Meet The Faculty
2012 DLS Speaker: 2006 Nobel Laureate in Physics John Mather, Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley
Faculty stand with 2012 DLS speaker John Mather. (from left to right) (back row) Seth King, Eric Gansen, Lyndon Zink, Robert Ragan, Eric Barnes (front row) Jennifer Docktor, Taviare Hawkins, T.A.K. Pillai, Steve Harris, Shauna Sallmen, Gubbi Sudhakaran, Shelly Lesher, Krista Anderson and Nobel Laureate Dr. John Mather.
Eric Barnes - associate professor - Ph.D Louisiana State University. Research in theoretical/computational astrophysics, with an emphasis on understanding galaxies.
Shelly Lesher - assistant professor - Ph.D. University of Kentucky. Research in nuclear structure and environmental radionuclide studies.
Jennifer Docktor - assistant professor Ph.D. University of Minnesota. Research in physics education with an emphasis on problem solving.
T.A.K. Pillai - professor - Ph.D University of Louisville. Research in nondestructive evaluation of composite materials and supervises student in research projects.
Eric Gansen - associate professor - Ph.D. University of Iowa. Researching the use of semiconductor quantum dots for singlephoton detection and other applications in quantum optics.
Robert Ragan - professor - Ph.D. University of Massachusetts. Research on spin transport in quantum fluids and solids and computational research in biomechanics.
Taviare Hawkins - assistant professor Ph.D. Syracuse University. Biophysics research involving the mechanics and dynamics of cellular structures called microtubules. Seth King - assistant professor - Ph.D. University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee. Research on the growth and characterization of conductive oxides for application in the next generation of solar cell devices.
Shauna Sallmen - associate professor Ph.D. University of California at Berkeley. Research on shells in the interstellar medium, using observations at a variety of wavelengths. Gubbi Sudhakaran - professor and chair Ph.D. University of Idaho. Research in molecular spectroscopy and supervises student research in laser, atomic and molecular spectroscopy.
Bob Allen - planetarium director - Masters Degree, Michigan State University Krista Anderson - academic department associate
Instructional & Support Staff
Distinguished Lecture Series in Physics Since fall 2000, the UW-L Distinguished Lecture Series (DLS) in Physics is cosponsored by the UW-L Foundation, Inc., the Department of Physics, and the College of Science and Health. The purpose of the series is to bring to La Crosse a physicist whose significant accomplishments and communication skills can inspire and enrich the careers of students, faculty, and the general public. The 2012 speaker was Dr. John Mather, a 2006 Nobel Laureate. Dr. Mather is a Senior Astrophysicist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and a Senior Project Scientist for the James Webb Space Telescope, the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. He gave a public lecture entitled, “History of the Universe from the Beginning to End” and a physics seminar entitled, “Engineering Challenges and Scientific Capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope.” In the fall of 2013, the DLS will host Dr. David Wineland, a Staff Scientist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Boulder, CO and winner of the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physics. Dr. Wineland will present a public lecture on Oct. 10 and a physics seminar on Oct. 11. Both lectures
Steve Harris - electronics technician Roberto Salgado - lecturer - Ph.D. Syracuse University Steve Verrall - lecturer - Ph.D. University of Auckland, New Zealand Lyndon Zink - lecturer - Ph.D. University of Colorado
2013 DLS Speaker: 2012 Nobel Laureate in Physics Dr. David Wineland