Wayne State hosts Michigan high school students for annual Advanced Placement Day

It was a bright morning at Wayne State University, and the Department of Physics and Astronomy was bustling with activity. Tuesday, March 14, was the day of the annual AP (Advanced Placement) Day, where high school students from all over the state came to the university to learn about physics and experience what it was like to be a college student.

The physics department had set up various demonstrations and laboratory tours to showcase the fascinating world of physics to the students.

Professor Llope opened the presentation by showing how to smash nuclei to study matter under an extremely hot environment, while Professor Ludlam showed beautiful pictures of our universe.

Next, Professor Sklenar introduced cutting-edge technology for next-generation computer memory and Professor Kelly closed up by telling a story about membranes in biophysics.

As the day went on, the students became more and more engaged with the tours of the magnetization lab of Professor Sklenar and the membrane biophysics lab of Professor Kelly. They asked thoughtful questions and were eager to learn more about the fascinating world of physics.

Around noon, the students enjoyed a special astronomy show by Megan McCullen at the Wayne State Planetarium. Many of them expressed their excitement and interest in pursuing physics in college.

As the physics department team packed up the experiments and materials, they reflected on their successful day. They were proud to have sparked an interest in physics among the students and hoped that some of them would eventually join the department as students.

Overall, Wayne State AP Day in the Department of Physics and Astronomy was a resounding success, and the team was already looking forward to next year's event.