The Rutgers University Physics & Astronomy Department invites teachers and students to participate in an International Masterclass event that will be held in March 2022. In the International Masterclass program, more than a thousand high school students from over sixty countries spend a day at a local university or research center where they work in groups to analyze data from an ongoing high energy physics experiment. At the end of the day, the students join in a video conference for discussions of their results. Details about the International Masterclass can be found at this website.
Masterclass Information
There will be two Masterclass events, one on Saturday, March 19, and one on Saturday, March 26. At the March 19 event, students will analyze and discuss data from the MINERvA neutrino experiment at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory near Chicago. At the March 26 event, students will analyze and discuss data from the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment one of two large, multi-purpose detectors at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at the CERN laboratory in Switzerland. Members of the Rutgers faculty participate in each of these experiments and will be on-hand to assist students in understanding the physics and analyzing the data.
At each event, there will be a presentation and discussion of the physics by one or more faculty members. Students will be instructed on how to use a detector event display for visualizing and analyzing the data. The students will then work in groups using the event display to obtain physics results. All of the groups will then work together to compile their results and draw conclusions. At the end of the day, we will join a video conference with students from other institutions, both in the US and abroad, at which students will have a chance to present and discuss their results.
If you and a group of your students would like to participate in one of these Masterclass events, please fill out the registration form at the link below. The deadline for registration is February 18, but participation will be limited so it is best to apply early. You will be asked to choose which event you would like to attend either the CMS Masterclass on March 19 or the MINERvA Masterclass on March 26 and also to provide an estimate of the number of your students who will be attending.
Masterclass Registration Form
Although we are intending that the Masterclasses will be an in-person event, that is subject to change depending on the evolving university Covid-19 guidelines. If we are not able to hold the event in-person, we will make arrangements to run it remotely via Zoom.
Lastly, here are some logistical details. The Masterclass will be held in the Serin Physics & Astronomy building on the Rutgers Busch campus. Directions to Serin will be provided. The program will start at 9:00 am and will finish at 5:00 pm. You are welcome to bring your own lunch, but you will also be able to purchase lunch from the Rutgers Student Center.
If You have any questions or comments about the program, please send email to Prof. Steve Schnetzer at <steve.schnetzer.physics@gmail.com>.