Grad News Forum

Everywhere researchers go, be it a conference, a job interview, or simply meeting a colleague in the hallway, people ask the obvious question: “So tell me about your work?” It goes without saying that the ability of researchers to describe their research in lay language efficiently is one of the most important skills to be acquired, regardless of the field of research.

On Monday, April 29, assistant dean of Graduate Student Affairs, Kerry Landers, initiated a speed researching event aimed at developing students’ communication skills. In this event, students were expected to explain their research to their smart, but not expert, colleagues in only two minutes!

“We have received feedback from faculty who attended the recent Graduate Poster Session and were impressed with many of our graduate students’ ability to explain their research to non-experts,” notes Landers. “The goal of this speed researching event was to provide another opportunity for graduate students to continue to improve this essential skill.”

At the event, a total of 10 students explained their research to each other in pairs over lunch, followed by a two-minute constructive comments session. Students came from programs in biology, chemistry, engineering, genetics, MALS, and physics and astronomy. A wide range of research topics were discussed, including black holes, prion diseases, and the causes of the Arab Spring. Each student had the opportunity to present his or her research five times, providing plenty of practice.

“This event was great! I now know what other students in genetics, engineering, and chemistry do,” commented Daniel Durcan, a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies student, who also serves as the graduate student activities coordinator. Durcan continued, “The clarity for the presentations was very impressive. I thought it was a great opportunity to practice explaining my research to students from other disciplines.”

The event was somewhat similar to the Three-Minute Research Presentation sessions held by the Graduate Studies Office in the past. However, there is a subtle difference in emphasis between the two events. The Three-Minute Research Presentation sessions involve a single three-minute talk and aim to improve public speaking skills. On the other hand, “speed researching” aims to help students present their research swiftly to several people—a skill they will need at job fairs or conferences. Such a skill is crucial in a competitive academic environment.

Speed researching is, indeed, very helpful and from the looks of it, a very successful idea. Please keep your eyes open for the second speed researching event!

by Gilbert Rahme

Skinner at the MDM Observatory

Graduate Studies is proud to highlight Julie Skinner of the Department of Physics and Astronomy for her many contributions to the field of astronomy and the Dartmouth community at large as she prepares to defend her thesis.

Skinner went to the University of Oklahoma where she received a BS in astrophysics. While at OU, she was involved in astronomy research with Dr. Dick Henry, studying the chemical abundances of planetary nebulae. In addition to her research and classes, she remained active as a musician and university ambassador.

Skinner’s inclination towards observational astronomy was a major factor in choosing where she would pursue her PhD. Dartmouth owns a 25% share of time at the MDM Observatory in Arizona. Telescope time, as well as a wonderful prospective student visit where she was charmed by the Upper Valley region and cheerful graduate students, made Dartmouth the obvious choice.

While at Dartmouth, Skinner has continued to execute exemplary research while remaining involved in activities outside of her chosen field. With advisor Dr. John Thorstensen, she investigates cataclysmic variable stars, a type of binary star system where two stars orbit each other so closely that matter from one falls onto the other. These systems have very fast orbits that may be less than two hours in some cases. The core of Skinner’s thesis revolves around a systematic search for these pairs and their progenitors in a nearby region of our galaxy. Her aim is to confirm that the astronomy community has identified all of the cataclysmic variables closest to us. The best part, according to Skinner, is that she has been involved in every point in the pipeline of data processing—from the telescope to the paper—and notes that there is no better feeling than discovering something brand new.

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) outreach has been a significant aspect of Skinner’s time here at Dartmouth. Her favorite experiences have been the NSF GK-12 program and the National Science and Engineering Festival in Washington D.C. The NSF GK-12 program is coordinated by Dartmouth and pairs a STEM graduate student with a middle school teacher for an entire year. Skinner was placed in an 8^th grade Earth Sciences classroom where she developed and improved curriculum while building communication skills and becoming comfortable in front of a class. At the D.C. festival, Scifest, Skinner participated as part of the “Stellar Forensics” team, developing activities to share with the public about how astronomers use light to get information about the universe. In addition to these experiences, Skinner is a member of the future faculty advisory board for the Dartmouth Center for the Advancement of Learning (DCAL), and volunteers weekly at the Young Explorers preschool program at the Montshire Museum of Science.

Skinner is currently wrapping up her thesis and plans on defending in the near future. To celebrate, she and her husband have discussed the possibility of taking a big trip. One thing is for certain, Skinner deserves to be recognized for her academic achievements and contributions to the surrounding community while at Dartmouth, and we wish her the best of luck in her future.

by Mackenzie Jones

Dartmouth will host the “Pressure of Light Symposium” October 5 and 6, celebrating the designation of Wilder Physical Laboratory, where the first accurate measurements of the radiation pressure of light took place, as an American Physical Society Historic Site.

The structure of Wilder Laboratory remains largely unchanged since Dartmouth professors Ernest Fox Nichols and Gordon Ferrie Hull conducted their groundbreaking research there. (photo by Joseph Mehling ’69)

“The Nichols-Hull pressure of light experiment of 1900 to 1903 is regarded as one of the most significant experiments of American physics of all time,” says Sam Werner ’59, Thayer ’61, a member of the physics and astronomy Alumni Advisory Board.

From 1900 to 1903, Dartmouth professors Ernest Fox Nichols and Gordon Ferrie Hull conducted the first precise measurements of the radiation pressure of light on a macroscopic body at Wilder Laboratory. While scientists had theorized that light might create a pressure, this was the first time that pressure had been accurately measured. The Nichols-Hull experiment is seen as a landmark discovery in radiative forces research, and continues to be influential.

For the full article go to Dartmouth Now

Physics and Astronomy PhD student, Idan Ginsburg, and his supervisor Gary Wegner have recently had their work featured in Time Science.

“[The article] discusses the study of hypervelocity stars—a phenomenon that occurs when a star gets too close to the gravitational force of the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way—sending the stars and planets flying away at incredibly high rates of speed. New research conducted by Dartmouth astrophysics graduate student Idan Ginsburg and Professor of Physics and Astronomy Gary Wegner points to the potential for the fleeing hypervelocity stars to be accompanied by planets.”

See the full article on Dartmouth Now for a link to the Time feature.

2.4m Hiltner telescope

In October, Julie Skinner (supervisor, John Thorstensen) made a trip to MDM Observatory on Kitt Peak in Arizona to collect data  for her research. She makes three to four trips per year to study the population of cataclysmic variable stars in our galaxy—the basis of her research thesis.

Thiago Brito and Zhao Li, both fourth year PhD students (supervisor, Mary Hudson), are coauthors on a paper submitted to J. Atmospheric and Terrestrial Physics in September. They presented posters at the National Science Foundation Geospace Environment Modeling workshop in Santa Fe, New Mexico in June , and so did third year PhD student Shuo Wu, who is working with Richard Denton on ‘whistler wave’ (interactions with radiation belt electrons). They also gave talks at the Center for Integrated Space Weather Modeling’s (CISM) All Hands Meeting, in Jackson, Wyoming in September. They will present posters on their respective research at the American Geophysical Union’s fall meeting in San Francisco in December.

A self-portrait of Julie at Sunset

Thiago and Zhao are working with Mary Hudson on the study of the Van Allen radiation belts, which will be the focus of the upcoming NASA Radiation Belt Storm Probes satellites, scheduled to be launched next August. They receive support for their research from this program as well as the NSF CISM project, which will be entering itstenth year next August. To celebrate the decade of CISM research, the annual CISM All Hands Meeting was held at the beautiful Jackson Lake Lodge, with the Grand Tetons as backdrop. Grad students Thiago, Zhao and Shuo went hiking and rafting during breaks in the meeting.

One of the LaBelle group's antenna's being raised

Second year PhD student Miles Engel spent the summer at Los Alamos National Laboratory participating in the Los Alamos Space Weather Summer School, where he won the LANL Space Weather Summer School’s best research project award. This prize is sponsoring his presentation of that research at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco in December. He also experienced the evacuation of Los Alamos during the June wildfire and spent a few unanticipated days in Albuquerque. Miles is continuing his research on solar energetic proton access to the near earth space environment, an important space weather hazard as we approach a new maximum in the eleven year cycle of solar activity in 2013.

On the experimental side of space physics, this winter our Department will be focusing on both ends of the Earth. Matt Broughton (supervisor, Jim LaBelle) will spend a week at South Pole Station, and Phil Fernandes (supervisor, Kristina Lynch) will spend a month at Poker Flat Research Range, Alaska, for the MICA sounding rocket launch. Matt’s task this winter will be to raise antennas at the South Pole. The region is technically a desert, but there is enough blowing snow to bury an antenna in a few years if they aren’t raised.  In addition, Lisa Gayetsky (supervisor, Kristina Lynch) will be a participant in an International Space Studies Institute (ISSI, Bern, Switzerland) workshop on spacecraft sheath studies and modeling.

Group photo of Physics and Astronomy Department

by Kristina Lynch