Workin Hard

: ) - Oct 21 7:54PM

Heyy Dr. Syphers

My name is Hailey, thank you very much for taking the time to be our physicist! I am a Junior at [...] High School, I am taking physics honestly to get one last science credit but i really like it so far. I would like to go to college for Speech Therapy, Audiology, and Pathology. I am a 6'1" basketball player and I play nationally, I hope to play in college at the division II level.

Whats your favorite thing about your job? Have you always wanted to be a physicist?

Re: : ) - Oct 25 12:30AM

Hi Hailey,

I think the most favorite thing about my job is the huge diversity of what all I get to do. I get to work on very sophisticated equipment with a team of very smart and fun people, get to travel and write and give talks, and get to work with the best young people who all seem to have lots of energy and lots of ambitions. I get to study science, which I have always enjoyed, and people pay me for it! Not bad!

As for your other question, I think I wanted to be a "scientist" since I was about 8 years old or so; it took me a while (10 years?) before I understood what "physics" was and that that was the "science" I was interested in.

Cheers,
-Mike

Re: Re: : ) - Oct 29 11:28AM

Heyy Dr. Syphers,

We just finished our forces unit in physics and now were learning about Energy.
Your job sounds like a lot of fun! How long is a typical work day for you? what is the most challengeing thing you've ever done with physic?

-Hailey

Re: Re: Re: : ) - Nov 01 12:19AM

Hi Hailey,

My work day varies, but it's usually at least 8 hours, and sometimes 10-12. But, I try to make the total work week about 40-50 hours at max. It really depends upon what is going on at the moment. It's important to take breaks, though, and re-set your mind and your energy level. And, as you might expect, I put in a LOT more hours when I was just a bit older than you; these days, I get tired a lot easier… ;-)

Cheers,
-Mike


Re: Re: Re: Re: : ) - Nov 05 11:11AM

haha understandable a lil R&R never hurts. What do you think is the most challengeing aspect of your job? how many years did it take in college to get where you are today?

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: : ) - Nov 07 4:30PM

Hi Hailey,

I think the most challenging part of the job is trying to keep up with everything that is going on in the field. Things develop so rapidly. There's always new reports to read, new talks to hear, new events taking place, that it's hard to keep up sometimes. I wish I had about 56 hours in a day…

I went to school in stages. First, the typical 4-year college; then I worked for a couple of years before starting my Master's degree, which took about 3 years. Then, I took a year off before starting my PhD program, which took me another 2 years or so. So, I guess it was about 10 years of college, which I completed by the time I was 29.

Cheers,
-Mike

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: : ) - Nov 09 11:43AM

Dr. Syphers,

Thank you so much for the time you took out of your busy schedule to answer question my classmates and I had!

-hailey