team Members Selected To Participate in the 2017 International Physics Olympiad
Five students have been selected to represent the U.S. Physics Team as the 2017 Traveling Team at the 48th International Physics Olympiad, a competition among high-school physics students, to be held July 16 – 24, 2017 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Read more
2017 AAPT PhysicsBowl Contest Results!
Results for the 2017 AAPT PhysicsBowl Contest have been posted. Check Results Here!
AAPT Membership
AAPT Member Spotlight
Ximena C. Cid
Carson, California
Read more
AAPT Members Now Get 30% Discount on MIT Press Books!
Have you been meaning to check out Richard Feynman’s The Character of Physical Law or Noson Yanofsky’s The Outer Limits of Reason? Now you can do so at 70% of the cost that the general public pays! As an AAPT member, you are now entitled to a 30% discount on all Physics and Math titles at MIT Press.
To take advantage of this offer, contact membership@aapt.org to retrieve your discount code and start shopping at mitpress.mit.edu/physics. We hope this new feature of membership will benefit your brain and your wallet.
Call for Award Nominations
The AAPT Awards Committee invites nominations for all of AAPT awards, citations, and medals. We are particularly interested in nominations for AAPT Fellows and for the Homer L. Dodge Citation for Distinguished Service to AAPT.
Concerned about the Future of Science?
Stay informed with FYI: Science Policy News from AIP. Your membership with AAPT makes it possible for AIP to provide accurate, objective, and comprehensive updates on science policy and funding.
FYI has been a trusted source of science policy news for more than two decades. Readers learn about legislative and executive branch policy developments, agency appointments, and funding important to the physical sciences community. By staying informed about policy developments, we can better shape the future of science. Sign up for free at: aip.org/fyi
Preparing for the Great American Solar Eclipse of 2017
AAPT has gathered past articles on eclipse science into one easily accessible teaching resource, Teaching About the Solar Eclipse: Articles from The Physics Teacher and the American Journal of Physics. These articles, together with the AstroNotes column, Addressing students’ misconceptions about eclipses by Timothy Slater and Richard Gelderman, published in the May issue of The Physics Teacher were developed to help prepare your students for the Great American Eclipse of 2017. Members who subscribe to print copies of The Physics Teacher will receive a free pair of eclipse glasses for viewing the eclipse.
Black Holes, Dark Matter, GPS, and Quantum Mysteries
AAPT/PTRA is offering a week long workshop for secondary physical science teachers on Quantum/Modern Physics. The topics are designed to capitalize on the novelty of and interest in quantum phenomena, black holes, and general relativity to help students understand a wide range of physics topics such as centripetal motion and conservation of energy/momentum. In addition, the workshop supports AP Modern Physics topics, astronomy, and particle physics. Participants will have the opportunity to work with local students one day to gain confidence and practice in a safe, supportive, and non-threatening environment. Workshop leaders have been trained by the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics and the resources have been vetted internationally.
Workshop date and location:
August 7-11, Lee College, Baytown TX
The workshop will be conducted each day from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM.
To register or learn more go to http://bit.ly/learnquantum or http://aaptptra.com/texas-2/
Since the workshop space is limited, please register as soon as possible. The cost for of the workshop is only $350 and includes some equipment to take back to your classroom. Join us if you would like to increase your own understanding of modern physics, learn how to teach quantum, or just want to see how students respond to these concepts
In the News
FREE Webinar on Making a Mid-Career Change
Whether you are switching employers, taking on new tasks, moving to a new city, or changing careers altogether, there are a number of steps you can take to ensure that you achieve your goals efficiently and in a satisfactory manner. This webinar will focus on developing a strategy to find and pursue the right opportunity, complete a smooth transition, and maintain a stellar reputation in and after the process. Join us for this free event, being held on July 20 at 2PM ET and co-sponsored by AAPT.
Help students find the right grad program. Tell them about GradSchoolShopper.com
Advise your students to check out GradSchoolShopper.com, the most complete directory of graduate programs in the physical sciences. Students headed for graduate school can use this free service to search by degree programs, admission deadlines, research specialties, faculty profiles, GRE requirements, and more! If your program isn’t listed, contact us to find out how to have it included.
Active Learning in Introductory Physics Courses: Research-Based Strategies that Improve Student Learning
July 29-31, 2017, Portland, Oregon
Designed for those who teach introductory physics at universities, colleges and high schools. Graduate credit will be available through the University of Oregon. Instructors: Priscilla Laws, Dickinson College, David Sokoloff, University of Oregon, Ronald Thornton, Tufts University.
For more information and to register: pages.uoregon.edu/sokoloff/CHAUT
Workshop on Women and Minorities in the History of Physics, Role Models for Today
Dr. Greg Good, Director of the Center for the History of Physics, is eager to provide workshops at AAPT Section Meetings and elsewhere on Women and Minorities in the History of Physics. Teachers will be introduced to the teaching materials on the AIP website related to the history of women and minorities in the physical sciences. The purpose of these materials is to help students appreciate that not only white males have contributed to the development of physics, astronomy, and other physical sciences. On the flip side, there have been many more women than Marie Curie and many more African Americans than Benjamin Banneker and Jim Gates who have had successful careers in the physical sciences. We will explore several of the lesson plans in each group and explore games and other activities to bring these lessons to life. For more information, please contact Dr. Greg Good.
ALPhA Announcements
1. Barbara Wolff-Reichert Grants will provide up to $7,500, with a 50% departmental match, toward the purchase of a TeachSpin instrument successfully mastered by a participant in an ALPhA Immersion. Read more.
2. ALPhA Mining Actualization Grants were created by the Jonathan Reichert Foundation to underwrite the construction, testing and dissemination of advanced lab experiments that are closely related to current research in physics. These are first come, first serve equipment grants with a maximum of $2,000 per school. Apply now!
3. The Jonathan Reichert Foundation announced the recipients of its inaugural grant program, supporting the advanced laboratory physics association (ALPhA) immersions. This year, the Foundation funded twelve out of sixteen applications, with a total funding of about $38,000. Congratulations to the individuals and institutions who received grants for advanced labs! Read more.
American Modeling Teachers Association
Modeling Instruction was developed for high school physics teachers and has since expanded to physical science, chemistry, biology, and middle school. Each year, Modeling workshops are held at universities and high schools across the United States. Last year, more than 70 Modeling workshops were offered to high school and middle school teachers in more than 20 states.
For information on 2017 Modeling Workshops, please visit the American Modeling Teachers Association (AMTA) website: modelinginstruction.org For questions: wendy@modelinginstruction.org or gheheman@asu.edu
Physics Careers
Jobs Announcements from the Career Center
High School Physics Teacher
BCISB
Click here for job description
Math/Physics Supplemental Instructor
Naval Academy Preparatory School
Click here for job description
More Physics Resources
Social Media @ AAPT
AAPT wants to connect with you on social media! Stay abreast of the latest AAPT and physics-related news. We invite you to like us, follow us, connect with us, and pin us. You can find us here:
       
Section News
Please submit your Section Report for the AAPT Section News. To list your section meeting in the AAPT Calendar of Events, e-mail the information to mhall@aapt.org. See the December 2016 Section News.
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