eNNOUNCER August 2014

2014 U.S. Physics Team Wins Medals

The top U.S. physics students scored three gold medals and two silver medals at the 45th International Physics Olympiad (IPHO), held this year from July 13 - 21 in Astana, Kazakhstan where the best high school physics students from 86 countries completed. Read More ».

 

AAPT 2014 Summer Meeting HighlightsHill

The 2014 Summer Meeting celebrated the fun of physics and physics teaching. The University of Minnesota was a great on-campus venue, with workshops and sessions being held in university buildings. Read more »

More from AAPT

                   

New AAPT T-Shirts
A limited number of 2014 AAPT Summer Meeting t-shirts featuring Albert Einstein and Sir Issac Newton are still available. The proceeds of the sale will benefit the AAPT Student Fund. Visit the Physics Store to get yours before they're all gone.

Physics Days at NSTA This Fall
AAPT will be participating in Physics Days at the upcoming NSTA Area Conference in October, November and December. Several AAPT members have put together a day worth of programming developed with you in mind. For detailed information about each of the Physics Days, click here.

Amazon Smile
Donating to AAPT just got a little easier! Simply visit http://bit.ly/AAPTAMZ and confirm you'd like a percentage of your Amazon.com purchases to go to AAPT. From then on, AAPT will receive a small donation from each of your purchases whether it's text books, electronics, clothing, or groceries, every purchase will support AAPT. Start shopping today!

  

NSF Notes the Educational Work of Eric Mazur

The National Science Foundation News recently highlighted the development and promotion of peer instruction, an interactive engagement pedagogical technique, by Professor Eric Mazur, Harvard faculty member and AAPT member.  The article is available here.

Save the Date

Physics and Astronomy New Faculty Workshop, November 13-16
  Physics and astronomy chairs are invited to nominate early career tenure-track faculty members for the Physics and Astronomy New Faculty Workshop to be held November 13-16, in College Park, MD. The NSF-funded workshop introduces new physics and astronomy faculty members to effective teaching and learning methods, grant writing, time management, and other professional skills. Nomination forms will be available online in late August at the AAPT website.

      

SciCast Online Science and Technology Forecasting

The AAAS Center for Science, Technology and Security Policy has been helping George Mason University recruit scientista with a diverse set of expertise to assist in a science and technology forecasting project called SciCast. The purpose of this project, which is funded by Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), is to determine whether crowdsourcing can be used to accurately predict the future of science and technology questions.
The SciCast online forecasting site is https://scicast.org/?referral_id=AAAS. You are invited to explore the site and answer questions to get a better feel for the project

e-Mentor Coordinator Position

AAPT is looking for individuals interested in the position of coordinator for its e-Mentor Program.  For more information click here.

Jobs Announcements from the Career Center

Physics Teaching Jobs in Private School, Nationwide
Carney, Sandoe & Associates
http://jobs.aapt.org/jobs/6313185

Introductory Course Coordinator
University of Wisconsin
http://jobs.aapt.org/jobs/6334916

Call for Award Nominations

Do you know a colleague who should be recognized for excellence in physics and physics education?

The AAPT Awards Committee invites nominations for all of AAPT's awards, citations, and medals http://www.aapt.org/Programs/awards/.

          

Global Teacher Prize

Do you know a teacher worthy of recognition and celebration? Help find one exceptional educator who deserves to be recognized around the world.

The Global Teacher Prize is an annual one million dollar award from the Varkey GEMS Foundation to be given to a super-special teacher.  One innovative and caring teacher who has made an inspirational impact on their students and their community will receive the reward of a lifetime. If you're a teacher, you can apply today. If you know a teacher who deserves to win the Global Teacher Prize, you can nominate a teacher. Read more »

2014 PhysTEC Conference Presentations

The 2014 PhysTEC Conference presentation slides are now available for download here. The conference theme was Building Leadership and presentation threads include Recruiting and Retaining Future Physics Teachers, Pedagogical Training for Physics Teachers, The Future of Physics Teacher Preparation, Learning Assistants, Leading Professional Communities, and Leading Through Sustainability.

Assistance Introducing History to the Physics Classroom

This summer, the Center for History of Physics at the American Institute of Physics is producing materials to help teachers introduce lessons on the stories of African Americans in the history of the physical sciences.  The team producing this Teachers Guide, which will be a resource for both history and science teachers and adhere to the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards, is looking for advice on the best way to incorporate history into the science classroom.  If you have advice on creating lesson plans and resources that will make if easier for physics teachers to introduce history into their curriculum, please share it with the AAPT Executive Office (eo@aapt.org).

Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs

The American Association of Physics Teachers and the American Physicial Society are pleased to announce the formation of the Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs (J-TUPP). Read more »

Increase Undergraduate Research Opportunities

Do you or does your department have a practice, funding strategy, internship placement strategy, or course with research embedded in it that, if adopted by other physics or astronomy departments, would help increase the number of undergraduate research opportunities? AAPT along with the Council on Undergraduate Research, the American Physical Society, and the Society of Physics Students are collecting articles that will be published on-line to serve as a resource to departments, faculty, and students as they work to meet the challenge put before the community that all undergraduate physics and astronomy majors at all colleges be provided with a research experience. AAPT’s statement on research experiences for undergraduates is available on our website. We invite you to submit an article for publication in this new resource that highlights any practice that encourages, leads to increases in, or enhances research experiences for undergraduates. We strongly encourage faculty members at two-year colleges to consider submitting a highlight.  Please contact Executive Officer Beth Cunningham (eo@aapt.org) for more information.

AAPT-ALPhA Award is Now Open for Nominations

AAPT and ALPhA (Advanced Laboratory Physics Association) have announced the AAPT/ALPhA Award for undergraduate physics students who have executed, mastered, and left as a legacy for future students an advance laboratory experiment. Do you have a student (or team of students) who might be interested in taking up the challenge to build an experiment new to their own department and possibly receive national recognition, attend a national AAPT meeting, present an invited talk, and receive a check for $4,000? The nomination process is now open.  Applications need to be completed by September 1, 2015. If qualified candidates are proposed, we anticipate presenting the first award at the 2016 AAPT Winter Meeting in New Orleans. Read more or Apply. Funding for this award, for the first five years, is provided by TeachSpin, Inc.

STEaM Photography Show and Competition

The National Museum of Nuclear Science & History will host a photo art exhibit that invites members of the community to share their photographic talent and eye for everything that is science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (STEaM).

Any individual, from a professional photographer to a student with a camera phone, may submit a photograph to this competition/exhibition with the hope to not only win a cash prize but to also have their work on display in a nationally accredited, Smithsonian affiliated museum. Each entry fee is $15, and there is no limit to the amount of entries an individual can submit. All winning entries will debut at the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History from November 8, 2014, through January 4, 2015. Entries are now being accepted online through August 29, 2014 at nuclearmuseum.org »

                     

Middle and High School Physical Science Opportunity

Science assessment writers who have knowledge of the Next Generation Science Standards are being sought. Ideally, item writers will have familiarity in the middle school and high school grades, some teaching/classroom experience, and understand the new science standards.  If you have expertise in creating assessment items and would like an opportunity to work as a freelancer, please contact Michael Comer, Editorial Director Math and Science, Victory Productions or call 508-798-6223.

2014  International Year of Crystallography

The International Year of Crystallography 2014 (IYCr2014) commemorates not only the centennial of X-ray diffraction, which allowed the detailed study of crystalline material, but also the 400th anniversary of Kepler’s observation in 1611 of the symmetrical form of ice crystals, which began the wider study of the role of symmetry in matter.  Links to posters and other promotional materials and resources are available on the IYCR website. Read more »

More from your Membership, Join your AAPT Community

Did you know that you can connect with your collegues by joining an AAPT Email Discussion List?   There are more than 20 different lists/communities available. Find the list that matches your career interests at  http://www.aapt.org/Resources/lists.cfm.  Contact your Member Services  Department at 301-209-3333, or  by e-mail at membership@aapt.org if  you need assistance, or have further questions.

Career Learning Center

Professional development is a work in progress, and constantly gaining new skills and knowledge is essential to the success of any career. The latest enhancement to the AAPT Career Center - the Career Learning Center - is a career-guidance companion to searching the latest science teaching jobs. Equipped with four career-centric seminars, the AAPT Career Learning Center is a user-friendly virtual platform that satisfies the professional needs of AAPT members at all points on the career spectrum.
This helpful content is ONLY available to registered users with the AAPT Career Center, a free job seeker service provided by AAPT. Quickly login or create your job seeker account, and take control of your future by building a stronger presence among our industry's top employers.

Free Internship Job Posting on AAPT Career Center

AAPT has an online jobsite that offers free 60-day internship job postings.  To post internships online at AAPT visit http://jobs.aapt.org/. Locate the best fit for your organization by reaching the future of the science community – AAPT members. Valid intern-level opportunities are defined as limited-term (up to 12 weeks) employment for current undergraduates or recent bachelor degree recipients with financial compensation (if any) in the form of a modest salary or stipend. "Internship" Job Level must be selected when posting to access this offer.


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:
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ComPADRE

SPS and ComPADRE Undergraduate Research Database

The SPS and ComPADRE partner each year to make availiable a list of research opportunities and internships for undergraduate students.  This year there are more than 150 research sites from across the country and around the world.  We encourage you to direct your students to the database.  Deadlines for applications are approaching.

ComPADRE Digital Library

The ComPADRE Digital Library is a network of free online resource collections supporting faculty, students, and teachers in Physics and Astronomy Education.

Each ComPADRE collection contains a catalog of materials for teaching and learning that are selected by the editors for the target user community.  The collections also provide information resources and community collaboration tools to support the needs of our users, usually in collaboration with partner physics and astronomy education projects.


Section News

July 2014 Section News is available here.

To list your section meeting in the AAPT Calendar of Events, e-mail the information to mgardner@aapt.org.


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© 2014, American Association of Physics Teachers

In this issue

 

Featured Journal Articles

The Physics Teacher

Physics Challenges 2010-2011
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American Journal of Physics

Generalized coherent states
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