By News and Communications Staff

July 01, 2023

 

Jamie Kneitel (Biological Sciences) has a new publication co-authored with graduate students Jasmine Rios, Melanie Dibbell, and Emely Flores. The article is titled "Beyond the hydro-regime: Differential regulation of plant functional groups in seasonal ponds” and addresses how vernal pool plant communities respond to climate patterns and other changes in the environment. It was published in the journal Diversity and can be read here.

Cynthia Linville (English) had 16 poems and 11 photographs published from 2022-23 in The Poeming Pigeon and in Medusa's Kitchen.

Mary Mackey (Emerita Professor of English) has a new book, Creativity: Where Poems Begin, which has been nominated for the 42nd annual Northern California Book Award (NCBA) in Creative Nonfiction as one of the best works by a Northern California author published in 2022. "Creating Creativity," Mackey's account of how she came up with the idea for the book has just been published in Writing It Real and can be read, along with an excerpt from the book, here.

Dean Sheree Meyer (Arts and Letters) has been elected president of the board of directors for the Sacramento Philharmonic and Opera (SP&O). Meyer has served on the board since 2016, including as its vice president from 2021-2023. During her tenure as president, she plans to prioritize strengthening and expanding SP&O’s musical and educational impact on the region; growing, diversifying, and developing its board; and enhancing its collaborations with other Sacramento arts, educational, and cultural organizations.

Abhijeet Shirsat (Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Administration) was featured in two articles published by WalletHub, which is an award-winning personal finance company. The articles are titled “Best Travel Credit Cards” and “2023’s Best & Worst Cities for Staycations”. In both articles, Dr. Shirsat presented his expert commentary on the pros and cons of using travel credit cards and the best ways of enjoy a staycation and keep safe.

Mikkel Herholdt Jensen, Eliza Morris, and Michael Ray (Physics and Astronomy) have a new publication titled “Implementing a course-based authentic learning experience with upper- and lower-division physics classes.” The article describes the implementation and outcomes of authentic learning experiences in two physics courses. As part of the project, students worked to design, build, and test instruments to measure the water quality of the American River. The project spanned lower- and upper-division physics classes across multiple semesters, and was found to be impactful both in building utility value for students, and in heightening awareness of the role physics can play in addressing environmental issues. The article, which is published in the American Journal of Physics as part of a special issue on teaching about the environment, sustainability, and climate change, is part of the National Science Foundation-supported Expanded Sustainable Interdisciplinary Research to Inspire Undergraduate Success (SIRIUS-II) project and can be viewed here.

Four faculty from the Department of Physics and Astronomy presented their work at this year's American Association of Physics Teachers Summer Meeting, an annual meeting gathering both K-12 and college educators and education researchers from across the country.

• Mikkel Herholdt Jensen shared the latest results of an ongoing effort in the department to incorporate peer leadership into introductory physics classrooms to improve student success.
• Eliza Morris presented on newly developed labs using PASCO smart carts to build a strong conceptual foundation and supplement lecture learning modalities.
• Michael Ray shared Authentic Learning Experiences, or ALEs, developed in lower- and upper-division physics classrooms as part of the campus SIRIUS-II project.
• Brenda Weiss presented on how to use new PASCO smart carts to aid students in visualizing concepts of kinetic energy and energy conservation in physics labs.

More Professional Activities

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