Education
The goals of the education programs described
below are not only to produce more scientists and engineers, but
also to assure that nonscientists are equipped to deal with the
scientific and technical issues facing our country. Given the
importance of issues such as health care and the environment,
a well-informed and technically literate citzenry is the best
guarantee for a prosperous future.
Graduate Study
Every country's most precious resource
is its young people. The training of graduate students to
understand fundamental concepts of nature and to solve difficult
problems is one of basic science's main contributions to
society. Nuclear science excels in this task because of
the breadth of its subject matter. Graduate students in
nuclear physics typically participate in all facets of an
experiment. They help design the project, take measurements,
build equipment, write computer programs, analyze data,
and write papers.
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Graduate Students in Nuclear Physics
Indiana University
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Students of experimental science develop skills
in interactive computing, fast electrons, and accelerator and
vacuum technologies. Students of theoretical nuclear physics develop
the computer software necessary for imaging and pattern recognition,
for fast information transfer, and for modeling of complex systems.
Nuclear physics students often become experts in a related field
-- for example, students interested in nuclear detectors often
become experts in microelectronics or in the application of these
detectors to medical diagnosis.
Graduate study in nuclear science prepares young
people to work in various fields and settings. About one-third
of the country's nuclear physicists work in universities, one-third
in government laboratories, and one-third in industry. President
Clinton's Science Advisor, John Gibbons, and two other recent
Presidential Science Advisors, D. Allan Bromley and George A.
Keyworth, were trained as nuclear physicists.
Dr. Gibbons recently made these remarks about
his graduate studies: "Graduate school was a good place to learn
how to define and solve problems, whether theoretical or experimental.
I didn't realize it until later, but the skills and sensitivities
I developed in graduate school -- learning how to ask questions
and dig for the answers, understanding which variables are important
and which you can safely ignore, the `sense of things' you gain
in hard science -- are relevant not only for basic research, but
also for generic problem solving."
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Summer Students
CEBAF
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Undergraduate Education
Nuclear scientists who are university
professors teach undergraduates. Researchers exploring
the frontiers of knowledge carry their excitement into
the classroom to motivate and inspire students.
Research opportunities improve the quality
of undergraduate education. The National Science Foundation
and the Department of Energy sponsor undergraduate research
opportunities at colleges, universities, and national
laboratories. Most of these programs target women and
other underrepresented groups. Under supervision of a
professor or senior staff scientist, undergraduates participate
in research projects by building an apparatus, testing
equipment, analyzing data, or working on a theoretical
problem. Students learn that the essence of science is
not looking up answers or carrying out recipe-style experiments
but solving problems that have never been solved before.
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Precollege
Many scientists realize the importance
of working with teachers to enrich the education of students
in the precollege (K-12) system. For example, CEBAF's
major precollege program known as BEAMS (Becoming Enthusiastic
About Math and Science), a partnership with local school
districts, exposes students to the excitement and the
challenges of science and alerts them to scientific career
opportunities. Fifth- and sixth-graders spend a week at
CEBAF for classes and activities led by laboratory scientists,
engineers, and technicians, as well as their regular teachers.
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Youngsters in BEAMS CEBAF
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Youngsters in BEAMS
CEBAF
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CEBAF also
provides special institutes and research opportunities
for middle and high school teachers. Nearly 10,000 students
and 1500 teachers participate annually in CEBAF programs.
Another example is Science Theatre, a
program managed by graduate students at the National Superconducting
Cyclotron Laboratory and the Physics and Astronomy Department
at Michigan State University. This program won the 1993
Outreach Award from the American Association for the Advancement
of Science for its presentations to precollege audiences
and parents.
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