Degrees:

Ph.D., M.S., The University of Michigan; B.A., Kalamazoo College

Expertise: 

General Physics, Physics Lab, Physical Science, Astronomy, Forensic Science

Biography:

My career in science might be characterized by two pleasures…pleasures that, in some way, might be two sides of the same coin. First, as Richard Feynman wrote, is the Pleasure of Finding Things Out. Science—organized inquiry—is the best and perhaps only reliable way we have of finding out how the world works, making new discoveries, and learning the limits of our knowledge. Second, is the joy of sharing what knowledge I have with others. I am grateful to have studied with some wise and inspiring teachers and hope to continue that tradition at the Mount.

Research Interests:

I have had a long-standing research partnership with Dr. Nicholas Money of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio and his students. I bring my physics knowledge and mathematical skill to the study of fungi and the surprisingly complex methods they use to reproduce. I also like to explore the surprising physics and unexpected mathematical connections between phenomena that seem, otherwise, completely unrelated.

Publications:

  • Hassett MO, Fischer MWF, Money NP (2015) Mushrooms as Rainmakers: How Spores Act as Nuclei for Raindrops PLoS ONE 10(10), e0140407. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0140407
  • Circuits, Optics, and the 1905 Eötvös Competition presented at the fall meeting of the Southern Ohio Section of the American Association of Physics Teachers (SOS/AAPT), Seven Hills School, Cincinnati Ohio, October 20, 2018.