The Entangler | Winter 2023

Can you solve it? The Sir Isaac Newton Exam, as we all know and love it, continues to offer challenging problems to high school students around the world. Flex your Physics brains with this problem from a past Sir Isaac Newton Exam!

Can you solve it? The Sir Isaac Newton Exam, as we all know and love it, continues to offer challenging problems to high school students around the world. Flex your Physics brains with this problem from a past Sir Isaac Newton Exam!

The Summer 2023 edition of The Entangler will update you on exciting research developments and accomplishments by our students, faculty, and alumni. Enjoy, and stay well.

A quantum computer uses the properties of superposition and interference to solve problems that are impossible with the computers and smartphones of today.  However, building a quantum computer is an enormous physical and engineering challenge.  In building a quantum computer, the first thing one needs to decide on is which quantum system, or “qubit”, is it going to use?  

The alumni of the University of Waterloo Department of Physics and Astronomy go on to do a wide variety of things after Convocation.  Many of our graduates go into work in physics- related jobs in the private sector (no doubt with some thanks to our great co-op programs) while others choose a career in public service or continue their education to graduate studies and even into academia.  However, there is a small number of our graduates that just didn’t leave the University of Waterloo! These people did their undergraduate education at the University of Waterloo and then never left…ever.  

Research is a big part of what we do in the Physics and Astronomy Department. Some notable research news since the last issue can be found here.

Graduating BSc student Sadie Graves loves a challenge. Now, with a co-op degree in life physics under her belt, she feels she’s met Waterloo’s challenge head on and is ready to dive deeper into her academic and professional career.

After a seven-month selection process and two rounds of interviews, a student in the Faculty of Science at the University of Waterloo was selected for the prestigious McCall MacBain Scholarship.

When I think back to when I was a student roaming the halls and classrooms of UW Physics (let’s be honest, I was playing 500 in Phys Club), there are many people to remember. One of the most notable was professor, ground-breaking astrophysicist, and undergraduate advisor, Gretchen Harris – always busy while always having time for you; always with knitting nearby, always quick to laugh, and always offering good advice. 

Our eyes guide us through the world and allow us to see the beauty around us. Unfortunately, degenerative vision loss is a reality of aging for many people. 

Let’s take a walk down memory lane together and explore the changes that have unfolded since the dawn of our Department back in the 1960’s. Through a collection of then and now pictures, let’s take a look at what our building spaces used to look like, and some of the activities our faculty, staff and students participated in. If you are an alumni from generations past, you may recognize some of these spaces as the same ones you took a class, or presented a poster in. For recent alumni and current students, you can take a glimpse at what our spaces used to look like, and how time has changed our décor, our vibe, our demographics, and our fashion trends!