DEPARTMENTAL AWARDS VIRTUAL CEREMONY

CLASS OF 2020

- 9 JUNE 2020 ­

UNITED STATES MILITARY ACADEMY

DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS AND NUCLEAR ENGINEERING

Program

Welcoming Remarks ........................................................... COL John Hartke Department Awards ....................................................... COL Peter Chapman Program Remarks & Awards ........................................... Program Directors Closing Remarks ................................................................. COL John Hartke

Department Awards

LTG Leslie R. Groves Award .......................................... Thomas Williams Gerald Counts Award ........................................................... Jared Cochrane Sewell Tappan Tyng Award .............................................. Gartrell Bowling Goeppert-Mayer Award ............................................................ Ross Poulin Jackson Space Science Award ............................................... Seth Barbrow Draper Fellowship ...................................................................... Justin Knoll MIT-Lincoln Laboratory Scholarship ................................ Jared Cochrane Knight-Hennessy Scholar .................................................. AnnaMaria Dear Stamps Family Scholar (2018) .......................................... AnnaMaria Dear

Physics Course Awards Previously Presented

Einstein Award (Fall 2018) .................................................. Jared Cochrane Euler-Lagrange Award (Fall 2018) ....................................... Scott Nieboer Maxwell Award (Fall 2018) .................................................. Jared Cochrane

Nuclear Engineering Course Awards Previously Presented

Fermi Award (Fall 2017) .................................................... Ricardo Damiani Leclerc Award (Spring 2018) ............................................ Thomas Williams Curie Award (Fall 2018) .................................................... Thomas Williams

Nuclear Engineering Course Awards

Compton Award (Fall 2019) ................................................ Gartrell Bowling Von Neumann Award (Fall 2019) ...................................... Thomas Monahan Teller Award (Fall 2019) ............................................................ Justin Knoll Teller Award (Spring 2020) ............................................... Thomas Williams Bohr Award (Spring 2020) ................................................... Jackson Sullivan Lawrence Award (Spring 2019) ........ Thomas Monahan & Ricardo Damiani Oppenheimer Award (Spring 2020) .................................. Thomas Williams

Physics Course Awards

Fermat Award (Spring 2019) ................................................ Jared Cochrane C. P. Snow Award (Spring 2019) ........................................... Keeston Smith Kepler Award (Spring 2019) ................................................. Jared Cochrane Dirac Award (Fall 2019) ........................................................ Jared Cochrane T. H. Maiman Award (Fall 2019) .......... Taggart Solomon & Scott Nieboer H. Sponer Award (Spring 2020) ............................................ Jared Cochrane Boltzmann Award (Spring 2020) ........................................... Jared Cochrane

Space Science Course Awards

Brahe’s Observatory Award (Fall 2019) .................................. Drew Bailey Hubble Award (Spring 2020) .............................................. AnnaMaria Dear

Thomas Young Awards for Outstanding Research Presentations

Nuclear Engineering ..................................... Ricardo Damiani, DeMar Gale, Justin Knoll, & Ryan Rocca

Space Science ......................................................................... AnnaMaria Dear

Space & Missile Defense Command Awards

Basic Army Space Badge Recipients ................................... Denoted with a + Army Space Enabler (ASI 3Y) Recognition .................... Denoted with an *

Advanced Physics Faculty Dr. Kashinski Program Director Dr. Pfenning Dr. Harrell

Deputy Program Director Senior Civilian Advisor

COL Gerving MAJ Bowen

Associate Professor Assistant Professor

MAJ Fasone

Assistant Professor

Nuclear Engineering Faculty Dr. Allen Program Director LTC(P) McManus Dr. Chitanvis

Deputy Program Director Endowed Chair

LTC Hasz Assistant Professor MAJ Gilbreath Assistant Professor MAJ Rahon Assistant Professor MAJ Gilbreath Assistant Professor MAJ Sublett Instructor MAJ Herrera Instructor

Space Science Faculty Dr. Fekete Program Director LTC Loucks Director, SMD Command

Research & Analysis Center

Department Leadership COL John Hartke Head of the Department COL Peter Chapman Deputy Head of the Department

CLASS OF 2020

Graduates in Physics Alexander Chung Jared Cochrane

Brendan Guenther * Madeline Leahy

Benjamin Petrella John Von Kleeck

Emiliano Concha-Toro Jacob Dancer

Josephine Marsh Ian Navarro

Physics with Honors

Jarrod Broussard Dylan Lapore Daniel Messenger

Scott Nieboer Taggart Solomon Seth Thompson

Graduates in Nuclear Engineering

DeMar Gale Robert Huepfel Brendan Huhlein Seth Losure Kaelynn Mayes * Jesson Peñaflor

Ryan Rocca Gregory Smith Sally Varner

Nuclear Engineering with Honors Ricardo Damiani John Gray Justin Knoll * Joseph Kyburz Anmol Narang Jackson Sullivan Thomas Weatherford Thomas Williams

Graduates in Space Science

William Addy * Tyler Amison *+ John Anthis *+ Drew Bailey * Seth Barbrow *+ Dylan Charlton *+ Stephen Demoss * Arthur Fan * Isaac Ferrell *+ Keegan Fitzpatrick *+ Luke Hodsden *+ Kazper Lewis *+ Donavan Lynch * Isaac McMillan *+ Kevin Seaward *+ Jacquese Steen *

Space Science with Honors

AnnaMaria Dear * Anthony DiNallo *+

Advanced Physics Program Awards Description

The Gerald Counts Award is presented to the cadet with the most outstanding performance in the Physics Major. This award is named for BG Gerald Counts, Head of the Department of Physics 1931 to 1946 and the Department of Physics and Chemistry from 1946 to 1957. PH365 (Modern Physics) – The Einstein Award is presented to the cadet with the highest grade on the PH365 TEE. Albert Einstein developed the theories of special relativity and general relativity and made important contributions to the development of modern quantum mechanics in the early twentieth century. PH381 (Intermediate Classical Mechanics) – The Euler-Lagrange Award is presented to the cadet with the highest homework average in PH381. The Euler-Lagrange equation is central to the calculus of variations. PH382 (Intermediate Electrodynamics) – The Maxwell Award is presented to the cadet with the highest final grade in PH382. James Clerk Maxwell formulated the classical theory of electricity and magnetism. PH384 (Optics) – The Fermat Award is presented to the cadet with the highest final grade in PH384. Pierre de Fermat’s principle dictates that light will traverse the shortest time-distance between two points in space. PH456 (Science and Policy)—The C. P. Snow Award is presented to the cadet with the best policy paper in PH456. The English physicist Charles Percy Snow authored the 1961 book Science and Government. PH481 (Statistical Physics) – The Boltzmann Award is presented to the cadet with the highest WPR average in PH481. Ludwig Boltzmann made significant early contributions to statistical and thermal physics. PH482 (Advanced Classical Mechanics) – The Kepler Award is presented to the cadet with the highest grade on the PH482 TEE. Johannes Kepler formulated phenomenological laws of planetary motion based on the observational work of Tycho Brahe. PH484 (Quantum Mechanics) – The Dirac Award is presented to the cadet with the highest PH484 TEE grade. Paul Dirac formulated, among other things, the relativistic quantum wave equation for the electron. PH485 (Lasers) – The Theodore H. Maiman ‘First to Lase’ Award is presented to the first group to successfully operate their open-cavity laser in PH485. Maiman is known as the first person to successfully operate a laser. PH486 (Experimental Physics) – The Faraday Award is presented to a cadet or cadets with the best final laboratory notebook at the end of PH486. The award is named for Michael Faraday, a renowned nineteenth century experimentalist who contributed to the early development of electromagnetism. Faraday kept meticulous research and laboratory notes allowing many others to recreate his work. PH487 (Advanced Quantum Mechanics) – The Hertha Sponer Award is presented to a cadet or cadets with highest PH487 TEE grade. Hertha Sponer is a renowned twentieth century theoretical physicist who’s work greatly contributed to modern quantum mechanics and molecular physics.

Space Science Program Awards Description

The Jackson Space Science Award is presented to the Space Science Major with the highest quality point average in the Space Science courses. It is named for Gary D. Jackson (USMA, 1966), a physicist, and wounded Vietnam veteran, who brought the department into the age of the laser. SP471 (Astronautics) – The Johnson Analytics Award is presented to the cadet who achieves the highest grade in SP471. The award is named after Katherine Johnson, a renowned African American mathematician whose prowess with analytical geometry and associated calculations helped synch Project Apollo’s Lunar Lander with the moon-orbiting Command and Service Module. SP472 (Space Physics)—The Van Allen Award is presented to the cadet who achieves the highest grade in SP472. The award is named after James Alfred Van Allen, the American scientist who was instrumental in establishing the field of magnetospheric research in space. SP473 (Observational Astronomy)—The Brahe’s Observatory Award is presented to the cadet with the best overall observation journal and associated report. The award is named for the astronomer Tycho Brahe, whose observations were the basis for the development of Kepler’s laws of planetary motion. SP474 (Astrophysics)—The Hubble Award is presented to the cadet who achieves the highest grade in SP474, Astrophysics. The award is named after Edwin Powell Hubble, an American astronomer who played a crucial role in establishing the fields of extragalactic astronomy and observational cosmology.

Nuclear Engineering Program Awards Description The Sewell Tappan Tyng Award is presented to the cadet with the most outstanding performance in the Nuclear Engineering Core Engineering Sequence. Nuclear Engineering majors are not eligible for this award The Leslie R. Groves Award is presented to the cadet with the most outstanding performance in the Nuclear Engineering Major. To be eligible for the award a cadet must earn at least a B- in all required courses taken in the Departments of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Mathematical Sciences as well as in the Department of Physics and Nuclear Engineering. NE300 (Fundamentals of Nuclear Engineering) – The Fermi Award is presented to the cadet with the highest grade in NE300. Enrico Fermi was a pioneer in nuclear engineering and achieved the first sustained nuclear chain reaction at the University of Chicago in 1942 using a pile of natural uranium and graphite known as “Fermi’s Pile.” NE350 (Radiological Engineering Design) – The Szilard Award is presented to the cadet with the highest grade in NE350. Leo Szilard was the father of the sustaining nuclear reaction and the first nuclear reactor patent. Dr. Szilard was partly responsible for creation of the Manhattan Project. NE355 (Nuclear Reactor Engineering) – The Lawrence Award is presented to the cadet with the highest grade in NE355. Earnest O. Lawrence is the American Nobel laureate who invented the first linear particle accelerator and cyclotron. Dr. Lawrence was the first recipient of the Sylvanus Thayer Award in 1958. NE361 (Computational Design in Nuclear Engineering) – The Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon Award is presented to the cadet with the highest grade achieved in NE361. Leclerc was a mid-1700’s French mathematician and naturalist credited with creating and using the Monte Carlo method to approximate p by dropping a needle on a ceramic tile with two parallel lines. NE474 (Radiological Safety) – The Curie Award is presented to the cadet with the highest grade in NE474. Madame Marie Curie who was a pioneer in the field of radioactivity and the first person honored with two Nobel Prizes. She directed the first studies in the treatment of neoplasms (cancers) using radioactive isotopes. NE400 (Nuclear Engineering Seminar) – The Bohr Award is presented to the cadet who submits the best ethics paper in NE400. Niels Bohr is the Nobel laureate who made fundamental contributions to understanding atomic structure with his model of the atom. Bohr was instrumental in raising ethical issues about the worldwide use of nuclear technologies. NE450 (Nuclear Weapons and Weapons Effects) – The Teller Award is presented to the cadet who with the highest grade in NE450. Edward Teller is the father of the hydrogen bomb. Dr. Teller was the recipient of the Sylvanus Thayer Award in 1986. NE452 (Instrumentation and Shielding) – The Compton Award is presented to the cadet who with the highest grade in NE452. Arthur H. Compton is the American Nobel laureate in physics who discovered the Compton Effect, a fundamental interaction used in the detection of radioactive materials. NE461 (Advanced Computational Design in Nuclear Engineering) The John Von Neumann Award is presented to the cadet with the highest grade in NE461. Professor John Von Neuman worked in The Institute for Advanced Study School of Mathematics at Princeton University. In 1947, his letters on Statistical Methods in Neutron Diffusion to researchers at Los Alamos are the earliest known theories of Monte Carlo statistics applied to neutron transport. NE495/496 (Advanced Nuclear System Design Project) – The Oppenheimer Award is presented to the cadets who have the best year-long design project. Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer was the technical leader of the Manhattan Project which designed and tested the first nuclear weapon.

Research Program Award Description The Thomas Young Award is presented to the cadet with the best poster presentation on Projects Day for their outstanding PH489, NE489 or SP489 project. The awardee is selected by a panel consisting of the Advanced Physics, Nuclear Engineering, Space & Missile Defense, and Research program directors. Thomas Young is the originator of the double-slit interference experiment.