FRONTIERS BYU COLLEGE OF PHYSICAL & MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES . FALL 2012
RESEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES p. 20 Teaching with Heart p. 14 Mantle Plumes: The Cataclysmic Past of the Snake River Plain p. 16
FRONTIERS MAGAZINE
BYU College of Physical & Mathematical Sciences Scott D. Sommerfeldt, Dean Thomas W. Sederberg, Associate Dean Bart J. Kowallis, Associate Dean Kurt D. Huntington, Assistant Dean
Department Chairs Gregory F. Burton, Chemistry & Biochemistry Parris K. Egbert, Computer Science Scott M. Ritter, Geological Sciences Robin O. Roundy, Mathematics Steven R. Williams, Mathematics Education Ross L. Spencer, Physics & Astronomy H. Dennis Tolley, Statistics
Frontiers Production Bart J. Kowallis, Editorial Director D. Lynn Patten, Assistant Editorial Director Katie Pitts, Managing Editor Haley Frame, Assistant Editor Jason Redford, Graphic Designer Levi Price, Photographer Stacie Carnley, Writer Alysa Hoskin, Writer Chris Scheitinger, Writer
Contact Information D. Lynn Patten, Marketing Manager 801.422.4022, lynn_patten@byu.edu
PHOTOS: cover and right, Levi Price
Brent C. Hall, LDS Philanthropies 801.422.4501, brenth@byu.edu
The Battle for the Talmage A rivalry has long been brewing between math and CS students. Last March, the departments took to the court to claim bragging rights as champions of the Talmage building they both occupy. In the end, the computer scientists beat out the mathematicians with a final score of 55-38—a convincing win signifying that the athletes are on the west side of the building, at least this semester. But what the mathematicians may lack in basketball skills, they make up for in brains and witty sweatbands.
DEAN’S MESSAGE
Whether it’s failed classes or unemployment, most of us find ourselves on the bottom rung at some point. As the economy and the job market continue to fluctuate, many of us are naturally concerned about the security of our future. Despite uncertainty, our alumni, professors, and students generally continue to find success in any climate.
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idea for a camera app into a business with $220,000 worth of support from confident investors (p. 11). Cameron Willden, a new alumnus as of this spring, landed his dream job at W. L. Gore and Associates because of interdisciplinary research he did on campus. No matter what job market these students face at graduation, they are stepping out with something to contribute. So many of our students are willing to be hard working, creative, and dedicated. This is why we are serious about providing more opportunities for mentored research. On page 13, you’ll see our continued progress toward endowing two funds of $10 million each to benefit our students. On that same page, you’ll also find a calendar of upcoming events. All of these events are open to alumni. We hope that if you’re in the area, you’ll join with us in further learning and fun. Wishing you all the best,
Scott Sommerfeldt, Dean PHOTO: courtesy of BYU Photo
In the Alumni News section of this issue, you’ll read about alumni who are publishing textbooks, participating in foreign diplomacy projects, creating top security software, and earning higher degrees at some of the nation’s top universities (p. 6). And remember, this is only a small sampling of our alumni. We are proud of their individual successes and contributions in all areas of their lives. Overall, these are the types of capable, good people BYU tries to help mold. Our alumni largely represent us very well. They are examples in the workforce, in their communities, and in the Church. As they go out and have a positive impact, we find a growing number of businesses and universities consciously looking for CPMS graduates. These organizations feel they will get high quality people from our programs. No matter the job market, our alumni find ways to contribute because of their steady skill sets and high moral standards. They take initiative and have strong aptitudes for creative problem solving. For many, these attributes came as they participated in mentored research with our professors. This issue highlights the work of three professors, who certainly show that same initiative. Dr. Bruce Schaalje, for example, uses his statistics knowledge to defend an issue of great personal importance to him—Book of Mormon authorship (p. 20). Dr. Eric Christiansen and his students are capitalizing on an opportunity to study the volcanic history of Idaho’s Snake River Plain (p. 16). And Dr. Steven Wood is adding a new tool to chemistry classes here and abroad (p. 14). All of these professors have taken an issue that matters to them and used their know-how to make an impact on students, alumni, and others. Our current students are catching onto this spirit of innovation. Recently one computer science student turned his
TABLE OF CONTENTS DEPARTMENTS 6
ALUMNI NEWS
8
FRIENDS OF THE COLLEGE
9
COLLEGE NEWS
10
FACULTY NEWS
11
STUDENT NEWS
12
STATUS UPDATE
PHOTOS: top and bottom, Levi Price; middle, John Lloyd
FEATURES 14
TEXTBOOK 2.0
16
EVOLUTION OF MANTLE PLUMES
TEACHING WITH HEART
14 16
HIDDEN VOLCANIC HISTORY IN THE SNAKE RIVER PLAIN
20
RESEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES
DEFENDING THE VALIDITY OF THE BOOK OF MORMON
20 FALL 2012
5
ALUMNI NEWS
AFTER THEIR ALMA MATER Chemistry & Biochemistry 2008 | Kaid Harper (BS ’08, PhD ’12 University of Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah) and his PhD mentor, Dr. Matthew Sigman, recently published an article titled, “Three-Dimensional Correlation of Steric and Electronic Free Energy Relationships Guides Asymmetric Propargylation,” in the prestigious journals Science, Nature Chemistry, and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Harper was also awarded the Nelson Leonard Fellowship for 2011-2012 by the American Chemical Society Division of Organic Chemistry. In Remembrance Robert “Bob” Evan Smith (BS ’68, PhD ’77) passed away at his home on May 5 at the age of sixty-eight. Smith was a devoted chemistry professor for over forty years and taught at the Metropolitan Community College in Longview, Missouri. He is survived by his wife Margaret Elizabeth “Beth” and two daughters. Computer Science 1981| Andrew Petersen (BS ’81; Mesa, Arizona) worked in the commercial software industry for a number of years before earning his master’s degree in business administration. He is currently employed with the Boeing Company as a Linux systems administrator, where he has worked for the past twenty-seven years. Geological Sciences 2004 | Beth Hunter (BS ’04, MS ’07; Bakersfield, California) recently started work as a geologist for Chevron after taking a three-year break to be a full-time mom. She and her husband recently completed a sports diplomacy service project, which involved teaching skateboarding in Tunisia. 2011 | Carl Hoiland (BS ’11; Stanford, California) received a 2012 Graduate Research Fellowship from the National Science Foundation. He is currently a PhD student at Stanford University, where he is studying the rise and fall of mountain belts. He recently returned from a geologic mapping expedition in Idaho. Mathematics 1976 | Kenneth Dale Russell (BS ’76; Idaho Falls, Idaho) is currently employed at McAfee Inc. Russell is a co-founder of NitroSecurity Inc., which was recently acquired by McAfee, and is serving as chief scientist. He holds multiple patents and is credited with formulating the algorithms for and leading the development of SAPHIRE, the world’s fastest probabilistic risk assessment system. 1989 | John J. Lund (BS ’89; Portsmouth, New Hampshire) is currently employed by the United States Navy. He joined the Navy’s nuclear power program upon leaving BYU and operated submarines until 2002. Since then, he earned a master’s degree in
6 FRONTIERS
electrical engineering and currently works as the strategic business and planning officer at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Frank Wilson (BS ’89, MS ’94; Queen Creek, Arizona) recently authored two textbooks, College Algebra: A Make It Real Approach and Precalculus: A Make It Real Approach. The books are being distributed through Cengage Learning Company, making these his sixth and seventh textbooks to be published. Mathematics Education 1969 | Carol Lee Gho (BS ’69; Fairbanks, Alaska) is a retired high school math teacher and retired university math faculty. She taught high school students for nineteen years and then taught math at the Interior-Aleutians campus of the University of Alaska from 2003 to 2011. She is presently an adjunct professor for the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Physics & Astronomy 1991| Peter Roming (BS ’91, MS ’95, PhD ’98; Fair Oaks Ranch, Texas) is a staff scientist in the Space Science and Engineering Division of Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas. He also serves on the executive committee of the NASA Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Mission. 1999 | Matthew Squires (BS ’99, MS ’01; Sandia Park, New Mexico) currently works for the Air Force Research Laboratory. He received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers this summer. This is the highest honor from the US government given to science and engineering professionals early in their careers. 2004 | John Painter (BS ’04, MS ’06; Eagle Mountain, Utah) is the implant-sustaining group manager at IM Flash Technologies in Lehi, Utah. He is also a member of the city council of Eagle Mountain, Utah. 2006 | Darci Rhoades (BS ’06; Murray, Utah) teaches physics at American Fork High School and was recognized recently for her success in involving more students in physics and raising their test scores. Statistics 1998 | Jeff Bean (BS ’98; Duvall, Washington) has found a career as a project manager for 3Sharp, a small software development firm based in the greater Seattle area. 2010 | Robert Richardson (BS ’10; Santa Cruz, California) received a Graduate Research Fellowship from the National Science Foundation. Specializing in actuarial science, he is currently completing his PhD at the University of California.
MEMORY BYTES In this issue’s Memory Byte, alumna Sarah Black, now an associate professor at Dixie State College, shares one of her experiences balancing religion and science.
Mysterious Endings: Dealing with Evolution By Sarah Morgan Black (Chemistry, BS ’94, Organic Chemistry, MS ’98; Saint George, Utah)
In junior high, I spent lunch hours reading and rereading books from the school library. One of my favorite books was The Silver Crown by Robert C. O’Brien. I read this rewarding tale so many times that I didn’t even need to read all of the words to relive the adventure. While at BYU, I found the book again and reread it with pleasure. However, I was shocked to find the last chapter different from what I remembered. The ending was much shorter, lacked several key elements, and resolved the plot in a completely different way. Here was a dilemma. There in my hands was a new ending, its existence undeniable. If I had read the original only once, I would have doubted my memory. But I had read it many times and had no doubt about the existence of the original version. This discrepancy went unresolved for a number of years. Then, while teaching at Dixie State College, I encountered a copy of the book with two final chapters: the one I remembered and the new one I had encountered. The book explained that the American and British printings of the book contained different endings. Here was the answer! Both were correct. Prior to this, there was no way to solve the dilemma, but with this additional knowledge, the discrepancy dissolved. As a student and now as a science professor, I’ve found similarities between this experience and the difficulty of evolution and creation. On one hand, the evidence for the evolution of species is voluminous, detailed, and logically compelling—just like the alternate book ending. To attempt to deny its existence seems pathological. But on the other hand, my numerous personal experiences have provided strong evidence the world was created by a loving God as a gift to His children. My evidence here is subjective, just
like my memories of the original version of the book—I can’t prove them to anyone else. But that doesn’t make them any less real. Since my knowledge of evolution and creation is imperfect, I am forced to conclude that they are currently irreconcilable. But I don’t have to choose between them. Both tales are incomplete. Scientific understanding is constantly evolving. Although it’s unlikely that the concept of evolution will ever be thrown out completely, it will no doubt be modified by future studies. Likewise, the creation story provided by the Bible and other revelation leaves many questions unanswered. But D&C 101:32-33 promises that when Jesus Christ returns to the earth, “he shall reveal all things—Things which have passed, and hidden things which no man knew, things of the earth, by which it was made, and the purpose and the end thereof.” The answer is coming, but it’s not here yet. I am content to wait for further revelation, seek inspiration and enlightenment, and study evolution without any threat to my testimony of the creation. Like a detective with two pieces of conflicting evidence, I hold both in my mind, understanding that they don’t match but not rejecting either one. I don’t know how it will be resolved, but I’m sure when I see the answer, it will be like finding the copy of The Silver Crown with two endings. Somehow, both will be correct.
Have a Memory Byte to Share? Did you ever have a lab mishap while at BYU? Were you ever the cause of a small explosion or a scorched eyebrow? Or maybe you fell victim to a friend’s failed experiment. Tell us about the ups and downs of working with lab equipment as a student. You can email us your anecdotes (up to 200 words) at cpms@byu.edu with “Memory Bytes” in the subject line. We’ll publish the best stories in the next issue of Frontiers. Submissions will be edited for length, grammar, appropriateness, and clarity.
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FRIENDS OF THE COLLEGE
GIVING BACK AND SOLVING PROBLEMS Text: Alysa Hoskin Photo: Levi Price
When he started working at Goldman Sachs as a senior technical analyst in 2009, Norman Jarvis probably never expected this job to bring him back to BYU. However, when the human resources department asked him to visit BYU career fairs to represent the technical side of Goldman Sachs, Jarvis found himself reconnecting with both the university and the College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences.
As a successful business professional and a former student, Norman Jarvis is now connecting alumni and students with opportunities to build their own futures.
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“I started to go on campus more and more and started building relationships with college faculty and employees,” Jarvis said. “Getting involved from that angle, I started finding great opportunities to give back to the college.” In 2010, Jarvis was invited to serve on the College Volunteer Leadership Council, and earlier this year, Scott Sommerfeldt, dean of the college, asked him to represent CPMS on the BYU Alumni Board. The board organizes alumni from all of BYU’s colleges. As the CPMS representative, Jarvis will attend meetings throughout the year and act as a liaison between the college and the board. “I am excited to be involved and see what the Alumni Board does and how it helps the university,” he said. The Alumni Board’s current focus is to strengthen professional mentorship programs. By involving alumni, the board hopes each college will provide mentors from outside of the classroom to help students bridge the gap from college to career. Jarvis’s new position will help facilitate mentoring within the college. Additionally, Jarvis will have the opportunity to speak at CPMS convocations to encourage graduates to give back to the college. At the April 2012 convocation, he said: “I want to encourage you to get involved in the BYU Alumni Association, giving you the opportunity to help others who are pursuing the same path and career that you have now accomplished. Do everything you can to give back to the university and remain committed.” Jarvis also discussed what he believes is a key skill to ensure each graduate’s future success: problem solving. “One thing that’s really important to me is solving hard problems; that’s part of [how] I live,” Jarvis said. “If you break problems down, you can come to a conclusion of what is right and what is wrong.” He believes this thought process can be applied to both temporal and spiritual problems throughout life. Part of his problem-solving nature comes from a deep love of mathematics. He graduated in 1996 with an MS in mathematics and then received a second MS in 2001 in computer science. He, his wife, and their seven children have lived in Provo for twenty-two years while he has worked at various software engineering and programming companies, such as Novell and Corel.
COLLEGE NEWS
CURRENT HAPPENINGS
Planetarium Upgrade
Last summer the planetarium installed a new Digistar projection system to further research and teaching opportunities. This system will also allow computergenerated animations in planetarium presentations.
Another Option for Math Students
Beginning fall 2013, students will have the option of majoring in mathematics with an emphasis in applied and computational mathematics.
CONNECTING FACULTY TO FUNDING Transitioning from the aerospace industry to academia is not a typical career change, but for Conrad Monson, it is exactly what he is experiencing as a research development professional. In this newly created position at BYU, he’ll work as a liaison between research funding agencies and the college. By fostering relationships between these two, Monson will help faculty be more aware of funding opportunities and more successful in securing grants. An important component of his job is to assemble teams of researchers who can compete for large, interdisciplinary grants. Monson will be aiding grant proposal projects for both CPMS and the Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering and Technology.
Kurt Huntington Joins the College
Kurt Huntington recently replaced Dan Johnson as assistant dean of the college. Kurt has worked as a consultant in administrative solutions for the past eight years and has been employed with BYU for almost twenty years.
In Remembrance
Loren J. Harshbarger passed away April 19, 2012, from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident. He worked as a system and network architect manager in the CS department for nearly six years before transferring to the statistics department. He is survived by his wife, Gania, and their children, Jasmine, Selina, Amy, and Logan.
CVLC Adds Seven New Members
CPMS welcomes seven new members to the College Volunteer Leadership Council: De Lyle W. Bloomquist, Evan Child, Bryan Heslop, Andy Hodgkinson, Jimmy Nix, Stephen Richardson, and Danny Young.
Change in Stockroom Management
PHOTOS: top, Levi Price; bottom, Jason Redford
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry has changed the management of the stockroom. Matthew Allen, the new manager, previously worked with environmental compliance and waste management in the research and development labs at the Department of Energy in Idaho.
Conrad Monson
ONE ELITE CLASS In March, the Department of Mathematics was recognized by the largest professional organization for teaching college-level mathematics: the Mathematical Association of America (MAA). The MAA recently conducted a study of more than 200 college and university calculus programs nationwide and identified 16 of them as exemplary. BYU’s introductory calculus course, Math 112, was listed in that elite group. During the fall 2012 semester, the MAA will visit BYU and the other fifteen recognized schools to learn what makes their programs so outstanding. While other collegiate math programs are shrinking, BYU’s is growing, and calculus courses are at the center of that growth. In fall 2010, 730 students were enrolled in Math 112; that number jumped to 912 students in fall 2011.
New Employee
The college welcomes Katherine Tucker as the new secretary in the Department of Geological Sciences.
Recently Appointed Chairs
Robin Roundy was recently appointed as chair of the Department of Mathematics with associate chairs Steven McKay and Darrin Doud. Dennis Tolley has been appointed as chair of the Department of Statistics with Gilbert Fellingham as associate chair. Many thanks to the former chairs and associate chairs.
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GREAT LEADERSHIP, TEACHING, AND RESEARCH CPMS Faculty Continue Achieving
CHEMISTRY & BIOCHEMISTRY Carbon Cycling: Emeritus professor Lee Hansen collaborated with the University of Santiago to measure the metabolic processes in soil. His research uncovered new methods of measuring the rates and efficiencies of the process, allowing researchers to better understand how organic material found there decomposes. In Remembrance: John Harvey Mangum (age seventy-nine) passed away on July 14, 2012, in Orem, Utah, following a long illness. He received a BS and an MS in biochemistry from BYU before earning his PhD, also in biochemistry, from the University of Washington in 1963. He conducted research and taught as a biochemistry professor at BYU until his retirement. He is known nationally and internationally for his contributions to cancer research. Nelson Kent Dalley passed away on June 29, 2012, at the age of seventy-seven. Dalley taught as a chemistry professor at BYU for thirty-two years. He received his BS and MS from BYU, and his PhD from the University of Texas in Austin. His main research interest was crystallography. He and his wife, Jane Greer, have three sons. Mission Update: Former dean Earl Woolley and his wife, Anita, have enjoyed serving a couples mission in Hong Kong, since arriving in February. They are excited to be a part of the thirty-three convert baptisms the branch has seen so far this year. New Faculty: The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry is pleased to welcome new assistant professor Joshua Andersen.
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Having previously graduated from BYU with a BS in plant genetics, Andersen returns to campus after having received his PhD from the University of Utah and with prior teaching experience at Duke University. Andersen will teach biochemistry courses beginning winter semester 2013. COMPUTER SCIENCE New Faculty: The Department of Computer Science is pleased to welcome Seth Holladay and Brent Adams as professors in the college’s Center for Animation. Holladay, a former Pixar animator, has contributed to films such as Ratatouille, Cars, Wall-E, and Up. Brent Adams, dubbed by his students to be the “Walt Disney of BYU,” was introduced to computer graphics while studying architecture at the University of Utah. After returning to graduate school and earning an MFA, he helped create BYU's animation major. Spreading His Roots: Acting as the general chair of the Family History Technology Workshop, BYU professor William Barrett is expanding family history work through new technology and teaching others to further their own family history with new technology such as image recognition and extraction, enhanced search tools, handwriting and text detection, and name-matching techniques. GEOLOGICAL SCIENCES Devotional Speaker: Professor Tom Morris addressed the university in a devotional address titled, “Time: A Precious Commodity, a Finite Resource,” on May 1, 2012. The full text and audio are available at speeches.byu.edu. Mission Update: Former associate dean Dana Griffen and his wife, Berva, have been called to the Washington D.C. Temple Mission. MATHEMATICS Retirement: After forty-four years of teaching mathematics, professor James Cannon will retire on September 1, 2012.
N ew F aculty : Meghan DeWitt is the newest member of the math department and will begin her faculty position fall semester. DeWitt graduated from BYU in 2006 with a degree in mathematics. After completing her undergraduate coursework, she attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she graduated with her PhD in 2011. She has spent the last year teaching at the University of Central Oklahoma. INFORMS Fellow: Robin Roundy was inducted as a fellow in the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) in November of last year. MATHEMATICS EDUCATION Focusing on Calculus: Professor Dawn Teuscher tested the foundational calculus skills of high school students and found that focusing on the basics in high school math classes later makes a difference at the college level. PHYSICS & ASTRONOMY New Faculty: The Department of Physics & Astronomy welcomes visiting assistant professor Derek Thomas. Thomas graduated from BYU with a bachelor’s degree in applied physics in 2007 and then with a master’s degree one year later. He will complete his PhD at the University of Texas at Austin this year. He specializes in researching bubble systems. STATISTICS New Faculty: New assistant professor David Dahl graduated from BYU with a bachelor’s degree in statistics in 1997 and his master’s one year later. In 2004, Dahl earned his doctorate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Upon completing his PhD, Dahl was hired at Texas A&M as an assistant professor where he has taught for the past eight years. Now as a BYU professor, Dahl will teach Statistics 121 beginning fall semester.
PHOTOS: top left, courtesy of Josh Anderson; middle left, Alysa Hoskin; bottom left, courtesy of Center of Animation; top right, Erin Oveis Brant; middle right, courtesy of BYU Photo; bottom right, courtesy of David Dahl
FACULTY NEWS
STUDENT NEWS
OUTSIDE OF THE CLASSROOM 0101 Computer Science 1010
Statistics Cameron Willden landed his dream job: developing innovative products like GORE-TEX®, hightech guitar strings, and anti-friction rope. However, it wasn’t just his good grades and charming personality that made him Gore’s newest statistician. His unique collaboration with the BYU chemistry department made him the perfect candidate for W. L. Gore and Associates—a company that repeatedly makes Fortune’s list of the 100 best employers. Beginning last year, Willden helped design efficient, money-saving capillaries used in chemical separation. Thanks to his statistics professors, Willden connected his master’s project with the work of chemistry professor Milt Lee. Traditional capillary columns contain tiny particles that work great, but at a high price—literally. Expensive pumps are required to use these columns. Their new polymer design offers the same separation efficiency but for a lower cost. PHOTO: Cameron Willden
With the help of his roommates, CS student Kevin Harrington brought his business idea to life. Harrington—along with Brett Gottula and Luke Duffield, two engineering grad students— invented a cord to connect DSLR cameras to smart phones. The result? Trigger Happy. The Trigger Happy cord and smart phone app allow photographers to initiate bulb functionality, time-lapse, HDR mode, and other functions from their smart phone. If they want to take pictures through their phone from farther distances, users can purchase an additional cord to lengthen the range. This device can be used for numerous purposes, including outdoor photography, stunning time-lapse sequences, or even a quick family picture. Through Kickstarter, an online website for funding creative projects, Trigger Happy raised $220,000—far surpassing their original goal of $25,000. Learn more at triggerhappyremote.com. PHOTO: (from left) Brett Gottula, Luke Duffield, Kevin Harrington
PHOTOS: top, Levi Price; bottom, courtesy of Kevin Harrington
Chemistry & Biochemistry PhD student Pankaj Aggarwal recently received a fellowship from the American Chemical Society to further his research in protein separation. Jared Clark, a graduate student, received the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Research award, an honor given to only seventeen students nationwide each year.
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Geological Sciences
Mathematics
Mathematics Education
Physics & Astronomy
The department hosts one major trip each year with previous destinations including studying limestone in the Bahamas, glaciers in Switzerland, ancient mountains in New England, and tectonic evolution in the Himalayas. This spring, students and faculty traveled to the Hawaiian Islands for a week-long experience every geologist dreams of—studying active volcanoes.
Bryan Perry and John Lopez each received graduate research fellowships from the National Science Foundation. The fellowships provide three years of financial support including an annual $30,000 stipend and $10,500 education allowance.
The Mathematics Education Association is a student organization that seeks to create better future educators, promote unity among math ed students, and fulfill their motto: “Teaching Tomorrow Today.” This past year, MEA students on campus have enjoyed monthly activities including lesson planning workshops, lectures, socials, and student teaching presentations.
Physics students run the Society of Physics Students, which encourages undergraduate research experience and promotes science literacy through outreach programs to grades K–12 and the general public. Recently, SPS students gathered together to design and construct high-flying paper gliders before competing in an accuracy and distance contest to crown a paper airplane champion.
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STATUS UPDATE
STAY CONNECTED: Join us this next year Mathematics Ed
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Whether it's been two years or twenty since you graduated, we invite you to rekindle that BYU fire. This next school year, we have several events just for alumni. The departments of the college also host fun, family events. So, reconnect with old friends, give your kids a taste of BYU, and pay CPMS a visit soon.
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In the last issue of Frontiers we announced two new endowment funds that will be used to support undergraduate research and keep our graduate programs competitive. With the help of your donations, we continue to progress toward our goal of $20 million. 10m Terik Daly, a recent graduate from the geology department, is just one student who has benefited from a paid mentorship in the past. He wrote of his experience: 8m “I owe a large debt to the university for providing me with extensive undergraduate research experiences and fostering a culture of mentor6m ing. My most valuable learning took place outside of the classroom: in the lab and in the offices of my professors. As I move on to a doctoral program at Brown Univer4m sity, I am confident that the skills and attributes I learned from these astute mentors, along with knowledge gained through research and course2m work, will serve me well, providing a strong foundation for my future career.” There are many exceptional students like Terik who would also qualify and benefit from a mentorship. By building these funds, we can give more students that opportunity. If you would like to contribute or know someone who would, please visit cpms.byu. edu/donate, or contact Brent Hall at 801-422-4501 or by email at brenth@byu.edu. GRADUATE MENTORING
The Co
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TEXT BOOK 2.0 Teaching with Heart
Text: Stacie Carnley Photo: Levi Price
S
teven Wood is a man who has found his calling in life. Through a genuine love of teaching and science and an interest in innovative educational materials, Professor Wood helps his students understand the complex chemical world around them. An Unexpected Love
As a teaching faculty member, Wood has taught chemistry courses at BYU for over twenty-five years. However, his devotion to education wasn’t always so obvious—not even to him. “I never set out to do teaching,” he said. “It was never even on the list. And then suddenly, I found something that spoke to me. I felt like this is where I should be.” After leading his first class, Wood soon realized communicating his love and understanding of chemistry to students is what he enjoyed. “I like chemistry because it explains the world,” he said. “I like getting people excited about reading their shampoo bottles, to say ‘I know what that is and why that’s in there.’”
an innovative educational tool called ChemCompanion—a cross between a textbook, a classroom lecture, and an interactive website. ChemCompanion presents chemical concepts and principles in a media rich environment to help students better learn and understand the subject—putting into practice the adage, a picture is worth a thousand words. “The real strength of it is we have visual elements presented simultaneously with the textual elements,” Wood said. “Because we’re dealing with particles that you can’t see and can’t touch, having some sort of mental image is going to really help students as they take chemistry classes.” Another quality that sets ChemCompanion apart from traditional learning materials i s s t u d e n t i n p u t . Wo o d oversees the project while his undergraduate team creates the artwork, animations, and sample problems—resulting in an overall product that is student friendly. Senior Eliza Meeks, who has worked with Wood for the past three years on the website, said adding a student perspective to the project makes chemistry more accessible. “We’ve taken the classes,” she said. “We know what parts are difficult to understand, and so we can create ways to explain them
Wood’s innovative teaching and ChemCompanion have impacted his life more than he thought possible.
A Spin on the Traditional
Wood shares his excitement of chemistry with students not only through lectures but also by producing interactive learning materials. With the help of a handpicked undergraduate team, Wood developed
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For the word-savvy scholar •Smells great when you first open it •Gives you an authoritative look •Risk of back injury and/or paper cuts •Not enough pictures •Drains your grocery money
Dr. Wood organized a student team to develop art, test questions, animation, and other aspects of ChemCompanion. Pictured above (from left) are Brendan Tobler, Eliza Meeks, Steven Wood, and Garrett Nay.
that make sense to students. The key is having the student perspective as opposed to learning according to how a professor thinks you should understand the material.” Meeks enjoys the way Wood facilitates and encourages a creative environment and gives his team members plenty of room to come up with strong ideas on their own. “I love it because he gives us a lot of freedom,” she said. “He gives us guidelines but then lets us figure out how to communicate our individual ideas effectively. … He has a lot of confidence in us. When he gives us something, it’s implied that you are capable of doing it, so you want to do a good job, to rise up to that expectation.” Currently, ChemCompanion is available for student use at chem.byu.edu/ ChemCompanion. The team hopes to secure a deal with Norton Publishing to make ChemCompanion a primary student learning tool, perhaps even replacing the traditional textbook. “I don’t think anyone is doing anything quite like this,” Wood said. “What we’re trying to do is pretty ambitious. We are trying to create really a different type of textbook and not just one or two things that would be helpful—we’re trying to create a completely new package.”
For the vocal scholar •Attractive classmates •Live-action Q&A •Personality differences •Dry and lengthy PowerPoint slides •Someone else is in charge
A Life Calling
Wood’s innovative teaching and interactions with students have impacted his life more than he ever thought possible. His love of teaching is something he and the other love of his life share. Both he and his wife teach at BYU and thoughts of students, lessons, and tests often follow them home. “My wife teaches in the English department, and so we’re always talking about school,” he said. “Teachers are always trying to think of ways to present material better. It’s the kind of thing that you wake up in the middle of the night and think, ‘How am I going to do this in the best way?’” Since its beginnings over twenty-five years ago, Wood’s educator role has expanded. What started out as filling in to teach a single class turned into something much more than merely a part-time activity. “At this point, it becomes your life,” he said.
For the cutting-edge scholar •Created by students, for students •You control time with the rewind button •Expert teacher insight right with the text •Doesn’t matter if you have bad breath •Sample problems to help you ace the test •It’s everywhere—in a non-creepy way •Snacks, intermissions, and pajamas ok •No calories burned by turning pages or walking to class •If a zombie apocalypse causes power outages, you can’t study •No further cons come to mind
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The
Evolution of
Mantle
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What is now a serene and fertile valley—dotted with farms and isolated hills scattered around a scenic river—has a hidden, violent past. Forged deep within the Earth, hot magma has been rising for millions of years and erupting out onto this peaceful plain.
PLUMES
Text: Chris Scheitinger Photo: John Lloyd
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drilling over a four-month span the extracted rock samples were finally ready for investigation. “Each foot in the drill core represents a slightly different time period,” Christiansen said. “Lava flow, after lava flow, after lava flow filled in the Snake River Plain. We have at least thirty to as many as fifty volcanoes that are represented in this sequence of lava flows.” Using an electron microprobe, Bradshaw is currently looking at the chemical composition of the minerals in the basalt extracted from the Kimama drilling location. By determining the chemical composition, he hopes to better
PHOTOS: courtesy of Eric Christiansen
N
estled in southern Idaho, the Snake River Plain was formed by a series of volcanic eruptions—the same processes that helped create the grandeur enjoyed by many in Yellowstone National Park. What Yellowstone is today, the Snake River Plain once was. To more fully understand the volcanic history of the Snake River Plain, Dr. Eric Christiansen and graduate student Richard Bradshaw of the BYU Department of Geological Sciences joined a collaborative research group formed by Dr. John Shervais, of Utah State University, in 2006 to investigate the plain by drilling three deep holes. Each hole reaches more than a mile deep. Christiansen and Bradshaw’s role in the project is to investigate the composition of the minerals within the various volcanic rock layers under the Snake River Plain. By examining these layers, they are trying to determine if an upwelling of hot material, known as a mantle plume, is the source of the volcanic activity along the Snake River Plain. Although many consider the Snake River Plain-Yellowstone system to be Using the large a classic example of a mantle plume, drills above, the considerable debate still persists among research team extracted rock experts. cores (at right) in The mantle plume theory suggests ten-foot interthat the eastern Snake River Plain was vals. The small created through a series of huge caldera- holes in the rock from the forming eruptions. Calderas are large formed bubbles in the volcanic craters (as much as forty miles once molten across) that form when large volumes lava. From these long pieces, of magma are erupted rapidly as dense Bradshaw and clouds of volcanic ash. Christiansen examined small “The idea has been that there’s slices, like the a fixed plume of hot mantle below colored sample North America, and North America has on the far right, been moving to the southwest across to determine the makeup it,” Christiansen said. “So as North of the plain. America moves, this plume burns a hole here; then North America moves, and it burns a hole there; and then it moves again, and now Yellowstone is sitting over the deep hot plume.” After a large caldera forms, many smaller and quieter eruptions of dark basalt bury the calderas until the massive depressions are hidden beneath many layers of volcanic rock. In order to better reveal the volcanic history, truckmounted drills were set up at three locations on the Snake River Plain: Kimama, Twin Falls, and Mountain Home, Idaho. At each location, scientists drilled a nearly continuous core of rock that was pulled out in ten-foot intervals. The extraction process was expensive and oftentimes slow; yet the core samples provide valuable data on the volcanic history of the plain. After six thousand feet of
PHOTO: John Lloyd
Lava flow, after lava flow, after lava flow filled in the Snake River Plain. understand the evolution of the Snake River Plain magmas. “The goal is to try to understand what the sources of these rocks are. What part of Earth’s deep interior melted to produce these magmas? Was it a plume or not?” Bradshaw said. “We are also trying to determine at what depth the minerals crystallized before they erupted. It will help us to understand a lot more about the Snake River Plain, about mantle plumes, and about how basaltic volcanoes work.” Initially, it was believed that the basalt would compose only the first four thousand feet of drilled rock at the Kimama location. However, the basalt was a lot thicker than anticipated, eventually amounting to more than six thousand feet of drilled basalt. And even then, the
base of the basalt was not found. This shows that the calderas, which once were at the surface of the Earth, are now buried two thousand feet below sea level. The heavy, dense basalt has pushed the crust downward. The basalt extracted from deeper in the borehole was also older than expected—perhaps as much as six million years old! Although the youngest volcanoes on the Snake River Plain erupted approximately two thousand years ago, they will not be the last. Quiet eruptions of basaltic lava as well as more explosive super calderaforming eruptions will likely happen in the future. Researching these old volcanoes will help us predict and understand how and perhaps when these future eruptions will further shape the Snake River Plain.
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L
ike many BYU professors, Dr. Bruce Schaalje’s office is decorated with shelves of books, both academic and spiritual. However, unlike most BYU professors, Schaalje studies the Book of Mormon with more than an open heart—he also uses numbers. Schaalje uses stylometry, or the practice of analyzing statistical patterns of word usage, to discover potential authorship of the Book of Mormon. “It’s all about if you can detect the authorship style from the pattern of usage of various words,” he said.
Dr. Schaalje looking through a first edition Book of Mormon.
“A PAPER OUT ABO THE BOO THAT RE BOTHER
Some researchers use these word patterns to link authorship of LDS scripture to 19th century writers; Schaalje, on the other hand, defends his beliefs in ancient authorship of the Book of Mormon using those same methods. New Methods for Old Books
What began as a response twenty years ago to a publication in the Journal of the Royal Statistical Society has led Schaalje to further developing this statistical method and continually defending LDS scripture through his research. Most recently, Schaalje defended the Book of Mormon against a publication by Stanford University that claimed the book’s primary author was Sidney Rigdon, with contributions from other early church members and writers of that time period. Measuring the frequencies of several words—such as the and to—for texts of known authorship, he projected
Text: Alysa Hoskin Photos: Levi Price
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RESEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES
these values onto a carefully chosen two-dimensional graph. This graph serves as a snapshot of the principal patterns of word usage by authors. The middle of a group of these points, also known as the centroid, is the part scholars compare with other writing samples, such as chapters of the Book of Mormon, to discover authorship. This method is known as nearest shrunken centroid classification. The Stanford researchers used this classification to claim that the location of Book of Mormon chapters relative to the centroids of 19th century authors identified Sidney Rigdon and others as the authors of the Book of Mormon. Schaalje and his colleagues responded by using a new type
R CAME OUT OK OF MORMON EALLY RED ME.”
of stylometry to show this conclusion was not warranted because the centroid of Rigdon’s writings was not close enough to the excerpts from the scriptures to even remotely consider him the author of the Book of Mormon. “They examined Book of Mormon texts and said the closest author was Rigdon, and it’s true for a lot of them; he was the closest,” Schaalje said. “But he’s not nearly close enough.” In the process of looking deeper at statistical plots, Schaalje and several other faculty in the BYU statistics department developed an entirely new method, referred to as extended nearest shrunken centroid classification. The method takes distance of plot points into consideration; just because one author’s centroid is the closest to a scriptural chapter does not mean he or she wrote the book, since the distance could still be too great to suggest authorship. With an innovative method published in several prestigious journals, the team was able to reply to the Stanford University researchers with scholarly credibility— regardless of their affiliation with BYU. The BYU researchers extended the method in four different ways, including considering the importance of chapter length. “Their assumption is that it doesn’t matter how long the chapter is, that it has the same statistical precision,” Schaalje said. “The smallest chapter in the Book of Mormon has
The first edition of the Book of Mormon was printed in March 1830.
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IN A SENSE, WORDS IN A BOOK ARE KIND OF LIKE BASE PAIRS IN A STRING OF DNA. BOTH ARE THE DETAILS THAT MAKE UP A LARGER AN D MORE COMPLEX PICTURE. only ninety-two words, and we are measuring the frequency of over one hundred different words; as the text size gets bigger, measurements are obviously more reliable.” The Path to Scriptural Research
Schaalje first came across stylometry as a BYU student in 1980. After graduation, he was hired by the Department of Agriculture in Canada. One day, his interests in stylometry were revived when he came across a paper published in the Journal of the Royal Statistical Society about authorship of Mormon scriptures. “A paper came out about the Book of Mormon that was really bothersome to me,” Schaalje said. “So just for fun I wrote up a reply letter and sent it to the journal.” He did not expect the author of the original research to read his letter and write a rejoinder in response, but soon received a rebuttal. This academic conversation initiated Schaalje’s entrance
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into the world of scriptural research. After sending off his letter to the journal, he applied for a job to return to BYU as a professor of statistics and was hired. Since that time, Schaalje has gained increased recognition as a leader in stylometric research. He attributes his success to helpful colleagues, like Alvin C. Rencher and John L. Hilton who co-authored and reviewed his research along the way. Though he is continuing to work on this research and has another paper ready to be published, stylometry is not Schaalje’s main area of research. “I am a biostatistician, but interestingly this [nearest shrunken centroid] method was developed for DNA analysis,” he said. “In a sense, words in a book are kind of like base pairs in a string of DNA.” Growing Spiritually and Academically
Schaalje’s knowledge extends far beyond the mathematical concepts involved in his research. Through his studies of LDS scripture, he has greatly strengthened his grasp
Does this face look familiar? Harding, who statistically studies the Book of Mormon, portrayed Joseph Smith in church films.
of church history and is now teaching a Doctrine and Covenants (D&C) class in the religion department. Schaalje considers D&C section 71 a personal call to defend the Church. This section is a revelation responding to the original allegations that Solomon Spaulding, a frontier novelist, authored the Book of Mormon. In revelation, the Lord advises to “confound your enemies; call upon them to meet you both in public and in private.” After receiving this revelation, the leaders began traveling around, defending the Church. At this time, Sidney Rigdon authored several articles arguing in favor of the Church. “The earliest text attributed to Sidney Rigdon is something he wrote in response to this section speaking out against these [anti-Mormon] rumors,” Schaalje said. “That written response is one that we’re using in our research . . . . We’re using it for the same purpose that he intended those words initially, but in a different way.”
As Schaalje researches documents, he turns words on a page into plot points on a graph to determine authorship.
One of Dr. Schaalje’s statistics students researching stylometry is Dustin Harding. Harding may look familiar to many members of the Church because he portrayed Joseph Smith in the films Joseph Smith: Plates of Gold, Praise to the Man, and The Restoration. “It’s kind of fun to have ‘Joseph Smith’ researching the Book of Mormon here at BYU,” Schaalje said. Harding says he did not know what Schaalje was researching when he asked if he needed an assistant. Harding also served his mission in the birthplace of Joseph Smith and was there for the celebration of Smith’s 200th birthday. “I love all of these ironic situations that keep coming,” he said. “It’s all had a profound effect on my testimony.” He is currently trying out for a role in the Church’s New Testament films while also continuing his stylometry research with Dr. Schaalje.
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BYU College of Physical & Mathematical Sciences
Brigham Young University, N-181 ESC, Provo, UT 84602
If Michelle were a supernova, research funding would be her hydrogen. Just as this element fuels the cosmic gas giants, annual gifts to the college help fuel academic stars like Michelle Spencer in her research. Michelle’s supernova research has changed her life in more ways than one. Working closely with astronomers and telescopes, explaining concepts to students, and presenting her findings at national meetings has opened her eyes and future possibilities — even prompting her to pursue teaching at a university level after graduating from BYU.
To discuss helping the college with a special gift, contact Brent Hall at 801-422-4501 or email brenth@byu.edu
Michelle receives research grants funded in part by gifts to the College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences Annual Fund. “I reapply every semester, and every time I get that email saying I’ve received funding, I just feel so grateful,” she said. “Doing research has definitely helped me develop my character, and I’ve really gained a whole lot of knowledge. It’s been an incredible growing experience.” We invite you to help us fuel future scientists like Michelle. Donate online at give.byu.edu/cpms.
306 hinckley
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Text: Stacie Carnley; Photo: Levi Price
Annual Donations Were the Big Bang That Changed Her Universe