Page 13 - Eureka-2013

As part of the ATLAS team, Vincter
now spends her summers at CERN
with several physics students. She
finds the collegiality of Carleton’s
physics department “remarkable,” Physics
not only among the faculty, but also
the students, who “hang out” together
both on campus and at CERN.
“All the students bring a unique gift
to the field of research,” she notes.
“Some bring an incredible amount of
enthusiasm. Some bring rigor. They all
bring their own talents.”
Kalyniak’s work as well as that of
other theoretical particle physicists
at Carleton also attracted Californian
photo: James Park Heather Logan to Ottawa eight years
ago.
“I knew there was a group here

studies the details of theoretical
Professor Pat Kalyniak (left), a former chair of the physics department, and Professor Heather Logan doing what I do,” says Logan, who
(right), are both theoretical physicists. models to work out their predictions
for what can be seen and measured
“Our reputation is maintained by After coming back to Carleton in in experiments, thus allowing the
the hard work of the people who are 2007 on a post-doctoral fellowship, testing of the models. “It’s important
part of the department,” says former Thompson has helped develop to have multiple people doing similar
department chair and theoretical BrachyDose, a fast and accurate dose things – the environment for graduate
particle physicist Pat Kalyniak. “Our calculation algorithm for radiotherapy students is much better and we can
strength has been that we chose to cancer treatments. The research chair pool our resources to hire a post-doc.
focus on particle physics and medical funding will allow her to focus on It’s critical mass.”
physics and we have been able to refining radiotherapy treatments in Logan’s initial interest in
make an impact in those areas.” targeting tumors. astronomy and cosmology drew her
What has also become significant in Thomson admits that as an into her field of study, which she calls
the last few years is the changing face undergraduate student, her only female “phenomenology.”
of the department, as more and more physics professor was Kalyniak. Now, “When I was an undergraduate,
women enter the significantly male- as a professor herself, it is her turn to there were a lot of popular books on
dominated field. By January 2014, pass on her passion to young women as quantum physics and dark matter.
when the newest faculty member well as young men in the faculty. I was interested in that kind of
joins the department, six of the 17 “I think it’s important to provide role interface between astrophysics and
faculty members will be female. models to young people. You are bound particle physics and wound up on the
Kalyniak declares it is unusual to get the best breakthroughs if you particle physics side.”
that there are so many women in the draw on the largest population and that Logan, who presents at
Physics Department today. Nearly includes women. Men and women may international conferences, is currently
three decades ago when she first set have different skill sets and different focusing on properties of the Higgs
foot on campus, Kalyniak had come approaches.” particle, which was discovered last
through a field taught exclusively by Manuella Vincter, who has held a year.
men. Canada Research Chair in experimental “This quest could potentially shed
“It wasn’t a conscious effort to beef particle physics for the last nine years, light on a wide array of possible
up the number of women,” Kalyniak was the first female professor to be solutions to the problem of mass:
explains. “It wasn’t planned. We hire hired at the University of Alberta’s everything from new forces of
the best people and some of them just physics department, a much bigger nature, to supersymmetry, to extra
happen to be female.” department than that of Carleton’s. dimensions of space.”
And, even if unknowingly, Kalyniak “That was 15 or 20 years ago, when Logan believes in the strength of
has influenced other women to follow young people didn’t have the same Carleton’s physics department today.
their passion for physics, including access or exposure to women role “We have a world-class
faculty member Rowan Thomson, models in our field,” says Vincter. “I had research program and the largest
who earned her BSc degree in 2003 a couple of physics professors who phenomenology group in Canada. We
at Carleton and is now a Canada were really excited about what they really have the potential to flower,”
Research Chair in Radiotherapy did and I became curious about their says Logan.
Physics. passion.”

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