Conference Program
Eastern Time Zone
(Draft 01 23 2025)
Note1: On Sunday, at the end of the meeting, we will not have a bus at 2pm to take you to the hotel. Please bring your luggage with you on Sunday morning (we have a room, S103, for you to store your luggage) and please make your own arrangements to go to your final destinations. We will have sign up sheets so you can try to car pool with each other.
Note: If you need a quiet space, go to the first floor, room S117 or S119
Friday, January 24, 2025
Bus pickup from the Hotel to the Physics Department, Gant South (GS) at 1:45pm, departs at 2pm, and will continuously run between the hotel & GS about every 45-50 minutes
2:30 – 4:45 PM
One Site Check In Registration– Near Light Court GS. (See UCONN Gant maps above/Follow Signs)
Please sign up for the different lab tours described below and for free planetarium shows at- tiny.cc/uconn_planetarium- Friday or Saturday night shows.
3:00 – 4:15 PM
Optional Lab tours; Options below. Choose at the registration desk.
- Astrophysics (Cara Battersby, Dani Lipman, Meg Davis)
- Ultra Cold laboratories in AMO Physics (Kaley Wilcox, Dan McCarron)
- Condensed Matter Physics (Elena Dormidontova, Lea Ferreira dos Santos, Ilya Sochnikov, Menka Jain)
- Low and medium energy Nuclear Physics (Juliette Stecenko, Andrea Mejia)
- Ultrafast laser labs (Cameron Brady, Tobias Saule)
- Particle Physics (Shohini Bhattacharya, Tom Blum, Gerald Dunne, Luchang Jin)
4:15 – 4:45 PM
Opening Reception (Light Court)
4:45 – 5:15 PM
Welcome by UConn Provost Prof. Anne D’Alleva, Dept. Head Prof. George Gibson, Crystal Bailey (APS), and CU*iP Chair Nora Berrah. (GW002)
5:20 – 6:20 PM
Dinner (Light Court)
Session 1: Chair Laura Greene (National MagLab and FSU)
6:30 – 7:00 PM
Plenary Lecture 1 (20 mins) and Q/A (10 mins): Kate Kirby (APS) “An Exciting Career in Physics with Family” (GW002)
7:05 – 8:05 PM
Panel discussion: “Graduate Students Experiences” Moderator Lori McCabe (Mount Holyoke College) (GW002)
8:05 – 9:20 PM
Social activities: 1) Planetarium shows (limited space- Sign up required tiny.cc/uconn_planetarium) and Games and Networking led by Matt Guthrie and his team GS 117/119.
Bus pickup from the Physics Department, Gant South, to the Hotel at 9:30 pm
Saturday, January 25, 2025
Bus pickup from the Hotel to the Physics Department, Gant South at 7:15 am and 7:30 am
8:00 – 8:30 AM
Breakfast (Light Court)
Session 2: Chair Kate Kirby (APS)
8:30 – 9:00 AM
Plenary Lecture 2 (20 mins) and Q/A (10 mins): Laura Greene (National MagLab and FSU) “Many Paths: Exploring the World of Quantum Materials”. (GW002)
9:10 – 10:30 AM
Parallel Panel Session A
- A1. Applying to graduate school. Is it right for me? Moderator Lori McCabe (Mount Holyoke College) (GW001)
- A2. Exploring post-undergrad physics careers. Moderator Kate Kirby (APS) (P110)
- A3. Career Paths in Academia. Moderator Sylvanie Wallington (UConn) (P116)
- A4. Balancing personal and professional lives. Moderator Shohini Bhattacharya (UConn) (P104)
- A5. Discrimination, Harassment and LGBTQ+. Moderator Amy Howell (UConn) (P113)
10:30 – 11:00 AM
Coffee Break (Light Court)
11:00 – 12:20 PM
Parallel Panel Session B
- B1. Career Paths in Industry. How Studying Physics Can Develop Needed Skills. Moderator Gabriela Ilie (Mirion Technologies) (P116)
- B2. Applying to graduate school. Is it right for me? Moderator Lori McCabe (Mount Holyoke College) (GW001)
- B3. Balancing personal and professional lives. Moderator Sylvanie Wallington (UConn) (P104)
- B4. Discrimination, Harassment and LGBTQ+. Moderator Crystal Bailey (APS) (P113)
12:20 – 1:20 PM
Lunch (Light Court)
Session 3: Chair Meg Urry (Yale)
1:20 – 1:45 PM
Group Photo– Everyone has to be in the Lecture room (GW002)
1:45 – 3:30 PM
National Keynote Lecture; Meghan Anzelc, President and Chief Data & Analytics Officer at Three Arc Advisory “From Code to Corner Office: Resilience, Risk-Taking, and Rising Above.” (GW002)
3:30 – 6:00 PM
Refreshment (Light Court) and Poster Session adjacent to light Court
Judging will be done on Saturday. You can keep your poster up to network with your peers Saturday evening. Also, if you wish to share with your peers for part of Sunday. All posters must be down Sunday by 11:00 am
6:00 – 7:00 PM
Conference Dinner (Light Court)
Session 4: Chair Cara Battersby (UConn)
7:00 – 7:30 PM
Plenary Lecture 3 (20 mins) and Q/A (10 mins) Priya Natarajan (Yale U.) “Dark matter, Dark energy, Black holes” (GW002)
7:30 – 9:00 PM
Social Activities: Planetarium shows (limited space- Sign up required tiny.cc/uconn_planetarium) and Games and Networking led by Matt Guthrie and his team GS 117/119
Bus pickup from the Physics Department, Gant South, to the Hotel at 9:30 pm and 9:50 pm
Sunday, January 26, 2025
Bus pickup from the Hotel to the Physics Department, Gant South at 7:15 am and 7:30 am. There will not be a bus taking you back to the hotel. Check out and bring your luggage with you.
For departing students from GANT with Luggage ask to use room: S101 (1st floor)
8:00 – 8:30 AM
Breakfast (Light Court)
Session 5: Chair Erin Scanlon (UConn)
8:30 – 9:00 AM
Plenary Lecture 4 (20 mins) Q/A (10 mins) Prof. Phiala Shanahan (MIT) “Particle physics, nuclear physics, and computation” (GW002)
9:00 – 9:15 AM
Fill out the CU*iP conference post- survey
9:15 – 10:30 AM
Parallel Panel Session C
- C1. How to Get Involved in Research: Theory, Experiment or Computational. Which is for me? Moderator Sylvanie Wallington (UConn) (P107)
- C2. Confronting imposter syndrome. Moderator Shohini Bhattacharya (UConn) (P110)
- C3. Depression and Anxiety: Dealing with Mental Health While in School. Moderator Erin Scanlon (UConn) (P113)
- C4. Career Paths in Industry. How Studying Physics Can Develop Needed Skills. Moderator Gabriela Ilie (Mirion Technologies) (P116)
10:30 – 11:00 AM
Coffee Break (Light Court)
Session 6: Chair Elena Dormidontova (UConn)
11:00 – 12:30 PM
Survey, Poster Awards and Networking/Mentoring (GW002)
11:00 – 11:15 PM
Fill out conference post-survey and Poster Awards (GW002)
11:15 – 12:30 PM
Small Groups Networking/Mentoring
Students will meet the panelists one on one to have their individual questions addressed
P107: Laura Greene (FSU), Phiala Shanahan (MIT), Shohini Bhattacharya (UConn).
P110: Kate Kirby (APS), Giulia Semeghini (Harvard), Elena Dormidontova (UConn)
P116: Crystal Bailey (APS), Rachel Gabriel (UConn), Sarah Trallero (UConn)
P104: Asli Tandogan Kunkel (UConn), Emily Rice (MHC, CUNY), Kathleen Holgerson (UConn)
P113: Erin Scanlon (UConn), Gabriela Ilie (Mirion Technologies), Lea Ferreira dos Santos (UConn)
12:30 –1:30 PM
Lunch (Light Court)
1:30 – 2:00 PM
Closing Ceremony (GW002)
Nora Berrah, George Gibson (UConn), Crystal Bailey (APS)
Nora Berrah, George Gibson (UConn), Crystal Bailey (APS)
There will be no bus/transportation at the end of the meeting on Sunday at 2pm. You need to organize your own trip back to your institution. If you want to find other students to car pool with them, please sign up during the meeting at the registration desk on the sheets to find students with whom you can car pool to go to your final destination.
Parallel Panel Sessions Information
Friday, January 24, 2025
| Panel | Panelists | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Graduate Students Experiences |
|
Students will describe their research experiences and will engage the audience to ask questions, to share their aspirations and to discuss opportunities and challenges as students in physics. |
Saturday, January 25, 2025
| Panel | Panelists | Description |
|---|---|---|
| A1: Applying to graduate school. Is it right for me? |
|
The panelists will share their experience as researchers, mothers, professionals and will answer questions from the audience |
| A2: Exploring post-undergrad physics careers |
|
The panelists will share briefly how they decided to follow their career paths and will answer questions from the audience |
| A3: Career Paths in Academia |
|
The panelists will share how they decided to follow their career paths in academia and will engage the audience |
| A4: Balancing personal and professional lives |
|
The panelists will share how they balance their personal and professional roles and will engage the audience |
| A5: Discrimination, Harassment and LGBTQ+ |
|
The panelists will provide guidance on how to handle difficult situations and how to get help |
| Panel | Panelists | Description |
|---|---|---|
| B1. Career Paths in Industry. How Studying Physics Can Develop Needed Skills |
|
The panelists will share how they decided to have a career in industry and will engage the audience |
| B2: Applying to graduate school. Is it right for me? |
|
The panelists will share their experience as researchers, mothers, professionals and will answer questions from the audience |
| B3: Balancing personal and professional lives |
|
The panelists will share how they balance their personal and professional roles and will engage the audience |
| B4: Discrimination, Harassment and LGBTQ+ |
|
The panelists will provide guidance on how to handle difficult situations and how to get help |
Sunday, January 26, 2025
| Panel | Panelists | Description |
|---|---|---|
| C1: How to Get Involved in Research: Theory, Experiment or Computational. Which is for me? |
|
The panelists will provide guidance on how to choose a research program that is right for you |
| C2. Confronting imposter syndrome |
|
The panelists will provide guidance on how to confront imposter syndrome |
| C3. Depression and Anxiety: Dealing with Mental Health While in School |
|
The panelists will provide guidance on how to deal with mental health at school |
| C4. Career Paths in Industry. How Studying Physics Can Develop Needed Skills |
|
The panelists will share how they decided to have a career path in industry and will engage the audience |