XXVI - ROCHESTER SYMPOSIUM

FOR PHYSICS (ASTRONOMY & OPTICS) STUDENTS

SPS Zone 2 Regional Meeting being held at

 

 

April 21, 2007

 

PROGRAM

 

 

8:00-8:25                 RSPS Registration: Bausch and Lomb Lobby

 

8:30-8:45                 Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 109: 

 

Introduction and welcome:  Prof. Frank Wolfs, University of Rochester

 

 

Presentation Session I

 

8:45-9:45                 Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 109:  Quantum Optics

 

                                   Session Chair:  Prof. Mitra Feizabadi, Canisius College

 

8:45                            The Design and Physics of Optical Trapping

                                         Joe Shatzel, Prof. Mitra Feizebadi, Canisius College       

 

9:00                            Violating the Bell-Kocken-Speaker Inequality with a Single Photon Entangled State

Bryce Gadway, Prof. Enrique Galvez, Colgate University

 

9:15                            Trapping and Rotating Objects with Laguerre-Gaussian Beams

                                         Nikolay Zhelev, Prof. Enrique Galvez, Colgate University

 

9:30                            Construction of Optical Mode Converters for use in Bose Einstein Condensate Studies

                                         Kristin Beck, Prof. Nicholas Bigelow, University of Rochester

 

 

 

8:45-10:00              Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 106:  Astronomy/Gravitational Physics

 

                                   Session Chair:  Prof. Shashi Kanbur, State University of New York at Oswego

 

8:45                            Electron Speckle Pattern Interferometry (ESPI) Phase Analysis with a Temporal Hilbert Transform Atmosphere Disturbances

Venkat Motupalli, Gegory Schwartz, Chad Giacomozzi, and Lt. Colonel John Hartke, United States Military Academy, West Point

 

9:00                            Detection of Extremely Small Silicates

Alex Kitt, State University of New York at Buffalo and Prof. William Forrest and Ben Sargent, University of Rochester

 

9:15                            Determining the Fate of Star-Forming Cluster Galaxies

                                         Corey Snitchler and Prof. Rose Finn, Siena College

     

9:30                            Period-Color and Amplitude-Color Relations in the Sloan RR Lyrae Sample

Christina Phelps and Prof. Shashi Kanbur, State University of New York at Oswego

 

9:45                            A Theoretical Investigation into the Properties of RR Lyraes at Maximum and Minimum Light

Gregory Feiden and Prof. Shashi  Kanbur, State University of New York at Oswego

 

 

8:45-10:00               Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 407: Nuclear and Particle Physics I

 

                                   Session Chair:  Prof. Michael Vineyard, Union College

 

8:45                            Detection and Analysis of Cosmic Ray Showers

Jordan Webster, Robert Bradford, and Prof. Kevin McFarland, University of Rochester

 

9:00                            Electron Scattering and Pion Production in Relation to Neutrino-Nucleon Interactions

Elizabeth Scherrer and Prof. Kevin McFarland, University of Rochester

 

9:15                            Fiducial Cuts for the Jefferson Lab CLAS G3 Data Set

Richard Bonventre, Elliot Imler, Christian Shultz, and Prof. Michael Vineyard, Union College

 

9:30                            Momentum Corrections for the Jefferson Lab CLAS G1c and G3a Data Sets

Christian Shultz, Richard Bonventre, Elliot Imler, and Prof. Michael Vineyard, Union College

 

9:45                            Silicon Vertex Tracker (SVTX) and the CAEN SY1527 Universal Multichannel Power Supply System

Fook-Chin Chiang, University of Rochester and Prof. Axel Drees and Harry Themann, State University of New York at Stony Brook

 

 

 

Poster Session

 

10:00-10:30            Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 208: Coffee Break

                                   

                                   Mathematical Model of Cancer Treatment: Immunotherapy and Chemotherapy

                                         Christian Volk and Prof. Mitra Feizabadi, Canisius College

 

                                   The Mobility of Taxol in Microtubule Bundles

                                         Joseph Shatzel and Prof. Mitra Feizabadi, Canisius College

 

                                   Investigating Nuclear D++ Components with the (n,2p) Reaction

Kirby Runyon, Jeffrey De Young, Steven Wallace, and Prof. Mark Yuly, Houghton College

 

                                   Design and Construction of a Variable Temperature Atomic Force Microscope

                                         Bethany Little and Prof. Brandon Hoffman, Houghton College

 

                                   Optimal Coupling in Acoustic Pipes

Nicholas Zufelt and Prof. Lawrence Brehm, State University of New York at Potsdam

 

                                   Magnetic Levitation

Zak Brown and Prof. Michael Grady, State University New York at Fredonia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Presentation Session II

 

10:30-11:45            Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 109:  Quantum Optics/Nano Structures/Condensed Matter Physics

 

                                   Session Chair:  Prof. Mark Rosenberry, Siena College

 

10:30                          Generation of Polarized Electrons from Rubidium Gas

                                         Joseph Tessitore and Prof. Mark Rosenberry, Siena College

 

10:45                          Modeling Semiconductor Quantum Dots

                                         Steven Cowen and Prof. Joshua Diamond, Siena College

 

 

11:00                          Synthesis of Nano-Structures: A Feasibility Study

Corey Lemley and Prof. Monisha Mahanta, State University of New York at Oneonta

 

11:15                          Effect of Silver Content and Undercooling on Interlaced Cyclic Twinning in Near Eutectic TinÐSilver Solder

Duncan McGillivray and Prof. Eric Cotts, University of Binghamton

 

11:30                          Automated Beam Control to Improve a Double Pump Probe Experiment

Daniel Galgano, Gregory Schwarz, and Lt. Colonel John Hartke, United States Military Academy, West Point

 

 

10:30-11:45            Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 106:  Biophysics

 

                                   Session Chair:  Prof. Robert Pompi, Binghamton University

 

10:30                          The Evolution of Proliferating Cells During the Course of Chemotherapy

                                         Christian Volk and Prof. Mitra Feizabadi, Canisius College

 

10:45                          Light Scattering Study of Alpha Crystallin Lens Protein and its Subunits with applications to Cataract Disease

Brandy Pappas and Prof. George Thurston, Rochester Institute of Technology

 

11:00                          Electrostatics of an Eye Lens Protein Solution

Stephen Baker, Ben Haehnel, Stephanie Dorn, and Profs. George Thurston, Dawn Carter, and Vern Lindberg, Rochester Institute of Technology

 

11:15                          Expanding from Single to Double Stranded DNA the Polarization Effect of Water and Ions on Excess Charge

Patrick McLaughlin and Prof. Esther Conwell, University of Rochester

 

11:30                          Theoretical Estimates of Polaron Energies and Wavefunctions on double Stranded DNA

                                         Steven Bloch and Prof. Esther Conwell, University of Rochester

 

 

10:30-11:45            Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 407: Experimental Tools and Techniques

 

                                   Session Chair:  Prof. Mark Yuly, Houghton College

 

10:30                          Implementing a Semantic Web Knowledge Database for Scientific Control and Diagnostic Systems

Daniel Gresh and Prof. Richard Kidder, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester

 

10:45                          Initial Results from the Houghton College Cyclotron

Andrew Loucks and Prof. Mark Yuly, Houghton College

 

11:00                          Considerations in the Design of Electrostatic Accelerator Columns

Joshua Troyer, Alexander Lipnicki and Prof. Mark Yuly, Houghton College

 

11:15                          A Remotely-Controlled Electron Gun for a 200 keV Electrostatic Accelerator

Alexander Lipnicki, Joshua Troyer, and Prof. Mark Yuly, Houghton College

 

11:30                          Highly Uniform Magnetic Fields and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

Dave Antanavige and Prof. Mark Rosenberry, Siena College    

 

 

11:30-12:15            Lunch Ð Meliora Faculty Club, Salon D

 

 

 

Guest Speaker Session

 

12:15-1:15              Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 109: Special Talk

 

12:15                          The Physics of Baseball

                                         Prof. Charles Freeman, State University of New York at Geneseo

 

 

Presentation Session III

 

1:15-2:15                Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 109:  Physics Education and Physics Laboratories

 

                                   Session Chair:  Prof. Michael Rogers, Ithaca Collge

 

1:15                            Development of an Air-Water Rocket Experiment

                                         Andrew Wasicek and Prof. Joseph Amato, Colgate University

 

1:30                            Finding the Fun in Physics Ð Teaching Science with Summer Camp Activities

Lia Stelljes, Bruce Thompson, Alexis Abramo, and Prof. Michael Rogers, Ithaca College and the Ithaca Sciencenter

 

1:45                            Modification of Laboratory Experiments for use in a New Performance-Based Physics Classroom

Rhea Hanrahan, Luke Keller, Mathew Sullivan, and Prof. Michael Rogers, Ithaca College

 

2:00                            Chaos in a Resistor-Inductor-Diode Circuit

Joseph Murphy, Profs. Richard Mancuso and Mohammed Tahar, State University of New York College at Brockport

 

 

1:15-2:45                Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 106:  Astronomy/Gravitational Physics II

 

                                   Session Chair:  Prof. Michael Grady, State University of New York at Fredonia

 

1:15                            Materials using X-26A X-Ray Microprobe Beamline

Ilona Sitnitsky and Prof. George Flynn, State University of New York at Plattsburg

 

1:30                            Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Analysis of Meteorites

Michelle Dragoon and Prof. George Flynn, State University of New York at Plattsburgh

 

1:45                            Search for a Diurnal Variation of a Gravitational Stochastic Background

                                         Chad Forrest and Prof. Adrian Melissinos, University of Rochester

 

2:00                            Para Ð Statistics I

Matthew Barbery and Prof. Charles Nelson, University of Binghamton

 

2:15                            Para Ð Statistics II

Joshua Julian and Prof. Charles Nelson, University of Binghamton

 

2:30                            Para Ð Quantum Field Theory

Shan Huang and Prof. Charles Nelson, University of Binghamton

 

 

1:15-2:15                 Bausch and Lomb Hall, Room 407:  Nuclear and Particle Physics II

 

Session Chair: Prof. Lt. Colonel John Hartke, United States Military Academy, West Point

 

1:15                            Transformation Algebras between a New Cupling in Top Quark Decay and the Standard Model

                                         Jeffrey Berger and Prof. Charles Nelson, University of Binghamton

 

1:30                            Additional Couplings in the Standard Model at the High Energy Limit

Patrick Gan and Prof. Charles Nelson, University of Binghamton

 

1:45                            Investigating the Effects of a New Lorentz Structure in  Decay

Alessandra Borgia and Prof. Charles Nelson, University of Binghamton

 

2:00                            A Three-Body Partial Decay Width in the Littlest Higgs Model

                                         Andrew Whitbeck and Prof. Lynne Orr, University of Rochester

 

 

2:45                           Refreshments to Go, Bausch and Lomb Hall, Lobby