Lisa Will - Howard LipinThe universe may be mysterious, but Lisa Will can at least make it relatable.
She's an astronomy and physics professor at San Diego City College, which recently opened a new science building and planetarium.
The Pacific Beach resident is also the resident astronomer at the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, where she presents monthly 'Sky Tonight' planetarium shows.
Will, 43, was born in Northern California, lived in Arizona while she earned her doctorate from Arizona State and landed in San Diego in 2007. She tells us about her star-filled life.
Q: What inspired you to study astronomy?
A: 'Star Trek.' I vividly remember being around 5 years old and looking up Vulcan in the encyclopedia, expecting to learn more about the planet. Instead I found the Roman god of fire and forge. That led me to looking up other things, like planets and stars, saddened that interstellar space travel and aliens were not, in fact, a part of our reality. But it also set me on a path of learning about astronomy.
Q: You're also a physics professor. Can you explain, in layman terms, how physics and astronomy work together?
A: Physics is the study of how the things work. In astronomy, we use physics to study how the universe functions. The most amazing thing about physics is how widely applicable it is. For example, the Doppler effect used to track the path of storms is the same physics that describes the redshifts of galaxies, which is how we first learned the universe is expanding. I try to stress that breadth to help my students appreciate physics.
Q: Tell us a bit about City College's new planetarium.
A: Due to the generosity of voters who passed Propositions S and N, City College now has a new science building, which first opened for classes in spring 2014. This facility provides the modern classrooms and science laboratories that the hardworking students of City College deserve. As part of this building, an 80-seat Spitz SciDome HD planetarium was included to serve both as the Astronomy 101 lecture hall and a space for public-outreach events.
Q: Have you had to change the way you teach now that you have use of the planetarium?
A: Oh, yes, and it's been wonderful. The planetarium allows us to show the sky move - the rising and setting of the sun, the changing of the constellations throughout the year, the height of the sun in the sky as the seasons progress. We can also use the planetarium to fly to the moon and land on Mars and see what our galaxy looks like from afar. It's a much more immersive learning environment than static images can provide.
Q: An astronomy class is more than just learning where stars are, right?
A: Astronomy is the study of the universe. We do learn about stars, but we also learn about other celestial objects, such as the solar system, distant galaxies and black holes. I introduce the students to the history of how we learned our place in the cosmos, and the last thing we cover is to predict the fate of the universe itself! Astronomy is a wide-ranging field of study, and my goal is for every student to leave the course with an appreciation of how we can learn so much even landlocked here on Earth.
Entities 0 Name: City College Count: 3 1 Name: Propositions S and N Count: 1 2 Name: Arizona Count: 1 3 Name: San Diego Count: 1 4 Name: San Diego City College Count: 1 5 Name: Arizona State Count: 1 6 Name: Howard Lipin Count: 1 7 Name: Pacific Beach Count: 1 8 Name: Reuben H. Fleet Science Center Count: 1 9 Name: Vulcan Count: 1 10 Name: Lisa Will Count: 1 11 Name: Lisa Count: 1 12 Name: Spitz Count: 1 13 Name: Northern California Count: 1 14 Name: afar Count: 1 15 Name: moon Count: 1 16 Name: Earth Count: 1 Related Keywords 0 Name: planetarium Score: 70 1 Name: astronomy Score: 60 2 Name: physics Score: 34 3 Name: learn Score: 33 4 Name: galaxies Score: 18 5 Name: student Score: 16 6 Name: science Score: 15 7 Name: study Score: 15 8 Name: college Score: 15 9 Name: universe Score: 15 Authors Media Images 0
Post a Comment for "City College professor brings stars to her students"