Ronald Lane Reese   Professor of Physics    and Astronomy   Contact Information:     Howe Hall Room  H222   Office Phone:  (540) 458-8885        E-mail Address: reeser@wlu.edu   FAX: (540) 458-8884

Professor Reese has been on the faculty at Washington and Lee since 1979. He received a B.A. in Physics (magna cum laude) in 1964 from Middlebury College, with Phi Beta Kappa honors (1963). He was awarded a Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship to begin his graduate studies in 1964 and received his Ph.D. in physics from The Johns Hopkins University in 1971 under the direction of H.Z. Cummins.

Before coming to Washington and Lee, Reese taught at Pacific University (Forest Grove, Oregon), Worcester Polytechnic Institute (Worcester, Massachusetts), and Bates College (Lewiston, Maine).

Reese was a Visiting Fellow at University College, Oxford in 1990.  He spent several summers working at the Naval Research Laboratory in both the Optical Sciences Division and the Biomolecular Engineering Branch investigating the interaction of visible and microwave electromagnetic radiation with various materials.

Teaching

Teaching responsibilities usually include:
Introductory Physics (PHYS 111, 112)
Modern Physics (PHYS 210)
Relativity (PHYS 202)

Recent Publications

Professor Reese is the author of University Physics (Brooks/Cole Publishing Company, Pacific Grove, California, Ó2000), a calculus-based text for an introductory physics course for scientists and engineers, used at several well-known universities and colleges. The text has several distinct features:

     1.   The underlying philosophy of the text is to show how little needs to be known to understand as
            much as possible.
     2.   Great emphasis is placed on strong conceptual development and understanding of fundamental
           physical principles.
     3.   Great care is taken to use the technical vocabulary as precisely as possible.
     4.   Many examples are solved in more than one way.
     5.   The text has ~1100 questions, ~2000 problems, and ~400 investigative projects (that are amenable
           to collaborative learning experiences).
     6.   The solutions manual was written by Reese, Mark Semon (Professor of Physics at Bates College)
           and Robin Brooks (Professor of Mathematics at Bates College).

Professor Reese also has authored papers (many with undergraduate student co-authors) that have appeared in the American Journal of Physics, The Physical Review, the Journal of Applied Physics, Sky and Telescope, and the Griffith Observer.

                                                                                            (updated 7/12/05)