Phy 695: This is a one‑unit culminating experience, or “capstone” course in physics for senior physics majors who are about to graduate with BA Physics, BS Physics, or BA Physics (Astronomy Concentration) degrees. It is also appropriate for graduate students preparing for the Physics MFT or GRE exams.
Phys 491: This is a on ‑unit course in experimental physics for upper‑division physics majors who have already completed Phys 490. There will be 3 hours of laboratory and data analysis work each week, during which students will complete three experiments of more complexity than those of Advanced Lab 1. Completion of the Phys 490/ Phys 491 sequence satisfies the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR).
Resources:
Tailoring your resume
American Physical Society guide
Some samples from Smith College
Tailoring cover letter
Some sample cover letters for industry is available here
Technical Writing and English Usage
The Craft of Scientific Writing (writing guidelines for science and engineering students)
American Institute of Physics (AIP) Style Manual (The authority for physics papers)
Physical Review Style and Notation Guide (The authority for the Phys. Rev. journals)
The Elements of Style, William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White, 4th ed. (New York, Longman, 2000).
Garner's Modern American Usage, Bryan A. Garner (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2003).
The Careful Writer, Theodore Bernstein (New York, Atheneum, 1965). Old but timeless.
"Not So Short Introduction to LaTeX2e" (109 pp)
LaTeX Project (includes a searchable "bugs" database)
Comprehensive TeX Archive Network (provides the most complete and up-to-date TeX-related software)
Visual Display of Quantitative Information (A classic book on statistical graphics, charts, tables)
Graphing Resources (from North Carolina State University and the National Science Foundation)
Plagiarism.org—comprehensive resource that defines what constitutes plagiarism and helps you avoid inadvertent plagiarism, including an excellent overview on citing sources
A Student's Guide to Copyright and Fair Use (From U of Michigan)
The Plagiarism Checker—free site to detect plagiarized text
The Craft of Scientific Presentations (Hard copy is available in the library)
From American Physical Society
Advice to beginning physics speakers
PowerPoint Advice
"Death by PowerPoint"—by Alexei Kapterev, a classic
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