University physicists involve themselves in the development of lifesaving innovations, Kenneth Hogstrom said Saturday in a lecture on medical physics. Hogstrom, University professor and director of the University’s Medical Physics and Health Physics program, delivered the lecture to an audience of about 40 in Nicholson Hall. He described the field’s focus on the medical application of radiation therapy, a technique commonly used to fight cancer. Hogstrom discussed medical physics as a possible career path and explained the social element, which drew him to the profession. “I really liked doing physics,” Hogstrom said. “But I wanted to be around a lot of people.” The presentation was the fourth of five keynote lectures given as part of the regional meeting of the Society of Physics Students. The meeting, which began Friday morning and ended Sunday afternoon, featured presentations by professors and students and included visits to local laboratories. SPS is a nationwide organization which operates under the American Institute of Physics. The University’s chapter dedicates itself to promoting “the appreciation and advancement of physics and astronomy to students and the community.” Eighteen SPS zones regionally divide the United States and part of southwestern Canada. Baton Rouge falls under Zone X, also called Zone 10, which covers more than 30 colleges in Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi and western Tennessee. The meeting opened Friday morning with student presentations and two keynote lectures. That afternoon, attendees toured the University and the off-campus Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices. Friday evening, SPS members traveled to Nottoway plantation and heard a third keynote lecture. Before Hogstrom’s lecture Saturday, the group traveled to Livingston to visit the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory. Saturday afternoon featured more student presentations followed by a trip to the Highland Road Park Observatory, where Hogstrom gave the final keynote lecture.
The meeting adjourned Sunday afternoon after a continental breakfast and additional student presentations.
—–Contact Daniel McBride [email protected]