Department of Physics
University of WI-Whitewater
Minutes for March 4th meeting
Meeting began at 2:37 pm.
I. Attending: R.
Benjamin; G. Chulick; S. DasGupta (teleconference); P. Rybski; S.
Sahyun; M.; Jeffrey Polak (SPS representative)
Absent: J.
Constantinescu (illness)
II. Benjamin/Sahyun
move approval of Meeting Minutes of February 4th meeting. Approved
on
voice vote.
III. Announcements
A. Chairıs
Announcements
1. Spring
commencement volunteers: Constantinescu and Rybski will march
2. The
chair is entertaining recommendations for Physics Awards, to be given
April
21st. Names must be to
chair by March 7th.
3. Service
and Supplies purchases for this year should be completed by April
15th. Monies remaining after that time will
be spent along lines determined
by
the faculty in the April 15th meeting. Final expenditures must be made
no
later than May 15th.
4. Rybski
attended the American Association of Forensic Science meeting in
New
Orleans from February 21st-23rd for the purpose of
determining, in
general,
what variety of forensic science program can be created in the
College
of L&S and, in particular, what Physics can contribute. Current
plans
are to create a laboratory-based, four-credit Science of Forensic
Analysis
(SoFA) course, for implementation in Spring 2006, using a course
outline
prepared by Daryle Waechter-Bruella.
Peter Killoran of Sociology
is
the principal coordinator of the L&S forensics program.
5. Tonight
is first Spring 2005 Astronomy Lecture Series lecture.
6. The
department proposes the following individuals for its Einstein Year
lectures: Professor Laura Ruetsche, professor of
philosophy of quantum
mechanics
and a Rhodes Scholar, University of Pittsburgh, has agreed to
come
next fall; Professor Peter Timbie,
UW-Madison, an observational
cosmologist; and Professor Rob Carpick, UW-Madison,
a specialist in
nanotechnology,
will round out our lecture schedule.
7. The
College committee on Peer Evaluation have submitted their proposed
guidelines
for future peer reviews. This
information, along with a proposed
form,
will be circulated next week.
B. Committee
Reports
1. Curriculum
(Sahyun) Meeting on February 17:
Physics 212 prerequisite
was
changed to restrict attendees to those majoring in BSE degrees.
Meeting
on March 3rd: no action
relevant to Physics.
2. Graduate
Council no meetings since February 4th.
3. Library
Book requests were submitted to the Library for $1,817 on March
1st. Additional books will be submitted for
possible acquisition this year or
next.
4. SPS
Tutoring is now fully scheduled, and a copy of that schedule will be
distributed
to the faculty. The Yerkes trip
should be Sunday, April 10th, to
be
led by Rybski. The Ray-o-Vac trip
should be Wednesday, March 30th,
in
the afternoon, to be led by Constantinescu.
5. Upham
renovation Construction schedule is 5-6 weeks behind, but a
move-in
schedule phased by floor during the summer will commence as
early
as possible and conclude no later than the first day of class. Physics
major
Greg Erdahl has signed on to work all summer, helping to set up
shelves
and to move equipment. Maximum
expenses have been
³established/suggested²
of $5,250 per faculty office/lab combination. All
furniture
must come out of this amount. Note
that lateral file and bookshelf
expenses
were not included in the original office estimates provided by
Benjamin
on 2/4. Faculty are encouraged not
to save older furniture
currently
in their possession to put in their offices. However, they may put
it
in their labs. A maximum of
$15,000 has been established for the
departmental
office suite.
6. Webpage
Joe Grams now has permission to edit the department webpage
and
has a template for all of the individual pages. All syllabi have been
updated. Links to the course webpages will be
forwarded to the provostıs
office.
C. Announcements
from the Floor
1. Capital
Equipment exercise has been completed.
Physics received monies
for
15 function generators, 15 power supplies and seven PASCO computer
interfaces. Sahyun is commended for his careful
preparation of our request.
2. Fort
Atkinson Science Fair on February 19th was attended by Sahyun, who
judged
the projects and managed a continuously running PowerPoint
presentation
on Jobs in Physics.
3. On
April 1st, a Chemical and Radiation Safety Workshop will
be
held for students and faculty who handle radiation sources and will be
particularly
important for those involved in moving physics equipment this
coming
summer and next.
4. The
currently scheduled Optics Laboratory conflicts with Quantum
Mechanics
as currently scheduled. Students
affected will consult with
Sahyun
to move the lab to a more appropriate time.
5. Tony
Tautges of Whitewater High School field-tested Sahyunıs DVD video
neutron
activation experiments .
IV. Old
Business
A. Curriculum
1. Discussion
of revision to Mechanics curriculum postponed until March 11th.
V. New
Business
No
new business.
Chulick/Benjamin move to adjourn the meeting. Passed on voice vote at 3:47 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Paul Rybski, Secretary for the Day
Xc: Chancellor
Jack Miller
Provost
Richard Telfer
Dean
Howard Ross
Dean
Lee Jones
University
Archivist Karen Weston