Faculty Meeting March 14, 2003

1. Faculty Meeting March 14, 2003 • Agenda: • News – Paul Grannis • Graduate program – Peter Stephens • Report of the Nuclear Experiment search – Jac Verbaarschot • Undergraduate issues – Grannis for Chris Jacobsen

2. News Walter Schmeling is interim Manager of the Machine Shop; we are down one person with the retirement of Richard Yoepp, so there is some loss of capability. At present the freeze on new hires precludes us searching for a permanent manager. I urge your cooperation with Walter and the shop staff during this time. Department is asked to improve our readiness for emergencies – fire, spill, bomb threat, etc. – by designating wardens who can supervise the evacuation of the building in case of emergency. Thanks to those who have volunteered. A few more, particularly in the basement, would be appreciated. University will supply 2-way radios for communication, flashlights etc. Commencement is Friday May 23 (department ceremony at 9AM). Department faculty party at Sunwood on Sunday May 25.

3. News Web page for internal department information – Fall teaching assignments, committees, etc. http://sbhep1.physics.sunysb.edu/~grannis/dept.html Appointment for Meigan Aronson – letter went out early January, and a companion offer from BNL for their (50%) share. A longish period of negotiation with BNL and Meigan ensued. Expect conclusion soon. Adjunct, Research professors: We are making such appointments now on five year terms to give us the opportunity to re-assess periodically. My working assumption: Adjunct professors are those employed by other organizations within SB, or outside (BNL, Frascati, Marine Sciences etc.). In fact some emeritus professors who teach regular courses in the department have also been named adjunct. n.b. Use of term ‘Adjunct’ is quite different in most other departments – there, hired guns who come in to teach courses for pay. Research professors are those on grant support within the department who teach or need a title for grant proposals.

4. Averbeck, Ralf Research Assistant Professor Ben-Zvi, Ilan Adjunct Professor Bergeman, Thomas Research Professor deZafra , Robert Research Professor Dierker, Steven Adjunct Professor diMauro, Louis Adjunct Professor Forman, Miriam Adjunct Professor Geller, Marvin Adjunct Professor Lee, Linwood Adjunct Professor Lee-Franzini, Juliet Adjunct Professor Mould, Richard Adjunct Professor Peggs, Steven Adjunct Professor Prakash, Madappa Research Professor Semenov, Vasili Research Associate Professor Starosta, Krzysztof Visiting Assistant Professor Swartz, Clifford Adjunct Professor Swesty, Douglas Research Assistant Professor Tsvelik, Alexei Adjunct Professor Wijers, Ralph Adjunct Professor Yanagisawa, Chiaki Research Associate Professor

5. Budget etc. Understanding of University budget:

6. Budget etc. Budget indications for College of Arts and Sciences: There is no State budget yet, no SUNY budget, no word on tuition increases, so nothing is clear. College is planning on an effective budget cut of around 14% relative to last year. Last year’s budget adjusted for inflation was about $57M. CAS budget is 95.6% salary, so cannot deal with just a cut on OTPS Current advice to CAS: Plan on spending $50.5M. This would mean cutting out all adjunct professor budgets (many courses across the university taught by soft money people on semester contract); no TA/GA beyond those from Grad School, $300K total non-salary budget across the college. Estimate loss of enrollment capability of 2000 students. Dean’s plan to keep college afloat is a budget of $53.9M allowing some adjuncts, some OTPS – but still very tight. Further problem in that President wants to increase incoming class by 400, over mandated number -- this would cost another $0.5M for CAS.

7. Budget etc. • Impacts on Department: • Loss of some TA lines (P. Stephens talk) • Hiring freeze – machine shop supervisor cannot be hired now • Clamp on faculty hiring – originally 12 searches approved for this year; now not clear that any will culminate with offer. • But, there has been a verbal commitment by Dean, Provost to make a hire in nuclear experiment, if there is a coupling between that hire and continuation of NSF funding of Nuclear Structure Lab. It will however take an exemption from the hiring freeze. • (net cash flow is positive with grant). So, I am hopeful that this search can result in an offer. • Further, it points the way to arguing for other faculty hires – based on a cost effectiveness. I have proposed on these grounds that P&A be allowed to hire again in next year. I don’t foresee that we will be able to resolve this until the budget for next year becomes clearer.

8. Center for Accelerator Science and Engineering We† have prepared a draft proposal for a joint Stony Brook—BNL Center for Accelerator Science and Engineering (CASE). Accelerator science and engineering is key to many scientific, medical and industrial applications. There are over 10,000 accelerators in the world today – about 150 particle, nuclear and light sources and the rest used for medical diagnostics, ion implantation, sterilization etc. Stony Brook has a strong record in preparing (a few) excellent accelerator physicists, and has a strong student body; BNL has first class accelerator facilities and world-class accelerator experts. Get them together to provide training of new accelerator scientists. Propose a new unit, patterned after YITP or Marine Sciences., with participation from several departments in Arts & Sciences and Engineering. Curriculum drawn in part from existing courses (e.g. E&M, Numerical Analysis and modelling .. ) and in part new courses taught through CASE (e.g. beam dynamics, acceleration mechanisms, advanced accelerator lab, etc.) †Ilan Ben Zvi, Paul Grannis, Steve Peggs, Gene Sprouse, George Sterman, Bill Weng

9. Center for Accelerator Science and Engineering Students would be partly matriculated directly into CASE, and partly from participating departments doing research on accelerator topics for a degree in the home department. Faculty to be joint – ½ Stony Brook and ½ BNL. From the estimated curriculum needs, suggest steady state of 9 joint app’t faculty. Seek federal support for students, postdocs, research program; institutional support for the faculty and staff. Both DOE and NSF are expressing strong interest in ramping up support for accelerator science. Initial discussions with Stony Brook provost, BNL director, Graduate Dean, BNL staff have been enthusiastic. Would need new lines to work – cannot take out of existing departments. Preproposal: http://sbhep1.physics.sunysb.edu/~grannis/dept.html

10. Undergraduate Program Curriculum changes: Physics of Sport – Chang Kee Jung discussed last Dec. First offering in Fall 2003. New courses on research opportunities in physics and astronomy (AST200 and PHY200) are now being offered and seem to be going well. B.A. in Physics A proposal for a BA in physics is being prepared. Aimed at those who do not wish to pursue further degrees in physics – pre-Law, pre-Med, teaching, business, etc.

11. Undergraduate Program We have requested modification of our introductory calculus-based curriculum. We are unusual in offering both two- and three-semester sequences (plus honors), with all courses every semester. Propose, starting Spring 2004: PHY131 (PHY132) offered in Fall (Spring) only. (Remove the off- semester version.) PHY125 offered every semester PHY126 and PHY127 offered in one semester only (PHY126 in fall and PHY127 in spring?) AST 101, 105, 248 and PHY 121, 122 every semester (AST101 in summer)

12. Introductory Physics courses Harriman 137 capacity

13. Advising students on the sequence • I’m taking the PHY 121/122 sequence • You start this sequence in either the fall or the spring. • I’m taking the PHY 125/126/127 sequence • My major is Physics, Chemistry, Electrical Engineering, or Computer Science • If you’re starting PHY 125 in the fall, take PHY 125 (year 1 fall), 127 (year 1 spring), and 126 (year 2 fall) in that order. • If you’re starting PHY 125 in the spring, take PHY 125 (year 1 spring), 126 (year 2 fall), and 127 (year 2 spring) in that order. • My major is Mechanical Engineering • If you’re starting PHY 125 in the fall, take PHY 125 (year 1 fall) and do well, followed by PHY 132 (year 1 spring). You’ll miss some thermal physics covered in PHY 131 or PHY 126, but you’ll get lots of that as part of your Mechanical Engineering major (e.g., MEC 301 and MEC 305). • If you’re starting PHY 125 in the spring, take PHY 125 (year 1 spring), 126 (year 2 fall), 127 (year 2 spring). • I’m taking the PHY 131/132 sequence • PHY 131 is only offered in the fall, and PHY 132 is only offered in the spring. If you wanted to start PHY 131 in the spring, look at the above options for starting PHY 125 in the spring instead.

14. Math pre-req for PHY 131 • We do not have a physics pre-req for course; therefore a physics placement exam does not make sense • Math placement level 5 is an overly blunt instrument (bad predictor) All students 125 students 131 students 141 students

15. Solution: math placement level 5.5 • Math placement level 5, plus 26 or more on first four parts of calc placement exam • Math placement level 5.5 gives entry to “A” students, blocks many “C” students. • In-place for Fall 2003 Hope by using the placement standard of 5.5, and PHY131 only in fall to better equalize the class size of PHY125 and 131

16. A plea: undergraduate research • Many student want options for summer, academic year; paid, or for credit. • Projects can include: • Read and understand a classic in the literature • Devise a physics demonstration • Assist a graduate student • Original research • We sent a request for project ideas to faculty. 6 responses. • One colleague: “What’s in it for me?” !!! • Please send email to John Noé (cc: Chris Jacobsen) with 2-3 sentence description of one or more project ideas – just to give students an idea of the range of possibilities to list at http://undergrad.physics.sunysb.edu/research/