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quantumdude

Quantumdude's the name. Physics is the game.

About Me

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OK my real name is Tom, and I can't stop thinking about physics! I went to school at RPI, where I got an Engineering degree (BS '95) and an advanced degree in Physics (MS '97). I was working towards a PhD in Physics, until the passing of my thesis advisor in 2000. He was the Late, Great Nimai Mukhopadhyay, and he was one of the best teachers I have ever known. I studied medium energy theoretical particle physics under him.I've been a professor of Mathematics and Engineering at HVCC since 2003, and since 2006 I've been pursuing a second Master's degree (Math this time) at SUNY Albany. I should finish this December, and then I'm getting back in the saddle for a new PhD thesis in Physics, this time in supersymmetric quantum field theories. Yeah!I'm taking "baby steps" in that direction right now by doing research in supersymmetric quantum mechanics, which is fascinating in its own right. For instance, did you know that the supersymmetric version of the WKB approximation always gives exact results for shape-invariant potentials? I know, I was blown away too when I first learned that!

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My Interests

Did I mention physics? :)OK, well other than that I like great music. I'm lucky enough to live in the same town that the Best Band In America (aka Super 400) calls home, and I like to catch them whenever they're around. I also think I'm quite a good amateur Italian chef, and I play a mean game of foozeball.

Some cool websites:

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Want to display this banner on your page? Just copy the code below and put it anywhere in your profile. <0xDwU9SQnH2e5C5=>

Do you support science? Then click on the link below to see Ben Stein's movie "Expelled" exposed for the bullshit that it really is.

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I'd like to meet:

Any and everyone cool. But I swear to Jeebus that if you buy me as your "pet" then I will motherfucking kill you.

Music:

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Beatles, Stones, Kinks, Faces, The Who, Traffic, Spencer Davis, Allman Brothers, James Brown, Sly and the Family Stone, Little Feat, The Meters, Wilson Pickett, Sam and Dave, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, Curtis Mayfield, Motown (especially Marvin and Stevie), The Funk Brothers, Booker T. & the MG's, Aretha, Ray Charles, U2, Jet, Super 400, Rose Hill Drive, Steepwater Band, Zeppelin, Humble Pie, Hendrix, SRV, Pretenders, James Gang, Neil Young, Foo Fighters, Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine, Radiohead, Richard Thompson, Cream, Blind Faith, David Bowie, Queen, Chuck Berry, Rocky Velvet, AC/DC, The Band and anything else that's totally awesome.

Now dig on these videos or go to hell!

Super 400 - Emergency

Rose Hill Drive - The Intruder

Rocky Velvet - Don't You Just Know It? (aka Don't Ha Ha)(aka Don't Ha Ha, Motherfucker)

Movies:

Goodfellas, Heat, Pulp Fiction, Donnie Brasco, The Godfather, Star Wars, Jaws, Snatch, Dr. Strangelove, Dawn of the Dead, Shaun of the Dead, Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

I also like nerdy movies about math and science, such as Little Man Tate, A Beautiful Mind, Good Will Hunting, Contact, Proof, and most recently, 21.

Television:

The Sopranos (R.I.P.), Flight of the Conchords, South Park, the Simpsons, Law and Order.I also like a bunch of old stuff that's only on in reruns. Cheers, Taxi, M*A*S*H, Twilight Zone, Outer Limts, X-Files, SNL when it was funny.

Don't like Flight of the Conchords? Get the fuck out of my office.

Books:

It probably comes as no surprise that I mostly read science, mathematics, and philosophy. Favorites include, Quantum Field Theory in a Nutshell (Zee), Modern Quantum Mechanics (Sakurai), Relativity: The Special and the General Theory (Einstein), The Logic of Scientific Discovery (Popper), and QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter (Feynman). There are many others, but you get the idea.Fiction doesn't hold much interest for me, but I would like to get through the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, since I enjoyed the movies so much.Oh yes: I did enjoy The Alphabet of Manliness immensely. :D

Heroes:

Einstein, Newton, Gauss, Euler, Leibniz, Cauchy, Feynman, Weinberg and Witten, just to name a few.

My Blog

What is Super 400 Day?

I've got online friends coming in from a few different places, and some of them must be wondering about my constant references to Super 400, and the Day named after them. First of all, Super 400 is a ...
Posted by quantumdude on Tue, 26 Feb 2008 11:16:00 PST

quantumdude’s virtual hangouts

Let's get this blog thing started already. My online activities are dominated by Physics Forums, where I am one of the forum leaders in the Homework Help section. I keep my skills sharp and build up m...
Posted by quantumdude on Thu, 21 Feb 2008 05:03:00 PST