Physics Newsblog

NDSEG Fellowship for Recent Graduate Michael Adler

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Michael Adler
Michael Adler

Physics alumnus Michael Adler (’14) is a recipient of the 2015 National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowship. The fellowship is sponsored and funded by the Department of Defense (DoD) in order to increase the number of U.S. citizens and nationals trained in science and engineering disciplines of military importance.

Now in the PhD program in aerospace engineering at the Ohio State University, Adler received the 2014 Ian W. Shepherd Award from the Department of Physics while at Michigan Tech.

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Atmospheric Sciences Ranks in Top 50 for Research Spending

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National Science FoundationThe National Science Foundation (NSF) has released its annual research spending report, and Michigan Tech has moved up in its rankings.

Of 634 institutions that received research funding in 2014, Tech received $68.5 million, ranking 163rd overall nationwide. The University ranked 117th among public institutions.

Atmospheric science — a new interdisciplinary category — received $3.1 million and ranked 34th.

Read more at Michigan Tech News, by Jennifer Donovan.

Research in the atmospheric sciences at Michigan Tech is highly interdisciplinary and involves scientists from across campus, including the Departments of Chemistry, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences, and Physics, and the School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science. Research has been supported by DOD, DOE, EPA, NASA, NOAA, NSF, and the private sector.

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Chad Brisbois Places Second at Fermi Symposium Poster Session

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Fermi SymposiumPhysics graduate student Chad Brisbois presented a poster at the Sixth International Fermi Symposium, which took place in Arlington, VA, on November 9-13, 2015. The poster won second place in the student poster contest sponsored by the Universities Space Research Association (USRA).

NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope observes light in the photon energy range of 8,000 electronvolts (8 keV) to greater than 300 billion electronvolts (300 GeV). It was launched in 2008.

The symposium showcases how the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope continues to revolutionize our understanding of the high-energy Universe. It highlights results from a variety of multi-wavelength and multi-messenger studies.

USRA is an independent, nonprofit research corporation whose mission is to advance the space- and aeronautics-related sciences exploration through innovative research, technology, and education programs; promote space and aeronautics policy; and develop and operate premier facilities and programs by involving universities, governments, and the private sector for the benefit of humanity.

Brisbois’ advisor is Robert Nemiroff.

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Just shake it! in Nanowerk

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NanoparticleRecent research conducted by postdoctoral researchers and students in Yoke Khin Yap’s (Physics) laboratory has received unsolicited news coverage in Nano Werk. The article is titled “Just shake it! A simple way to remove nanomaterial pollutants from water.”

The team demonstrated that water contaminated with nanomaterials can be cleaned up by a ‘hand shaking’ approach that can be performed even in a kitchen.

From Tech Today.

Just shake it! A simple way to remove nanomaterial pollutants from water

“In our new work, we have demonstrated that water contaminated with nanomaterials can be cleaned up by a ‘hand shaking’ approach that can be performed even in a kitchen.” Dr. Yoke Khin Yap, a professor in the Department of Physics at Michigan Technological University, tells Nanowerk. “Our approach is simple and universal, and can be used for many one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials including nanotubes, nanowires, graphene, and nanosheets. Therefore, our approach would support continue development of nanotechnology by reducing the risk of water contamination.”

Read more at Nanowerk, by Michael Berger.

DOI: 10.1021/acsami.5b07542

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Raymond Shaw Reviews Physical Hydrodynamics

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Raymond Shaw reviewed Physical Hydrodynamics by Etienne Guyon, Jean-Pierre Hulin, Luc Petit, Catalin D. Mitescu.

I wish I could take every one of my physics students for a walk through the halls and rooms at the annual meeting of the APS Division of Fluid Dynamics. Maybe the best time would be right after their first advanced course in classical mechanics. I would exclaim, “Look, you’ve only just begun, there is so much more!” The meeting is a veritable carnival of physicists…

Read more at the American Journal of Physics.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1119/1.4929153

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Lynn Mazzoleni Leads a Team to Bring a New High-Resolution Spectrometer to Campus

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PicoAir is not just air. It’s not just a sterile, preset mix of oxygen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide and other molecules. As an atmospheric chemist, Lynn Mazzoleni knows air is dynamic and full of soot, sulfates, dust and other particles. Now, with a new piece of equipment, she can analyze complex aerosol samples and how their chemistry affects cloud formation.

State-of-the-Art Science: Peatlands to Pharmaceuticals
Mazzoleni is an associate professor of chemistry at Michigan Technological University and a recent Fulbright Scholar awardee. She is also the lead researcher on a team that is bringing a high-resolution mass spectrometer to campus through a Major Research Instrumentation grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The instrument is an analytical chemistry tool that identifies the type and amount of chemicals in a mixture.

Read more at Michigan Tech News, by Allison Mills.

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Teresa Wilson on Fata Morgana

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Teresa A. Wilson
Teresa A. Wilson

National Geographic quoted Michigan Tech graduate student Teresa Wilson (Physics) in an article about a special kind of atmospheric mirage known as a Fata Morgana.

From Tech Today.

China’s Floating City and The Science of Mirages

They’re common in polar regions, says Teresa Wilson, a graduate student in physics at Michigan Technological University in Houghton, in an email. “But [they] can happen anywhere.” People have even seen fata morgana in the Strait of Messina between Italy and Sicily.

Read more at National Geographic, by Jane J. Lee.

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Michigan Tech Team Helps Clarify the Impacts of Black Carbon in Nature Communications Study

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Black CarbonDust specks are touted for their insignificance. But black carbon particles have global impact. Michigan Technological University researchers collaborated with a team from the Los Alamos National Laboratory and several other universities to shed light on the complex way black carbon and solar radiation interact to increase warming in the atmosphere. The research came out this week in Nature Communications.

Michigan Tech’s team focused on the microscopy work, which is also important for other research done in the lab and in the field, from thecloud chamber on campus to atmospheric monitoring on Pico Mountain in the Azores. Understanding the impacts of atmospheric particles will help refine climate change models, weather predictions and provide better information for making policies on black carbon and other short-lived pollutants.

Black Carbon

Black carbon is basically soot. The particles—similar in size to corn starch dust—make their way into the air from cooking fires, automobiles, industrial plants, wildfires and other kinds of burning. And rarely is black carbon just black carbon; the soot is often mixed with other atmospheric particles. Claudio Mazzoleni, an associate professor of physics at Michigan Tech, and his collaborators have to separate out the black carbon from everything else by heating up the particles.

Read more at Michigan Tech News, by Allison Mills.

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