Tag archives: physics

Students Reveal Physics Findings 
By Scott Craig   |   January 2, 2024

Two Westmont students presented their research at a joint meeting of the Nuclear Physics Divisions of the American and Japanese Physics Societies November 26-December 1 on the Big Island of Hawaii. Natalie Fogg ‘24 and Reese Toepfer ‘26 joined Robert Haring-Kaye, Westmont professor of physics and department chair of physics and engineering, at the event […]

Students Bring Joy of STEM to Ecuador
By Scott Craig   |   August 8, 2023

Westmont engineering students returned to Quito, Ecuador, in May to share their love of science, technology, engineering, and math with children in an after-school program. The seven engineering students – Jonny Reitinger, Jonah Swanson, Jacob Bailey, Maria Judy, Elijah Cicileo, Becca Hudson, and Tasha Loh – designed and built STEM educational materials to share with […]

Weird Science: Teens Explore Physics
By Scott Craig   |   May 31, 2022

Nearly 40 local high school students enrolled in an AP physics course visited Westmont on May 16 for a hands-on exploration into how the universe behaves. The event, Understanding Physics from Galaxies to Particles, was led by Ben Carlson, Westmont assistant professor of physics. “We are asking the fundamental questions: What is the universe made […]

Senior Wins Top Oxford Scholarship
By Scott Craig   |   March 1, 2022

Westmont senior Lexy Gillette, a double major in physics and chemistry, will attend the University of Oxford in the fall after earning the prestigious John and Daria Barry Foundation Scholarship. The award, given to about 10 students a year from select institutions, covers tuition, fees, and living expenses, and also provides a stipend and research […]

Can You Estimate That?
By Robert Bernstein   |   June 24, 2021

“How many piano tuners are there in Boston?” That was the first question on our first problem set of freshman physics at MIT. The question was not really about pianos or the people who tune them. It was a way to get us to make estimates based on facts that we know. The first step […]

Really Big Questions?
By Robert Bernstein   |   February 25, 2021

Some years ago I was at a talk where I asked some questions. Afterwards, the speaker came over to me and commented that it seemed I had a great many interests. I said that was not true. I actually only have two interests: 1) What is the nature of reality? 2) What is the nature […]