This year we had a great turn out with 15 teams fielded from Gross Catholic, Papillion, Abraham Lincoln, Mount Michael, St. Albert, Central Academy and Burke High School.  Teams competed in seven events: Death Star Laser Aiming, Boat Building, Chalk Talk (Space physics portrayed in film), Quiz Bowl, Circuit Building, and Toothpick Bridge Building (The complete program can be found here.

The following issues are available in PDF format:

The Physics Department has the opportunity to assist in the planning and prototype testing for solar cell arrays on the Creighton campus. Any student who would be interested in becoming part of this effort should contact Dr. Cherney this week. A commitment of at least 5 hours per week would be required. In the process students can earn Independent Study (PHY 495) credit.

Congratulations to Senior Physics Major Sandra Behncke who has been named the NASA International Year of Astronomy Student Ambassador for Nebraska. 2009 is the International Year of Astronomy, and NASA has selected ambasadors to actively participate in, and help coordinate their own outreach programs within the local community and beyond.

Congratulations to Senior Physics Majors Joseph Brewer and Timothy Smith for their performance on the Modern Physics portion of the Graduate Comprehensive Exam. This exam is held annually and all senior physics majors are eligible to compete for the $1000 award. For 2008, Tim and Joseph tied for the best score and will split the prize.  The award was announced at a special reception featuring a large cake on Thursday afternoon.  Pictures to follow....

Dr. Patricia Soto has been awarded allocation time at teragrid. TeraGrid is an open scientific discovery infrastructure that integrates high-performance computers, data resources and tools, and high-end experimental facilities around the U.S. Dr.

A new undergraduate major has been approved for students interested in pursuing engineering or a blend of computer science, math, and physics. This will appear in the next edition of the undergraduate bulletin. See the draft bulletin listing here.

Physics Major Katie Garrett has been selected to receive a Goldwater Fellowship. For 2007-2008, 321 fellowships were awarded to sophomores and juniors in the U.S. Katie is actively involved in particle physics research with Dr. Gintaras Duda to help in the search for and classification of dark matter. She is also interested in physics education research. Last year, Physics Major Carolyn Posey was named as a runner-up for the Goldwater Fellowship.