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Physics and Astronomy celebrates centennial with year of public events

From critical early developments in television technology to recent detection of cosmic phenomena in faraway galaxies, Washington State University physicists have been at the forefront of scientific education, innovation, and discovery for 100 years. This fall, the Department of Physics and Astronomy (P&A) will launch a yearlong series of free, public events to celebrate its long history of achievement and strong foundation for future success.

J. Thomas Dickinson.
Dickinson

On Thursday, Sept. 5, J. Thomas Dickinson, Regents professor emeritus of physics, will talk about his more than 50-year career in teaching and research and his award-winning work in materials and surface physics. He will also discuss the significant research of the late Paul Anderson, WSU physics professor, 1931–63, whose innovations in ultra-high vacuum technology contributed to countless inventions and discoveries—from television to the cell phone to evidence of black holes colliding billions of light years away.

Dickinson’s presentation, which is part of the department’s Distinguished Colloquium Series, will begin at 4:10 p.m. in Webster Physical Sciences Building, room 17. It will be followed by dedication of the J. Thomas Dickinson Undergraduate Study and a community reception on Webster Mall.

“The depth and breadth of contributions made over the decades by this department to foundational science and technological progress is truly amazing, particularly since we’re a relatively small department compared to our peers,” said Brian Saam, professor and chair of the department. “Our students especially benefit from the cutting-edge work of P&A faculty and researchers, past and present, and the opportunities to be directly involved in research and education beyond the classroom.”

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Saving sage-grouse by relocation

Moving can be tough, but eventually most of us acclimate to new surroundings.

That’s true for humans, and research from Washington State University shows it’s the same for sage-grouse too.

A team of scientists in the School of the Environment (SoE) successfully moved sage-grouse, a threatened bird species in Washington state, from one area of their range to another to increase their numbers and diversify their gene pool. A WSU study on the project in the Journal of Wildlife Management shows relocating the birds is a viable and productive step toward helping their population recover in the state.

Kyle Ebenhoch holds a native sage-grouse that was caught and fitted with a radio collar for inclusion in his study.
Alumnus Kyle Ebenhoch holds a native sage-grouse that was caught and fitted with a radio collar for inclusion in his study. Photo courtesy of Kyle Ebenhoch.

“In the first year after moving sage-grouse in, they tended to move around a lot and didn’t reproduce as effectively as the native population,” said Kyle Ebenhoch, a researcher now working at the U.S. Geological Survey. “It took them about a year to settle in and get used to their new surroundings.”

Ebenhoch, a WSU graduate student during this project, wrote the paper with SoE professors Daniel Thornton, Lisa Shipley, and Jeffrey Manning. Kevin White, a contract wildlife biologist with the Yakima Training Center at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, was also a member of the research team.  The training center hosts a population of sage-grouse where the relocation work was done.

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Spokane Public Radio

Foley Institute series returns for fall semester with discussion about Turkey

The Foley Institute’s Pizza and Politics series will return to Washington State University for the fall semester. Chris Kilfor will discuss “Turkey Today: Conflict and Crisis” at noon Thursday in the Foley Speaker’s Room, Room 308, in Bryan Hall on campus in Pullman.

The discussion will focus on the country of Turkey, which has been experiencing an influx of Syrian refugees, a war of words with the European Union, the rise of an Islamist party and an attempted military coup in 2016.

The Thomas S. Foley Institute for Public Policy and Public Service administered through the College of Arts and Sciences organizes public lectures, symposia, and conferences on the WSU campus and other locations around the state to educate students and the public about government, politics, and public affairs.

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Moscow-Pullman Daily News

Reintroducing endangered northern leopard frogs in Washington

Erica Crespi.
Crespi

With the help of scientists from Washington State University, hundreds of endangered northern leopard frogs have taken a leap back into the wild in recent weeks at the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge in Grant County.

The releases were made possible by a partnership of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Oregon Zoo, and WSU.

Bernardo Traversari.
Traversari

WDFW collected northern leopard frog eggs earlier this spring, and after months of growing in conservation labs at WSU and the Oregon Zoo, the frogs were ready for release in recent weeks.

“It was really exciting to see these frogs go out into their world,” said Erica Crespi, assistant professor in the School of Biological Sciences. “It was like watching my children go off on their first day of school. It was especially great to see them start to eat their first insect meals as they hopped away. We are all hoping that they will continue to thrive in their original home.”

Caren Goldberg.
Goldberg

Crespi and her graduate student Bernardo Traversari, along with WSU collaborators Caren Goldberg, assistant professor in the School of the Environment, and Allan Pessier, clinical associate professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine, played an important role in the project by rearing frog tadpoles at the Airport Gardens research facility in Pullman. The WSU team’s efforts also included disease surveillance, genetic assessment, population modeling, and experiments to determine optimal rearing conditions to maximize the probability of a successful reintroduction.

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WSU Insider

WSU undergraduate education benefits from eight Smith Teaching and Learning grants

Joe Hedges.
Hedges
Amy Nielsen.
Nielsen

Amy Nielsen, clinical assistant professor of chemistry, and Joe Hedges, assistant professor and coordinator in the Dept. of Fine Arts, are developing a new course in which students will learn the chemical origins of color perception and create painting projects from pigments they have synthesized themselves in the laboratory.

Their project, “Chemistry and Art: Exploring the Painted Surface,” uses lecture, lab, and studio venues to foster students’ formation of a tactile link between chemistry and painting. It also looks at the evolution of colored pigments from natural ones used in cave paintings to the development and industrial synthesis of modern chemical pigments in the 20thcentury and beyond.

Nielsen and Hedges are among 15 WSU faculty members on three campuses pursuing eight projects to improve undergraduate education, thanks to funding from the Samuel H. and Patricia W. Smith Teaching and Learning Endowment.

Since 2000, the endowment has provided support for dozens of faculty-initiated ventures that focus on enhancing the education of students. Thousands of learners at WSU have benefitted directly or indirectly from scores of innovative ideas to transform pedagogy and curricular issues.

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