General News

Michel Dyakonov, a theoretical physicist who predicted the Spin Hall Effect will deliver a special colloquium: The Erikson Lecture. Dyakonov will deliver the lecture, "The Spin Hall Effect" on Wednesday, October 12 at 2:30 p.m. in Physics 131. More »

A European neutrino recently made a the controversial announcement that neutrinos travel faster than light. The results contradicted Einstein's theory of relativity, but were similar to a 2007 measurement of neutrino speed recorded at the MINOS far detector in the Soudan Underground Mine in Northern Minnesota. MINOS physics assumed their faster than light result was due to the margin of error in their calculation. With the attention surrounding the OPERA result MINOS physicists are planning a more accurate experiment to settle the question once and for all. More »

The University of Minnesota will hold a ceremonial groundbreaking for the new Physics and Nanotechnology building. The event will take place at the site of the new building, on Union Street, east of Ackerman Hall from 4-6 p.m., Wednesday, October 12, 2011. The event is by invitation only.

University of Minnesota physics and astronomy professor Claudia Scarlata in the College of Science and Engineering is part of an international collaboration that has shed light on the power source of a rare vast cloud of glowing gas in the early Universe. The observations show for the first time that this giant “Lyman-alpha blob”—one of the largest single objects known—must be powered by galaxies embedded within it. The results appear in the August 18 issue of the journal Nature. More »

The Physics Force will perform three shows on Thursday, August 25th (Opening Day/STEM Day) at the State Fair. The shows will be 10:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. The STEM stage is located under the ramp by the grandstand. The Original Force will also perform at the U of MN stage on Saturday September 3 at 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. The shows are free to fair-goers.

University of Minnesota researchers are part of an international collaboration launched this week by Oxford University and the Egypt Exploration Society that applies the analysis tools of astrophysics with archeology to help decipher a collection of ancient Egyptian papyri. School of Physics and Astronomy Associate Professor Lucy Fortson in the College of Science and Engineering will lead the University of Minnesota team that includes faculty and staff from the Classical and Near Eastern Studies Department in the College of Liberal Arts and the Minnesota Supercomputing Institute. More »

Professor Roger Blandford, Stanford University, will deliver the 2011 Misel Family Lecture, "The Dark Side of the Universe," at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 20th in the McNamara Alumni Center, Memorial Hall. More »

Friday, July 1 marks the creation of the Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics (MIfA). The Institute brings together 20 faculty members of the School of Physics and Astronomy conducting research in astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology, planetary science, and space science under a single banner. As an institute within the School, the MIfA will replace the current Department of Astronomy in administering the University's undergraduate and graduate programs in astrophysics. More »

The 2011 student awards for scholarship and fellowships are as follows: Alex Ditter won the Alfred O.C. Nier Scholarship, Nicholas Smith won the Harry and Viola St. Cyr Scholarship, Matthew Epland won the Jeffrey Basford Scholarship. More »

School of Physics and Astronomy Professor Ken Heller won the 2011 George W. Taylor/CSE Alumni Society Award for Distinguished Teaching. Established in 1982, the Taylor/CSE Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching recognizes outstanding contributions to undergraduate and/or graduate teaching.