Close friends are important drivers of adolescent behavior, including college attendance, according to Steven Alvarado, assistant professor of sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences. In new research published March 4 in American Educational Research Journal, Alvarado reports that having college-bound friends increases the likelihood that a student will...
Category: University
Study finds no link between gender and physics course performance
A new data-driven study from Texas A&M University casts serious doubt on the stereotype that male students perform better than female students in science—specifically, physics. A team of researchers in the Department of Physics and Astronomy analyzed both the midterm exam scores and final grades of more than 10,000 Texas...
Researchers develop first self-cooling laser made with a silica fiber
Researchers have toiled for years, unsuccessfully, in pursuit of a silica optical fiber that would cool itself when excited with infrared laser light. Such a fiber would make it possible to use the most ubiquitous type of laser fiber—silica—without having to cool it externally and, theoretically, produce laser-based devices with...
Going forth with standardized tests may cause more problems than it solves
Despite the many ways that COVID-19 has disrupted schools, the U.S. Department of Education will not give states a pass on giving standardized tests to students this year as it did in spring 2020. That's according to new guidance the department issued Feb. 22. The guidance invites states to request...
What can you do with a physics degree?
Why study a physics degree? Our essential guide to what you will learn on a physics course, what you should study to get your place on a degree, and what jobs you can get once you graduate What is physics? In its essence, physics is a study of the mechanics...
Best Physics Schools in USA
Best Physics Schools, Ranked in 2019, part of Best Science Schools. Graduate schools for physics typically offer a range of specialty programs, from quantum physics to relativity, as well as plentiful research opportunities to bolster a science education. These are the best physics schools. Each school's score reflects its average...