Team Facts & News

From 1986 to 2017, the United States Teams have brought home: 61 Gold Medals, 43 Silver Medals, 29 Bronze Medals, and 11 Honorable Mentions. — AAPT.ORG

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Director

  • Paul Stanley

    Academic Director

    Paul is the Dobson Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Beloit College. He has worked for the US Physics team since 2003. His research involves classical and quantum chaos, and varies between highly theoretical, heavily computational, and playfully experimental. In his spare time he plays the trumpet semi-professionally, and he travels, having visited over fifty different countries.

Coaches

  • JiaJia Dong

    Senior Coach

    Associate Professor in the Physics Department, Bucknell University. Interests include non-equilibrium statistical mechanics, particularly in biological systems. Her interests also include using computer modeling and theoretical approaches, whereas she studies the stationary and dynamic properties of these systems.

  • Mark Eichenlaub

    Coach

    Mark is a graduate student studying physics education research at University of Maryland. His research uses both qualitative and quantitative methods to understand cognitive aspects of problem solving in introductory physics for the life sciences. He has always enjoyed a good physics problem and is looking forward to his second summer working with the physics team!

  • David Fallest

    Senior Coach

    Dave is a scientist working at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division. While earning his Ph.D. At North Carolina State University, he conducted soft condensed matter experiments and numerical astrophysics research. When not teaching or researching, David enjoys his favorite pastime -- juggling.

  • Mike Winer

    Junior Coach

    Mike is a physics major at MIT. His goal is to spend the rest of his life doing physics. Once he's done cementing his position as the funniest coach for US Physics Team (watch your back, Dave), he is going to return to Boston and spend the summer looking for a holographic dual to color superconductivity. He already has like five or seven ideas that probably won't work.

  • Kevin Zhou

    Coach

    Kevin is a senior at MIT studying physics and math. Currently, he is investigating structural coloration in beetles and fish, and working with both theorists and experimentalists at MIT to search for axion dark matter. He was a gold medalist in 2012 and 2013 and is excited to be returning for his third year coaching.

Contact Information

For more details and information about the US Physics Team, please contact AAPT's Programs department at 301-209-3340 or programs@aapt.org