Spring SPS Planning

Hello, and welcome to spring 2020 semester! Our first meeting will be on February 3rd at 4pm in NC 3601 (CU Denver physics lounge). There will be free pizza and waffles.

Some of the discussion topics we will be:

• APS March Meeting in Denver
• Local SPS meeting planning (frequency, event types, etc.)
• Tutoring 
• SPS sponsorship of senior lab presentations
• Physics!

We hope to see you there and good luck with your semester!

Visiting graduate student for March Meeting

Good morning,

I just wanted to extend a request from a graduate school student from Penn State about the upcoming March Meeting:

My name is Brett Green and I'm a physics graduate student at Penn State University who will be in town . I wanted to reach out to the MSU & CU Denver SPS to ask if you or anyone else would be willing to help me out with upcoming travel; if you'd like I would be glad to talk to you about graduate school, research, and fellowships in return.

I'll be in Denver for APS March Meeting, roughly the first week of the month. My adviser does not have travel funding, so I'm seeking other ways to reduce cost. Could you ask around to see if anyone would be willing to lend me a roof to stay under, or to pass my message on to any fellow students whom you think might be willing?

As you've likely guessed by the fact that I'm asking you, I'm very outgoing and would be glad for the extra opportunity to engage with fellow grad students. I'm studying Landau levels in bilayer graphene (theoretical condensed matter) if anyone would like to know, and am a DIYer and budding gardener in my free time. I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have about me or about what I could offer in return.

If you are able to help please reach out to him at green.brett.r@gmail.com or if you have any questions.

Respectfully,

Aaron Musselman

MSU Denver SPS President

SPS Denver Events

     Greetings from your SPS Denver President. I would like to share some upcoming events and the deadlines for registration. We have members attending each of these events so if you would like to coordinate travel or get together with fellow physics students check out our Slack channel. If you don't have access email me ( amusselm@msudenver.edu ) and I can get you invited.

Auraria Women in STEM Conference

Theme: Blueprint for Success: Building Skills and Setting Boundaries

When: October 25th, 2019

Where: Tivoli Turnhale, Auraria Campus

Cost: Free to Auraria Students and Staff

Reservation Deadline: October 18th

Description: The purpose of the annual Women in STEM Conference at MSU Denver is to shed light on the challenges faced by those who identify as women and other underrepresented populations in STEM disciplines.  The conference aims to inspire, engage, and support these students by providing opportunities to develop tools and skills to successfully navigate a career in STEM. Conference themes and session topics have included intersectionality, advocacy, work-life balance, salary negotiation, conflict resolution, imposter syndrome, redefining failure, and many more. The conference is free of charge and open to all MSU Denver students, faculty, and staff as well as the broader community.

SPS Denver Note: We will have a table set up during lunch with physics demonstrations and to promote our organization.

Website: https://www.msudenver.edu/case/womeninstemconference/

PhysCon 2019

Theme: Making Waves & Breaking Boundaries

When: November 14-16th, 2019

Where: Providence, RI

Cost: $220 + travel and lodging

Reservation Deadline: None but registration price increases Oct. 4th at midnight

Description: PhysCon 2019 will bring together more than 1,500 students of physics and astronomy with mentors, alumni and renowned scientists in Providence, RI for a life-changing experience to explore how we all have the capacity to Make Waves & Break Boundaries.  Attendees will have the opportunity to hear from luminaries in the field, go on tours, engage in workshops, and build our community. 

SPS Denver Note: Three metro officers have travel funding through Student Organizations and we have confirmation of funding assistance from both CU Denver and MSU Denver physics departments. Please email your respective president for information.

Website: https://www.sigmapisigma.org/sigmapisigma/congress/2019

Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics

Theme: APS Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) are three-day regional conferences for undergraduate physics majors.

When: January 17th-19th, 2020

Where: Black Hills State University, South Dakota

Cost: $45

Reservation Deadline: October 7th

Description: The goal of APS CUWiP is to help undergraduate women continue in physics by providing them with the opportunity to experience a professional conference, information about graduate school and professions in physics, and access to other women in physics of all ages with whom they can share experiences, advice, and ideas. The national and local organizing committees of APS CUWiP strive to create a welcoming environment for all, including undergraduate women and gender minorities.

A typical program will include research talks by faculty, panel discussions about graduate school and careers in physics, presentations and discussions about women in physics, laboratory tours, student research talks, a student poster session, and several meals during which presenters and students interact with each other.

SPS Denver Note: SPS Denver has strongly supported CUWiP for 4+ years and would like to continue the presence. The current plan is to road trip and stop at the Crazy Horse memorial on the way to the site, continuing the tradition of national monument visits (Arches National Park this year, and the Grand Canyon the last year). 

Website: https://www.aps.org/programs/women/workshops/cuwip.cfm

Thank you for your time and I hope that we can see you at some of these events or sometime around campus. 

  - Aaron Musselman

SPS Denver President

August SPS Denver Meeting

August SPS Denver Meeting

Come out to North Classroom 3601 on Thursday August 29th at 4pm for the first meeting for the fall semester. We will be discussing physics events coming up and what MSU Denver and UCD have to offer on the Auraria campus. We will also be providing build-your-own waffles.

Don't forget to check out SPSDenver.slack.com to keep up to date!

PhiDiP: Newton's Flaming Laser Sword!

Everyone's heard of Occam's Razor, here's the physicist's take on that philosophical concept. Come on by the North Classroom lounge today at 10 to have a lovely chat about the intersection of physics and philosophy.

Here's a link to the article...

BOOM!

Python Club Event (9/28/2018)

MSU Mathematics professor Henricus Bouwmeester will be speaking about Jupyter Hub and including Python in the classroom setting.

The Auraria Python club is designed to help you learn tips and tricks on how to use this powerful and versatile programming language.

This club is open to everyone of all levels of skill or knowledge of the language, so stop on by!

Friday Sept 28, 2:30pm in Plaza 262

Colloquium Series: Axiom Electronics and General Relativity

Join us this week for one or both of our Colloquium Series Lectures.


On Monday April 30th at 4:00pm in NC 3601 we will be hosting CU Denver alum and current president of Axiom Electronics, Robert Toppel. Axiom Electronics is a Portland based company that specializes in electronics and robotics.  http://www.axiomsmt.com/ 

On Wednesday May 2nd at 3:30pm in NC 3111 we will be hosting our own Dr. Kamran Sahami of MSU Denver for an introduction to General Relativity. Learn more about spacetime, gravity, and the upcoming elective course in the subject (being offered Fall 2018).