Do you enjoy proving that the future influences the present or playing around with magnetic coils? Do you want to learn how to build a boat with aluminum foil and 4 straws that can hold over 400 pennies? Does roasting a marshmallow with a mirror sound like fun? Then you might want to check out the Society of Physics Students to see if it’s the club for you!
Society of Physics Students (SPS) is a student-run club whose mission is to “encourage and assist students interested in physics to develop the knowledge, competence, enthusiasm, and social responsibility that are essential to the advancement of physics.”
Founded originally in 1968 by Dr. Roeder, the club’s current advisor, SPS has had an impactful presence within the Moravian College community for 50 years!
SPS hosts a variety of events such as pizza lectures, trips to museums and other colleges to promote networking, and even science demos at local elementary and middle schools. Shane Hansen ’18, President of SPS, says that one of his favorite events the club hosts is when they go out to local school districts to show science demos and explain the science behind them. Some schools the club works with are William Penn, James Buchanan, East Hills Middle School, among others.
“I also really enjoy the trips we do off campus that build us connections with either possible employers, grad schools, and museums,” said Hansen.
At the pizza lectures, students can enjoy fresh pizza from Lehigh Pizza while learning from other professionals in the field! Students from the intro level physics classes can receive extra credit to go and learn about more fields of study within physics in addition to upperclassmen learning about other fields as well. Alumni come back to speak as well as many guest speakers from professors’ past connections.
The club also partners with other science-related organizations to host collaborative events. Each year, WISE (Women in Science and Engineering) invites science-based clubs American Chemical Society, Tri-beta (biology honors society), and Brain Club to host Science Day for Girl Scouts. Local girl scout troops visit the college for a day and attend different presentations and talks about the broad field of science. The goal is to encourage and inspire young women to become active participants in the science community.
Nick Vinansky ’19, a member for 2 years, said he loves being a part of SPS because “community outreach is very important to the club. One of our goals is to get the younger generation of students interested in science because our future society depends on them.”
When asked what makes SPS special and what he loved about being a member, Hansen said,
“Within our group, we are very diverse and integrated with the rest of the college. We have members that are athletes, or are from other countries, and there are also many strong female members who are valuable representatives of the club. I just love the joy we bring to the community, both on and off campus.”
Vinansky was also in agreement and said, “Being a member of SPS has provided me great experiences with even better people and I’m truly happy to call myself a member of SPS.”