STS-9: Orbital Workshop Spacelab to Fly on Ninth Shuttle Mission

The first non-astronants are discussed. Spacelab is described. Spacelab objectives, Spacelab 1 investigations, atmospheric physics and Earth observations, space plasma physics, solar physics and astronomy, material sciences and technology development, and life sciences are discussed

Bridge Programs as an approach to improving diversity in physics

In most physical sciences, students from underrepresented minority (URM) groups constitute a small percentage of earned degrees at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Bridge programs can serve as an initiative to increase the number of URM students that gain access to graduate school and earn advanced degrees in physics. This talk discussed levels of representation in physical sciences as well as some results and best practices of current bridge programs in physics. The APS Bridge Program has enabled over 100 students to be placed into Bridge or graduate programs in physics, while retaining 88% of those placed.Comment: Proceedings for 38th International Conference on High Energy Physic

Cosmic particles with energies above 10^19 eV: a brief review of results

Experimental results on ultra-high-energy cosmic rays are briefly reviewed and their interpretation is discussed. The results related to principal observables (arrival directions, energies and composition) of primary particles of extended air showers as well as particle-physics implications are addressed.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures. Talk given at the session of the Division of Physical Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the discovery of cosmic rays; to be published in Physics Uspekh

Chemical energy in an introductory physics course for the life sciences

Energy is a complex idea that cuts across scientific disciplines. For life science students, an approach to energy that incorporates chemical bonds and chemical reactions is better equipped to meet the needs of life sciences students than a traditional introductory physics approach that focuses primarily on mechanical energy. We present a curricular sequence, or thread, designed to build up students' understanding of chemical energy in an introductory physics course for the life sciences. This thread is designed to connect ideas about energy from physics, biology, and chemistry. We describe the kinds of connections among energetic concepts that we intended to develop to build interdisciplinary coherence, and present some examples of curriculum materials and student data that illustrate our approach.Comment: 11 page

The scientific way of thinking in statistics, statistical physics and quantum mechanics

This paper focuses on the way of thinking in both classical and modern Physics and Statistics, Statistical Mechanics or Statistical Physics and Quantum Mechanics. These different statistical ways of thinking and their specific methods have generated new fields for new activities and new scientific disciplines, like Econophysics (between Economics and Physics), Sociophysics (between Sociology and Physics), Mediaphysics (between all media and comunication sciences), etc. After describing some recent definitions of statistical thinking, implications of statistical education for developing Econophysics, Sociophysics, Mediaphysics, etc. from Statistical and Quantum Mechanics are discussed. Several opinions are given as a direct liaison between the classical and modern statistical sciences and thoughts of a scientific research in general. The main conclusion is that Statistics developing habits of mind for Statistical Physics in Econophysics, for the Quantum Mechanics in Quantum Physics, for the Sociology in Sociophysics will be essential for the future of all.Statistics, Statistical Physics, Quantum Mechanics, Econophysics, Sociophysics