Society of Physics Students
We're glad you stopped by. We are a chapter of the Society of Physics Students (SPS), though we also go by the name "Physics & Astronomy Club". Our chief purpose is to offer a meeting place for undergraduates at the University of Missouri-Columbia to share their interest in physics and astronomy. Although the majority of our members are physics majors/minors, membership is open to anyone with a strong interest in the subject.
We are an organization within the Department of Physics & Astronomy. Our activities throughout the semester are as frequent or infrequent as our members desire. However, we do generally come together at least once a month for traditional meetings. These meetings are usually held in the Physics Building across the hall from the Department Office. SPS meetings and activities in the past several semesters have included presentations by department professors, lab tours, movies, nights at the observatory, special guest speakers, and trips to places of interest such as the Argonne National Lab Symposium, the American Physical Society Convention, NIST, NOAA, NASA and Fermilab. If there is one common element that pulls together all our various events, it is the presence of food!!!
The research opportunities offered by the Department of Physics and Astronomy are in some cases unique at a university and at a level expected only in much larger departments. The main focuse of our research is in Condensed Matter, Biophysics, Materials and Optics, Relativity and Gravitation, Neutron Physics, Astronomy and other internationally recognized research programs. Neutron/Solid State research efforts are fostered by the existence of the University of Missouri Research Reactor (MURR), a 10 MW light-water moderated reactor that is the highest-power university research reactor in the country.
We are a very laid back group which finds excuses to BBQ, play, goof-off and make obscure physics jokes. You are invited to join us and share in our misadventures and academic pursuits. If you need help in physics classes, we are your saviors. This is a great place to network, talk with professors and plan research. Please check our events link for meeting times and locations.
Click here for meeting minutes