SASS Talk: US Science Education, Wed. 12:30 Kavli 3rd Floor

The Current State of Science Education in the USA

by Cat Graves

12:30pm January 18, 2012, Kavli, 3rd Floor Conf. Rm.

Over the past decade, concern about the state of scientific education in the U.S. has grown as more students test poorly compared to their international peers. The 2009 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) which tests math, reading and science literacy of students found that American students are at best in the middle of the international pack, ranking 17 out of 34 developed nations in science literacy. I will briefly discuss the history of science education, what has and has not changed over the years, and focus more on the current state of scientific literacy in the U.S. Finally, I hope to review some current ideas for changing our current levels of scientific (il)literacy, improving science education and getting students interested in science - maybe we'll come up with new ideas as we go!

New SASS Czars

Hi fellow SLACers,

Welcome back to the new quarter, and a new host of SASS talks. I'd like to introduce Kristi Schneck, a 2nd year in physics, and me, Mike Kozina, a 2nd year in applied physics, the new SASS czars. We look forward to a very productive set of SASS talks in the next few months! Our next talk is on Wednesday, January 18th at 12:30p in the Kavli 3rd floor conference room. Cat Graves will be discussing US science education. We hope to see you there!

See you Wednesday,
Mike and Kristi

SASS: Free Pizza, Organizational Meeting

Organizational Meeting

by You!

12:30pm June 23, 2010, Kavli, 3rd Floor Conf. Rm.

It's that time again - free pizza and planning out our talks! SASS is a great forum for students. You can practice and polish a talk by presenting to your peers! SASS presentations should be about 30 minutes, so they shouldn't take too long to prep for, and they're low-pressure. Most talks should be introductory in nature, so that any freshly-graduated Physics B.S. with no exposure to a field in particular can understand it. We also try to have snacks on hand! Bottom line: this is a great way to meet people, learn new things, and present what you're doing - a great way to get involved in the SLAC student community!

SASS Talk: EXO-200, Wed. @ 12:30, Kavli 2nd Fl.

EXO-200

by Derek Mackay

June 2, 2010 @12:30, Kavli 2nd Fl. Conf. Rm.

EXO-200 (Enriched Xenon Observatory - 200kg) is a low-background underground double-beta decay experiment that contains 200kg of Xenon, isotopically enriched to 80% in Xenon-136. EXO-200 will measure both the scintillation light and the ionization signal of the Xenon decay in order to detect the as yet unobserved two neutrino double beta decay mode, which conserves lepton number, and to put a competitive limit on the rate of the zero neutrino double beta decay mode. EXO-200 is currently under 2000 meters water equivalent of overburden at the WIPP site in New Mexico and is undergoing final construction and commissioning.

SASS Talk: Fermi, From Mission Concept to Launch, Wed. 12:30, Kavli 3rd Fl.

Fermi: From Mission Concept to Launch

by Keith Bechtol

May 26, 2010 @12:30, Kavli 3rd Fl. Conf. Rm.

The success of the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope mission is a testament to years of planning, research, and development efforts before launching the spacecraft on June 11, 2008. Observational gamma-ray astronomy began around 1950 and a succession of satellite observatories have gradually shaped our view of the high-energy Universe. This talk with review the legacy of past missions and discuss the process that Fermi (formerly known as GLAST) took from concept to launch.

Pizza & Organizational Meeting Today!

To all you SASS-ers and potential SASS-ers:

Just a reminder that we have pizza and an organizational meeting today.  Come get free food and sign up for talks!

Joel, your friendly neighborhood SASS Czar

Free Pizza and Organizational Meeting, Wed 5/19 @ 12:30, Kavli 2nd Fl.

Organizational Meeting

by you!

May 19, 2010 @12:30, Kavli 3rd Fl. Conf. Rm.

It's that time again - free pizza and planning out our talks! SASS is a great forum for students. You can practice and polish a talk by presenting to your peers! SASS presentations should be about 30 minutes, so they shouldn't take too long to prep for, and they're low-pressure. Most talks should be introductory in nature, so that any freshly-graduated Physics BS with no exposure to a field in particular can understand it. We also try to have snacks on hand! Bottom line: this is a great way to meet people, learn new things, and present what you're doing - a great way to get involved in the SLAC student community!