The Department of Physics held an ‘Open Physics Day’ at the POSTECH Information Research Laboratories on Aug. 17 with the purpose of allowing students and citizens to approach physics easily. Events included a science lecture given by Prof. Han Woong Yeom (‘The Story of the World’s Smallest Wire’), an exhibition and demonstration of experimental equipment, as well as career counseling. The Experimental Physics Laboratory(EPL) also had an informational booth.
The exhibition included nearly 50 pieces of equipment for demonstration experiments such as high speed camera images to foster student interest in physical phenomena. Speaking of the exhibition, Prof. Jeong, Yoon Hee, the chairman of the Department of Physics, said, “The Department of Physics is pushing ahead with a drastic reform of general physics education by changing the goal of lectures from delivery of contents to giving motivation. In this event, we hope to share our achievements with local people.”
Moreover, two of the exhibitions, on the Leidenfrost and Weissenberg effects, were offered by EPL, the undergraduate physics experiment club. Founded in this year, EPL aims to conduct free experiments and perform accurate measurements.
The purpose of the Open Physics Day was also found in the counseling corner with POSTECH students and professors answering questions about physics as well as officers answering those about admissions. The head admission officer of POSTECH, Mr. Son Seong-ik, clarified, “Nowadays admission officers focus on what dreams and visions students have. The event can help students to make them earlier.”
A crowd of citizens approximately over 500 including students and kids who visited the Open Physics Day were mostly satisfied with exhibitions that they could not have otherwise ever seen. A visitor, Jung Hye-yun (12) said, “I am impressed by the Gauss rifle and the Newton pendulum. Experiments presented here are far more exciting than those of schools. It is a good opportunity to be more familiar with physics.”
About the launching of the event, President Sunggi Baik noted, “We will try to have such events like the Open Physics Day annually for popularizing science more among local people.”
