Physics

27Sep

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Astronomy, Physics

Lonely Giants: Rogue Planets in a Dark World

By Muaz Reza ’27 When we think of planets in the solar system, one vivid image comes to mind: multicolored spheres arranged in neat circular orbits around one flaming sun. However, many other planets occupy a less conventional reality. Within our universe are worlds – named ‘rogue planets’ – untethered to stars. They drift alone in the darkness, with no sunset or sunrise to illuminate their horizons, and their existence and origins stretch our current understanding of all celestial objects. A rogue planet, as NASA explains, is any body that is not gravitationally bound to a star. Some of these objects may have once belonged to a solar system, but were subsequently ejected through one of a variety of methods. For example, early phases of solar system formation can be turbulent enough ...

26Sep

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Physics

A Preview of BIO460: Thinking about Conservation Biology Beyond the Classroom

By Ian M. Kim '28 In a society where the effects of climate change influence many conscious choices made in daily life, some students at Andover are at the forefront of biological conservation here at PA and the surrounding communities. In the fall of the 2025-2026 school year, Phillips Academy offered BIO460, an interdisciplinary course on conservation biology. Students target biology and conservation from social, economic, and historical perspectives, while putting an emphasis on hands-on experience and being outdoors to engage with the local Andover community. Dr. Catherine Kemp teaches BIO460 as well as BIO500 (an advanced biology course open for upperclassmen) and BIO600 (an independent research course open for seniors). She explained how many of her interests and passions led h...

26Sep

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Physics

Inside Mr. Robinson’s Environmental Science Elective: Food, Agriculture, and the Future

By Claire Bancroft '28 Starting as a Phillips Academy student, Mr. Robinson’s passion for agriculture began when he returned as a faculty member: “I always liked the outdoors, but when I started teaching here [at PA], I started to appreciate bigger systems, like ecology and ecosystems.” After taking over the Environmental Science: Food, Agriculture, and the Future class as department chair, Mr. Robinson helped students dive into the environmental, social, and economic systems behind modern food production. He does this while confronting big, complex questions: How should we feed the planet? What’s the cost of doing so? Who’s paying for it? The class begins by breaking down the environmental costs of modern agriculture, from industrial farming to pesticide use. “One of the big questio...

26Sep

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Physics

Making an Autonomous Bicycle a Reality

By Saketh Lingisetty '27 Have you ever wondered if a self-balancing bicycle exists? In the spring of 2025, James Xiao ’25, Russell Robinson ’25, and Winston-Hughes Wall ’25 aimed to make this a reality through their Independent Project (IP). The three of them applied concepts from physics and engineering to make an autonomous bicycle using a reaction wheel, which will help the bicycle stand upright on its own. The project was intended not only to invent something unique and fun but also to address real-world issues related to accessibility. Xiao explained that the project provides a solution to “the issue of transportation for those who are either unable to ride a bike…, for tight spaces in which four-wheeled vehicles may not be able to enter,” as well as for those who are inju...

Talking to the Elephant in the Room—The Importance of Scientific Communication & Why We Should Care

1Dec

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Commentary, Physics

Talking to the Elephant in the Room—The Importance of Scientific Communication & Why We Should Care

By Cleo Xu '26 Sitting on the chairs in upper left Commons, hand poised above my keyboard, I realized that I had no idea how to write a scientific article. With a background in writing fiction, I was drawn to journalism because it would be an opportunity to interact with the people whose human emotions, motives, and conditions are central to my imaginative plots. From the beginning, I found interviewing a more appealing process than typing the words. I wanted to meet people with novel thoughts, interesting takes, and equal if not more passion for the same thing I do: science and technology. Writing for Andover Science & Tech Review was everything I had expected and everything I hadn’t. I was qualified enough to understand a student’s research even if some difficult mathe...

Conor Scheidt ‘25’s Simulations of Diffusions and Interactions between Molecules Within a Lattice Structure

1Dec

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Chemistry, Physics

Conor Scheidt ‘25’s Simulations of Diffusions and Interactions between Molecules Within a Lattice Structure

By Cleo Xu '26 In the summer of 2024 and continuing into the school year of 2024-2025, Conor Scheidt ‘25 worked on ways to model the diffusion and interaction of molecules with mentor Todd Gingrich. Traditionally, this is done by considering molarity—the moles of molecules per liter of volume. However, Scheidt realized that sometimes interesting chemical reactions are “averaged” out using this method, which results in a smooth curve. To avoid getting an averaged function, he considered analyzing individual molecules, or more specifically, the different states in which a given number of molecules can be. This method is not restricted to just microscopic particles, the generalization can also be used in modeling the number within a species in biology or even the cells within our body.&nbs...

Astronomy Club Launches Build a CubeSat Challenge

1Dec

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Physics

Astronomy Club Launches Build a CubeSat Challenge

By Niki Tavakoli '27 Astronomy Club has an ambitious schedule planned for the 2024-2025 school year. Aiming for frequent meetings, they plan to host a mixture of meetings for experienced astronomers, lectures on cool astronomy topics, casual meetings for interested beginners, get-togethers using Andover’s small telescopes, and meetings where club members can compete in the MIT BeaverWorks Build a CubeSat Challenge. The ultimate goal of the Build a CubeSat Challenge is to build a fully functioning satellite as a team. The board of astronomy club has begun working on the project: the first step is to participate in a course to learn the coding and software-related skills necessary to construct a satellite, hardware skills like learning about the cameras necessary to observe the stars, ...

1Dec

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Physics

A Life Destined For Teaching: Tracey Golini, Instructor in Physics

By Zachary Yuan '27 Since arriving at Andover in 2016, Tracey Golini has held many roles: teaching physics, working in admissions, and serving as a complimentary house counselor at Eaton Cottage until last year. Her contribution to education is built on a foundation of hands-on learning; Golini has worked in laboratories as a laboratory engineer, as well as publishing papers with graduate students before switching to an educational career. Raised in Rochester, New York, also known as the ‘World Capital of Imaging’, Golini initially pursued a medical career at the University of Rochester before switching to a career in engineering and optics. “There were a lot of jobs in optics in lots of industries… My future boss called during the summer before my senior year and offered me a...

18Jun

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Physics, Technology

“Between the Heat Death of the Universe and Tomorrow” —An Intro to Conor Scheidt’s Post-Quantum Cryptography Project

By: Cleo Xu ‘26 CSC 600 is an independent study course offered at Phillips Academy Andover. This course allows students to design their own project by drawing skills learned from previous courses in both computer science and mathematics. Students spend a significant amount of time self-studying and reading through papers and documentations. At the end of the course, students turn in their final product either by making a presentation or writing a paper or blog, some of these papers have been published in scientific journals and presented at conferences. Have you ever thought about who or what might be looking at your personal information while you stare at the screen? Or what might be protecting you from those dangerous leaks? Probably not that often–to use Conor’s words: “We take secu...

18Jun

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Physics, Technology

The Future of Plasma Physics and Quantum Computing: An Interview with Michael May ‘11 (PAA)

By: Niki Tavakoli ‘27 Michael May ‘11 is a physicist currently working at the Plasma Physics Program in Princeton. He specializes in the use of quantum computers to simulate plasma behavior, and is currently working on a project aimed at rewriting fundamental equations in order to make quantum computer simulations of plasma more accurate in the hopes that they’d be an alternative to our current solutions. May joined Andover as a new upper from a rural town. Though he wasn’t able to take many higher-level math classes, he did take the Physics 400 sequence. However, it wasn’t until college that physics truly began to interest him. May elaborated further on his physics journey. “I was not particularly excited by [Physics 400], but I guess I was hoping that when I went to college that...