Upcoming Events

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Previous Events

What do we do?

Here is a brief list of some of the things we do in SPS, some more specific examples are further below:

  • SPS Students run teaching sessions. Past sessions have been about LaTeX, the program Processing and knitting (yes, knitting)

  • We have many projects in various stages of construction including a Tesla Coil, a double pendulum, water clock, and a reversible flow demonstration

  • Host an undergraduate research night where professors describe their research in the hopes of finding undergraduate assistance

  • We invite speakers for the weekly department colloquium.

  • Attend local physics conferences

  • Have Rent-A-Student events where professors hire us to do work at their homes

  • We do outreach for local organizations (see the outreach page for more information)

  • Participate in Intramural Sports

  • We host numerous social events including: movie nights, frisbee, and barbeques when the weather is nice

Fall 2012

Syracuse Conference November 5th

St. Jude's Outreach Event - November 7th

Spring 2011

Spring Barbeque

April 13th Physics Colloquium Speaker - Dr. Hans Ohanian, University of Vermont

Title: Einstein's Mistakes

Abstract: Most of Einstein's great discoveries rested on conceptual mistakes which he used as shortcuts to reach a final, true result. This lecture dissects several mistakes that paved Einstein's progress toward special and general relativity, in particular, his mistakes in the derivation of his famous formula E=mc2 and his mistakes in the use of his equivalence principle of accelerations and gravitation.

Poster

Dr. Shaun Morrissey, MITRE Corporation

Spoke about the MITRE Corporation and his personal career to illustrate the variety of things you can do after graduating with a physics degree. As a recruiter he gave valuable advice for resume preparation and job hunting.

Ithaca Zone 2 SPS Confrence

Fall 2011

November 10th Physics Colloquium Speaker, Dr. Paul Chaikin, New York University Center for Soft Matter Research

Title: Self Replication Without Life

Abstract: We want to make a "non-biological'' system which can self-replicate. The idea is to design particles with specific and reversible and irreversible interactions, introduce seed motifs, and cycle the system in such a way that a copy is made. Repeating the cycle would double the number of offspring in each generation leading to exponential growth. Using the chemistry of DNA either on colloids or on DNA tiles makes the specific recognition part easy. In the case of DNA tiles we have in fact replicated the seed at least to the third generation. The DNA linkers can also be self-protected so that particles don't interact unless they are held together for sufficient time as a nano-contact glue. We have also designed and produced colloidal particles that use novel "lock and key'' geometries to get specific and reversible physical interactions.

Poster

Dr. Robert Galejs, MIT Lincoln Laboratory

Spoke about career paths in systems analysis at Lincoln as well as answering many questions about applying to jobs after graduation.