Julio Navarro (BS ‘13, MS in Mechanical Engineering ‘15 from Purdue) and Mark Beveridge (BS ‘18), both now have successful careers locally in the engineering field, and Professor Lynker invited them to give informal presentations in S106 today. Julio and Mark presented via Zoom, and we had a mixed audience with some attending in-person and some via video like the speakers. They shared an incredibly optimistic outlook regarding the potential for physics students to pursue engineering careers.
Alum Update: Julio Navarro ’13
Julio Navarro completed the Applied Physics track to a Physics B.S. in 2013 and went straight in to an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering at Purdue, which he completed in 2015.
Subsequently, he’s remained reasonably close, and has been a guest speaker in our Contemporary Physics Seminar. He is currently the Director of Manufacturing at Ausco Products Inc, based out of Benton Harbor, Michigan.
SPS Back Up and Running
Not surprisingly, the pandemic disrupted social activities on campus last year, but the Society of Physics Students (AKA The Physics Club) has been officially resuscitated and is back to life. The first meeting for the 2021 – 2022 academic year was tonight, and I was impressed with the turnout and enthusiasm. Here’s the new leadership:
- President: Cody Cripe
- Vice President: Austin Veldman
- Secretary: Kelly Allen
- Treasurer: Joël Rael
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Campus Observing Event Wednesday, 9/29
The IUSB Observatory will be open, weather permitting, from 8:30-10:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 29, for viewing of Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune through the 16” telescope. Come to the elevators on the 1st floor of Northside Hall and wait to be escorted to the rooftop observatory. (Sponsored by the IUSB Dept. of Physics and Astronomy and the IUSB chapter of the Society of Physics Students)
Prof. Hinnefeld Receives 2021 IN-AAPT Service Award
Prof. Jerry Hinnefeld has been awarded the 2021 Charles Emmert Distinguished Service Award from the Indiana Section of the American Association of Physics Teachers (IN-AAPT). Notably, Jerry recently completed a three-year leadership cycle in the IN-APPT during which he rotated through the roles of Vice President, Secretary and President, and in 2019, shortly before the start of the pandemic, he organized the annual meeting to be held on the IUSB campus. Congratulations, and thanks for your service, Jerry!
Alum Update: Tom Nania ’13
Tom Nania has followed an interesting path subsequent to completing his 2013 B.S. in physics, with a minor in math, by combining his continued passion for both physics and music.
First, he obtained a “Master Luthier” Certificate from the Galloup School of Guitar Building and Repair in 2014, and he then became the luthier and co-proprietor at House of Luthiery.
Meanwhile, he did original acoustics research as an Affiliated Scholar in our department here at IUSB and also in collaboration with Galloup Guitars,
the Joseph Curtin Violinmaking Studio, and the Violin Society of America and Oberlin Acoustics Workshop. He published a sole-authored paper on archtop guitar dynamics in Violin Society of America Papers in early 2021.
And, as of September, he will be starting a new job as Acoustics Engineer for D’Addario — the largest instrument string manufacturer – where his main initial focus will be on orchestral string design.
Congratulations, Tom!
Alum Update: Kayleigh Cassella ’11
Kayleigh Cassella (’11) was the first of our graduates to receive an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, which she used while working toward her Ph.D. at UC Berkeley.
She obtained her doctorate, also in physics, in 2018 and has continued to live and work in Berkeley subsequently. First she spent two years doing a postdoc with Prof. Dan Stamper-Kurn on E8 (experiment-8), and she is now a professional Quantum Engineer for Atom Computing Inc.
She was recently featured in The Quantum Daily in their listing of “52 Wonder Women Working In Industry As Quantum Scientists & Engineers” — check it out (she’s #10)!
Fall 2021 Majors Fair
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Special thanks to majors Kelly Allen, Jo Alters, Michael Nelms, Austin Veldman, and Michael Wujick for helping to staff our table at the 2021 Majors Fair!
Despite uncertainty regarding how things will play out with the pandemic, and a return to in-person classes, the University has felt impressively vibrant during our first week back.
It’s great to be seeing so many familiar and new faces!
Alum Update: Danny Workman ’15
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Danny Workman graduated with a B.S. in physics in 2015 and started a new job recently at Benebios in Mishawaka.
Briefly, the company produces starter cultures that are used for probiotics and dairy cultures (e.g., yogurt) by growing the desired bacteria and then using centrifuges for separation and freeze-drying techniques to manipulate the triple point of water to produce highly concentrated dry cultures that can be revived as needed.
As an undergraduate, Danny worked in our mineral-physics lab where he explored the phase diagram of water, but at the elevated pressures and temperatures found deep inside large icy moons. So, although quite different in Pressure-Temperature (P-T) space, his experience with physics, and the thermodynamics of phase diagrams, helped him to get this great new job. He’s excited about learning complementary chemistry and biology in his new position.
Congratulations, Danny!
Jeff Yoder to UNR Ph.D. Program!
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2020 graduate Jeff Yoder has been admitted to the University of Nevada, Reno graduate program in physics; he’ll move to Reno this summer and start working toward a doctorate. At this point he’s considering advisors in plasma and computational physics but still trying to remain open to determine the best fit. He’ll serve as a TA during his studies which makes a lot of sense as he has been a very popular tutor here at IUSB in both math and physics. Congratulations, Jeff!