The Oberlin Review
<< Front page News February 24, 2006

Annual Astrophysics Lecture Series Explores Space Flight and the Universe
 
“Starry eyed”: Marc Millis thinks about space travel.
 

“Physics is a growing and fascinating field, and most of the learning happens outside the classroom,” said Oberlin Physics Professor Chris Martin. Martin is heading this year’s ongoing astronomy and physics lecture series.

“These people explain what those frontiers of physics are,” he said of the series’ lecturers. Linked only by the overarching theme of astronomy and physics, each of the lectures in this series otherwise stands alone.

“There is a wide range of lecturers, from ‘the professor down the road’ to Nobel Laureates from across the country,” said Hall, who looks for speakers involved in physics research who will attract a broad range of students and faculty. Each speaker will lecture on his or her own research.

The series generally includes five or six lectures each year and is organized so that students have numerous opportunities to meet each speaker. When possible, the lecturer comes earlier in the day. He or she might join physics majors for lunch, as did Wednesday’s lecturer Marc Millis, who described how he got his current position at the NASA Glenn Research Center. The visiting lecturer might also tour the campus or dine with Oberlin faculty after the lecture.

However, the series is not meant to appeal to only physics majors. Every speaker is informed that his or her talk should be interesting and understandable for all Oberlin students. Martin explained that many non-physics students can find lecture subjects that tie into their own studies.

Courtney Epstein, a sophomore mathematics major, attended Wednesday’s lecture by Millis on space drives, warp drives and worm holes.

“Space flight is really interesting,” she said.

Millis spoke optimistically about the future of space travel to the closest star and questioned the possibility of breaking the light barrier.

The lecture, “Pondering Space Flight Breakthroughs,” was the second in this year’s series of four. The next lecture will be delivered by Denison University researcher Jeff Sudol, who will speak about solar flares on March 8.

To wrap up this year’s series, Robert Greenler, a well-known speaker and professor from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, will lecture about the sun ray mystery on April 20. With the lecture at 7 p.m. instead of 4:30 p.m., Martin expects it to draw more of the general public.

The astronomy and physics lecture series program predates current Oberlin professors. Martin estimates that it is as old as the Oberlin physics department, which was established as an independent department in 1910. The college provides funds to bring in reputable speakers, which has made the series a highly regarded Oberlin tradition.
 
 

   

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