Friday Flyer - April 21, 2017

Spotlight on the University of New Mexico QuarkNet Center: This center, located in Albuquerque, one of our new centers in 2017, is led by mentor Sally Seidel and lead teacher Gordon Zwartz. On April 8, they held their first ATLAS masterclass, bringing in approximately 30 students and 5 teachers from Albuquerque-area high schools. While learning about particle physics, the students were able to view and interact with several demonstrations, including cloud chambers and an e/m apparatus. This summer, New Mexico plans to send a few teachers to Fermilab for Data Camp and will be working with lead teachers to plan for 2018. It's great to have this group join our network!

News from QuarkNet Central: QuarkNet has a new cosmic ray project to measure muon rates during the upcoming solar eclipse this coming August 21 that may be of interest to teachers and students. Contact Mark Adams if you have questions or if you'd like to participate!

Physics Experiment Roundup: CERN's LHCb experiment recently released new findings that hints of new physics beyond the Standard Model. What do they need to be more sure? You guessed it: more data! (So, stay tuned!) Particle physics research happens not only underground, but under water as well. Check out this Wired article about hunting for neutrinos under the sea.

Resources: Fermilab's Don Lincoln addresses why the weak force is so weak in this video. See what symmetry has to say about the importance of basic, fundamental research. Space Weather shows that cosmic ray activity has been increasing with changes in solar activity.

Just for Fun: Have any leftover Peeps from last weekend? Use them, along with a microwave oven, to calculate the speed of light!

QuarkNet Staff:
Mark Adams: adams@fnal.gov
Ken Cecire: kcecire@nd.edu
Shane Wood: swood5@nd.edu