Paula Turner

In recent years, there has been a renaissance of science writing for the common reader that combines literary and scientific merit, from Stephen Hawking's "A Brief History of Time" to Oliver Sacks' "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for A Hat," and from Dava Sobel's "Longitude" to Rebecca Skloot's "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." Such book explore scientific questions in a style that transcends the conventions of academic science writing or popular history, bringing important questions from physics, biology, chemistry, neuroscience, and mathematics to wider public attention. Short-form science journalism has become one of the most important areas of literary nonfiction, recognized both by annual awards from the American Association for the Advancement of Science and two different series of Best of American Science Writing anthologies. This interdisciplinary science writing course combines literary analysis of exemplary essays on scientific topics with a writing workshop that requires students to closely observe scientific processes, conduct independent research and interviews, interpret data, and present scientific information in highly readable form. Weekly readings are selected from prize-winning science essays and the Best of American Science and Nature Writing series. We may also read one book-length work of science writing. Weekly writing assignments include journals, observational accounts of science experiments, exercises in interpreting scientific data, interviews, narratives and a substantial research essay. This counts toward the creative practice requirement for the major. No prerequisite.

In this course, students learn to use motors, relays, microcontrollers and electronic components to design and build computer-controlled devices, small robots and interactive gizmos increasingly employed in projects by artists, designers and scientists. The primary tool is the Arduino open source microcontroller environment. Developed for use by designers, artists and hobbyists, the Arduino environment provides a wide array of options for implementing automation and interaction between a physical device and its environment. It is used in applications ranging from interactive installation art to smart home technologies and hardware control in scientific applications. The course combines laboratory exercises, homework assignments, individual and group project work, and a culminating public presentation. Each student must bring a laptop computer (PC, Mac, or Linux) to every class session (Surface/iPad/other tablets are not sufficient). Instead of a textbook for the course, the Kenyon bookstore will stock a required electronics kit including an Arduino board and some basic circuit elements necessary for engaging in this course. This course is not open to physics majors without permission from the instructor. No prerequisite.\n

This course surveys current knowledge of the physical nature of stars and galaxies. Topics include the sun and other stars, the evolution of stars, interstellar matter, the end products of stellar evolution (including pulsars and black holes), the organization of stellar systems such as clusters and galaxies, and the large-scale structure of the universe itself. Evening laboratory sessions include telescopic observation, laboratory investigations of light and spectra, and computer modeling and simulation exercises. This course does not count toward the physics major. No prerequisite.

This course is the second in a three-semester calculus-based introductory physics sequence. Focusing on revolutionary physics developed in the 20th century, topics include geometrical and wave optics, photon-matter interactions, elementary quantum theory, atomic and nuclear physics and selected applications of these ideas in condensed matter, astro-, and particle physics. PHYS 145 is recommended for students who might major in physics and is appropriate for students majoring in other sciences or mathematics, particularly those who are considering careers in engineering. The course will be taught using a combination of lectures, in-class exercises, homework assignments, and examinations. Prerequisites: PHYS 140, MATH 111. Corequisites: PHYS 146 and MATH 112

This laboratory course is a corequisite for all students enrolled in PHYS 145. The course meets one afternoon each week and is organized around weekly experiments exploring the phenomena of waves, optics, X-rays, and atomic and nuclear physics. Lectures cover the theory and instrumentation required to understand each experiment. Experimental techniques include the use of lasers, X-ray diffraction and fluorescence, optical spectroscopy, and nuclear counting and spectroscopy. Students are introduced to computer-assisted graphical and statistical analysis of data, as well as the analysis of experimental uncertainty. This course is required for the physics major. Prerequisite: PHYS 131 or 141 and concurrent enrollment in PHYS 145. Offered every spring.

In this course students will conduct research, synthesize and share experiences, attend professional presentations in the department, and present their research with oral and written presentations. Students will complete a minimum of three hours of independent research under the supervision of a faculty member as well as participate in discussion sections and other commitments as designed by the instructor. This course does not count toward any major requirement. Permission of instructor required. Offered every semester. No prerequisite.

In this course students will conduct research, synthesize and share experiences, attend professional presentations in the department, and present their research with oral and written presentations. The time commitment for students is six to eight hours of individual research under the supervision of a faculty member. This section represents a significant commitment to a research project. Enrollment in this section requires consultation with the department chair. This course does not count toward any major requirement. Permission of instructor required. Offered every semester. No prerequisite.

This course will serve as an introduction to electronics by helping students to become familiar with tools (oscilloscopes, digital multimeters (DMMs), data acquisition software and devices, breadboards, etc.) used in the design of and diagnosis of problems with electronic circuits, as well as the capabilities, characteristics, and uses of some of the more common electronic circuit elements (capacitors, resistors, diodes, transformers, regulators, etc.). Students will also learn to simulate circuit performance on a computer using a SPICE-based simulator. In addition, students will build and package a useful device.\n \nWhile no single course can teach students all the specific applications they will run into over the course of a career, this course will help students begin to answer their own questions as they come up, by reading device specification sheets and finding technical information when they need it. Students will also practice keeping a professional-standard record of their work.

In this course, students will explore circuit design and analysis for active and passive analog circuit elements, from the physics of the components (semiconductor diodes, transistors) to the behavior of multi-stage circuits. Experiments explore transistors, amplifiers, amplifier design and frequency sensitive feedback networks. \n \nWhile no single course can teach students all the specific applications they will run into over the course of a career, this course will help students begin to answer their own questions as they come up, by reading device specification sheets and finding technical information when they need it. Students will also practice keeping a professional-standard record of their work.

In this course, students will explore applications of integrated circuits (ICs), the fundamental building blocks of electronic devices such as personal computers, smart phones, and virtually every other electronic device in use today. Taking a two-pronged approach, the course will include experimentation with basic ICs such as logic gates as well as with multipurpose ICs such as microcontrollers that can be programmed to mimic the function of complex combinations of thousands of individual gates.\n \nWhile no single course can teach students all the specific applications they will run into over the course of a career, this course will help students begin to answer their own questions as they come up, by reading device specification sheets and finding technical information when they need it. Students will also practice keeping a professional-standard record of their work.\n

This course is an introduction to upper-level experimental physics that will prepare students for research in physics and for work in industrial applications of physics. Students will acquire skills in experimental design, observation, material preparation and handling, and equipment calibration and operation. The experiments will be selected to introduce students to concepts, techniques, and equipment useful in understanding physical phenomena across a wide range of physics sub-disciplines, with the two-fold goal of providing students with a broad overview of several branches of experimental physics and preparing students to undertake experiments found in the successor courses, Phys 386 and 387.\n \nThe experiments in this course will center on investigations of physical phenomena with detailed experimental analysis, careful consideration of experimental uncertainty and sources of experimental error, and reflection on the experimental results themselves and the techniques employed to achieve them. Each of the experiments will provide an opportunity to practice thorough procedural and communication skills, via careful written records of observations, reports of results, and oral conferences.

This course builds on the foundation begun in Phys 385, extending students’ experience with a variety of branches of experimental physics and helping students develop their ability to apply physical theory to the analysis of experimental data. Through their work on experiments in this course students will expand their ability to conduct experimental measurement and investigation, learning to read and interpret documentation and work more independently, while continuing to hone skills in experimental design, observation, material preparation and handling, and equipment calibration and operation.\n \nThe experiments in this course will center on investigations of physical phenomena with opportunities for creative design as well as chances for detailed experimental analysis, careful consideration of experimental uncertainty and sources of experimental error, and reflection on the experimental results themselves and the techniques employed to achieve them. Each of the experiments will provide an opportunity to practice thorough procedural and communication skills, via careful written records of observations, reports of results, and oral conferences. Students who have already completed Advanced Experimental Physics 3 will perform a new set of experiments in this course.

This course builds on the foundation begun in Phys 385, extending students’ experience with a variety of branches of experimental physics and helping students develop their ability to apply physical theory to the analysis of experimental data. Through their work on experiments in this course students will expand their ability to conduct experimental measurement and investigation, learning to read and interpret documentation and work more independently, while continuing to hone skills in experimental design, observation, material preparation and handling, and equipment calibration and operation.\n \nThe experiments in this course will center on investigations of physical phenomena with opportunities for creative design as well as chances for detailed experimental analysis, careful consideration of experimental uncertainty and sources of experimental error, and reflection on the experimental results themselves and the techniques employed to achieve them. Each of the experiments will provide an opportunity to practice thorough procedural and communication skills, via careful written records of observations, reports of results, and oral conferences. Students who have already completed Advanced Experimental Physics 2 will perform a new set of experiments in this course.

Individual studies may involve various types of inquiry: reading, problem solving, experimentation, computation, etc. To enroll in individual study, a student must identify a physics faculty member willing to guide the course and work with that professor to develop a description. The description should include topics and content areas, learning goals, prior coursework qualifying the student to pursue the study, resources to be used (e.g., specific texts, instrumentation), a list of assignments and the weight of each in the final grade, and a detailed schedule of meetings and assignments. The student must submit this description to the physics department chair for approval. In the case of a small-group individual study, a single description may be submitted and all students must follow that plan. The amount of work in an individual study should approximate the work typically required in other physics courses of similar types at similar levels, adjusted for the amount of credit to be awarded. Individual study courses should supplement, not replace, courses regularly offered by the department. Because students must enroll for individual studies by the end of the seventh class day of each semester, they should begin discussion of the proposed individual study the semester before, so that there is time to devise the proposal and seek departmental approval. An individual study course in physics is ordinarily designed for 0.25 unit of credit and cannot count towards the QR (quantitative reasoning) requirement unless special arrangements are made with the chair of the department, in consultation with the registrar's office.

This course offers guided experimental or theoretical research for senior honors candidates. Students enrolled in this course are automatically added to PHYS 498Y for the spring semester. Permission of instructor and department chair required, as is cumulative GPA above the College-mandated minimum.

This course offers guided experimental or theoretical research for senior honors candidates. Permission of instructor and department chair required, as is cumulative GPA above the College-mandated minimum.