HOME / PRESENTATIONS /

2009

Confessions of a converted lecturer, at MCB Retreat, Harvard University (Cambridge, MA), Saturday, September 12, 2009:
talk_1499.pdf
I thought I was a good teacher until I discovered my students were just memorizing information rather than learning to understand the material. Who was to blame? The students? The material? I will explain how I came to the agonizing conclusion that the culprit was neither of these. It was my teaching that caused students to fail! I will show how I have adjusted my approach to teaching and how it has improved my students' performance significantly
Manipulating cells using ultrashort laser pulses, at Wednesday Night Research Seminar, Harvard University (Cambridge, MA), Wednesday, September 9, 2009:
talk_1502.pdf
We use femtosecond laser pulses to manipulate sub-cellular structures inside live and fixed cells. Using only a few nanojoules of laser pulse energy, we are able to selectively disrupt individual mitochondria in live bovine capillary epithelial cells, and cleave single actin fibers in the cell cytoskeleton network of fixed human fibro-blast cells. We have also used the technique to micromanipulate the neural network of C. Elegans, a small nematode. Our laser scalpel can snip individual axons without causing any damage to surrounding tissue, allowing us to study the function of individual... Read more about Manipulating cells using ultrashort laser pulses
The make-believe world of real-world physics, at Physics Colloquium, Brandeis University (Waltham, MA), Tuesday, September 8, 2009:
talk_1498.pdf
That physics describes the real world is a given for physicists. In spite of tireless efforts by instructors to connect physics to the real world, students walk away from physics courses believing physicists live in a world of their own. Are students clueless about the real world? Or are we perhaps deluding ourselves and misleading our students about the real world?
Black silicon, at Black Silicon Symposium 2009 (Albany, NY), Thursday, August 20, 2009:
talk_1493.pdf
Shining intense, ultrashort laser pulses on the surface of a crystalline silicon wafer drastically changes the optical, material and electronic properties of the wafer. The resulting textured surface is highly absorbing and looks black to the eye. The properties of this 'black silicon' make it useful for a wide range of commercial devices. In particular, we have been able to fabricate highly-sensitive PIN photodetectors using this material. The sensitivity extends to wavelengths of 1600 nm making them particularly useful for applications in communications and remote sensing.
Using technology to engage students, at Pearson Education Instructor Tools Workshop (Boston, MA), Tuesday, August 18, 2009:
talk_1492.pdf
It has been suggested the lack of interaction in large lecture courses is to blame for the many problems facing these courses: declining enrollments, low attendance, poor evaluations, and disappointing retention. We offer a way of redesigning the classroom so interaction is introduced in many aspects of the course. This approach has shown to be effective by many instructors in a broad variety of environments. I will demonstrate some of the tools we have developed to foster this interaction.
The make-believe world of real-world physics, at NATO Advanced Study Institute on Biophotonics: Spectroscopy, imaging, sensing, and manipulation, Centro Ettore Majorana (Erice, Sicily), Friday, July 10, 2009:
talk_1490.pdf
That physics describes the real world is a given for physicists. In spite of tireless efforts by instructors to connect physics to the real world, students walk away from physics courses believing physicists live in a world of their own. Are students clueless about the real world? Or are we perhaps deluding ourselves and misleading our students about the real world?
Subcellular surgery and nanosurgery using femtosecond laser pulses, at NATO Advanced Study Institute on Biophotonics: Spectroscopy, imaging, sensing, and manipulation, Centro Ettore Majorana (Erice, Sicily), Tuesday, July 7, 2009:
talk_1463.pdf
We use femtosecond laser pulses to manipulate sub-cellular structures inside live and fixed cells. Using only a few nanojoules of laser pulse energy, we are able to selectively disrupt individual mitochondria in live bovine capillary epithelial cells, and cleave single actin fibers in the cell cytoskeleton network of fixed human fibro-blast cells. We have also used the technique to micromanipulate the neural network of C. Elegans, a small nematode. Our laser scalpel can snip individual axons without causing any damage to surrounding tissue, allowing us to study the function of individual... Read more about Subcellular surgery and nanosurgery using femtosecond laser pulses
Femtosecond laser micromachining, at DEPS Ultrashort Pulse Laser Workshop (Newton, MA), Tuesday, June 30, 2009:
talk_1489.pdf
When femtosecond laser pulses are focused tightly into a transparent material, the intensity in the focal volume can become high enough to cause nonlinear absorption of laser energy. The absorption, in turn, can lead to permanent structural or chemical changes. Such changes can be used for micromachining bulk transparent materials. Applications include data storage and the writing of waveguides and waveguide splitters in bulk glass, fabrication of micromechanical devices in polymers, and subcellular photodisruption inside single cells.
Introduction to Peer Instruction, at New Physics and Astronomy Faculty Workshop, American Center for Physics (College Park, MD), Thursday, June 25, 2009:
talk_1486.pdf
I thought I was a good teacher until I discovered my students were just memorizing information rather than learning to understand the material. Who was to blame? The students? The material? I will explain how I came to the agonizing conclusion that the culprit was neither of these. It was my teaching that caused students to fail! I will show how I have adjusted my approach to teaching and how it has improved my students' performance significantly
Peer Instruction Workshop, at New Physics and Astronomy Faculty Workshop, American Center for Physics (College Park, MD), Thursday, June 25, 2009:
talk_1487.pdf
The basic goals of Peer Instruction are to encourage and make use of student interaction during lectures, while focusing students' attention on underlying concepts and techniques. The method has been assessed in many studies using standardized, diagnostic tests and shown to be considerably more effective than the conventional lecture approach to teaching. Peer Instruction is now used in a wide range of science and math courses at the college and secondary level. In this workshop, participants will learn about Peer Instruction, serve as the “class” in which Peer Instruction is demonstrated,... Read more about Peer Instruction Workshop

Pages