Bickers
performs
physics
concepts
By showing demonstrations, physics professor, provost showed the importance of teaching with examples.
By LAURA SIMURDA
Staff Writer
Ever sat in a class that bored you to sleep, making you wish there was something that would break the monotony of the lecture?
"Phenomenal Physics,'' a lecture discussing the various demonstrations that can be used in physics classes, showed how to do just that.
Gene Bickers, a professor of physics and associate vice provost
fo> undergraduate programs, demonstrated the importance of physical examples Thursday evening to an audience of about 30 people.
During the session, part of USC Festival 125, he showed the real effects of physics and contextual-izing the mathematical concepts covered in every physics class.
"Why? Because I think it’s fun, and it adds to all the hard work we do,” Bickers said.
With everything from launching balls and catching them in moving carts, to removing silk tablecloths without disturbing the china sitting on top, to making a small beaker seemingly disappear inside a larger beaker filled with cooking oil. Bickers tried to show how to make physics intriguing.
Using these examples, he demonstrated in one hour concepts such as Newton’s first law of physics, conservation of energy and momentum.
“Studying quantitatively what’s going on,” is incredibly important, Bickers said.
At the end. Bickers laid down on a bed of nails to show the principle of pressure, explaining that since there is a dense layout of nails, “they share my weight."
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USC vs. Arizona
Complete football preview 16
Student Newspaper of the University of Southern California Since 1912
www.dailytrojan.com	October	7,	2005	Vol.	CXLVII,	No.	33
Popping out. Thursday's birthday celebration featured The Spirit of Troy's drum major David Conger coming up out of a large USC 125 cake. Later, President Sample cut a real cake.
University celebrates 125 years
Sample said despite USC's relatively short history, the university has come a long way.
By KATE JACKSON
Contributing Writer
There was no shortage of victory signs in front of Tommy Trojan as the band played and President Steven Sample led alumni, professors, staff, students, parents and guests in "Happy Birthday USC” Thursday afternoon to celebrate the university’s 125th anniversary.
Amidst the cardinal and gold confetti and the birthday cake Sample cut with Tommy Trojan’s sword, it was apparent to the thousands of people present that what Sample had said inside Bovard Auditorium moments earlier was true — USC has truly come a long way in the last 125 years.
“So is this a great time to be a Trojan or what,” Sample said as he opened the USC Festival 125 in front of trustees, vice presidents, deans, professors, alumni and students who filled Bovard Auditorium Thursday morning.
Sample put the last 125 years of USC’s history into perspective as he described the USC that opened the doors of its single building to 55 students and 10 faculty Oct. 6. 1880, 125 years ago.
Compared to universities with a longer history, such as Princeton and Harvard, USC is still in its infancy. Sample said.
“But over the last 125 years, USC has proven that chronology is not destiny,” he said.
The morning celebration was a tribute to USCs past as a university, its past as an integral part of Los Angeles and its growth and achievement as well as a look ahead to USC's future.
“We have grown up with Los Angeles and Los Angeles has grown up with us," said William Deverell, a USC professor of history, in his speech that compared the growth of USC and Los Angeles over the last 125 years.
Through his words and slide show, Deverell said Los Angeles became the most important post-Civil War city as people flocked to the area to start over. It has grown to now be the city of the future. Just as USC and Los Angeles share a past ahead lies “a future that USC and Los Angeles will surely invent together," he said.
"The story of USC is about a feeling you get just being here ... call it confidence, optimism, drive, ambition. Call it the spirit of Troy,” said Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. introduced by Sample as a not only a friend to USC but a personal friend of his.
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"The story of USC is about a feeling you get just being here... call it confidence, optimism, drive, ambition. Call it the spirit of Troy.” —O— ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA mayor Los Angeles
INDEX
Student actors perform Pinter 's intriguing play "The Caretaker’ this weekend. 7
Being Muslim and American is not a contradiction. 4
WEATHER
Today: Mostly sunny. High of 8X low of 58. Tomorrow: Mostly sunny. High 7Zlow51
Lecturer analyzes Beatles catalogue
Through their music, the Beatles pushed a new wave of technology from engineers.
By ROCIO ZAMORA
Contributing Writer
An audience of more than 60 Beatles enthusiasts packed the Newman Recital Hall Thursday afternoon for "Strawberry Fields Forever How the Beatles Shaped Technology,’ a presentation given by William Biersach, a senior lecturer in composition at the USC Thornton School of Music
The one-hour lecture, part of the USC Festival 125, focused on how the Beatles “used the recording studio as a musical instrument’ Biersach said.
With the help of producer George Martin and engineers Ken Scott and Geoff Emerick. the Beatles changed forever the way music is oeatrd and pushed a wave of new technology by engineers who were trying to keep up. he said.
"John Lennon told Martin he want ed to be tied to the ceding and spun around to that they could record his voice as it circled around the room." Biersach said.
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