2000

Ultrafast Phase Transition Dynamics in GeSb Films, at Nonlinear Optics 2000, Optical Society of America (Kaua'i, HI, USA), Tuesday, August 8, 2000:
We measure the femtosecond time resolved dielectric function of a-GeSb after excitation with an ultrashort laser pulse. The results reveal an ultrafast transition to a new non-thermodynamic phase which is not c-GeSb as previously believed.
Peer Instruction: Getting Students to Think in Class, at NSF Engineering Education Scholars Workshop, Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh, PA), Thursday, July 20, 2000:
Most introductory undergraduate science courses are taught in large lectures. Although an efficient use of instructor time, passive lectures rarely challenge students to think critically in class, often reinforcing the common expectation that learning science amounts to acquiring information. Many students respond by memorizing facts or formulas without understanding the fundamental concepts. To actively engage students during class and focus their attention on underlying concepts, we have developed a student-centered approach to teaching large courses, Peer Instruction. Lectures are... Read more about Peer Instruction: Getting Students to Think in Class
Understanding of Memorization: Are we teaching the right thing?, at KC Pedagogiska Seminarier, Lund University (Lund, Sweden), Tuesday, May 23, 2000:
Education is more than just transfer of information, yet that is what is mostly done in large introductory courses -- instructors present material (even though this material might be readily available in printed form) and for students the main purpose of lectures is to take down as many notes as they can. Few students have the ability, motivation, and discipline to synthesize all the information delivered to them. Yet synthesis is perhaps the most important -- and most elusive -- aspect of education. Students get frustrated because they are unable to grasp simple concepts. Instructors get... Read more about Understanding of Memorization: Are we teaching the right thing?
Laser induced microexplosions: Ultrafast physics with clinical applications, at Chemical Center Seminar, Lund University (Lund, Sweden), Monday, May 22, 2000:
Recently there has been much interest in using femtosecond laser pulses in surgical applications. For example, femtosecond lasers could replace the nanosecond systems currently used for opthalmic photodisruption, providing improved surgical precision and adding versatility. In surgical applications, it is the high intensity of femtosecond laser pulses that is exploited. By tightly focusing these short pulses, the intensity becomes high enough to cause nonlinear absorption inside a transparent material (such as the vitreous humor). The absorption produces a hot plasma inside the sample that is... Read more about Laser induced microexplosions: Ultrafast physics with clinical applications
Education: Transfering information or engaging the mind?, at Education Seminar, Department of Mathematics, University of Washington (Seattle, WA), Wednesday, May 10, 2000:
Education is more than just transfer of information, yet that is what is mostly done in large introductory courses -- instructors present material (even though this material might be readily available in printed form) and for students the main purpose of lectures is to take down as many notes as they can. Few students have the ability, motivation, and discipline to synthesize all the information delivered to them. Yet synthesis is perhaps the most important -- and most elusive -- aspect of education. Students get frustrated because they are unable to grasp simple concepts. Instructors get... Read more about Education: Transfering information or engaging the mind?

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