Professor Emeritus Art Hobson Wins 2006 Robert A. Millikan Award

Art Hobson

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Art Hobson, professor emeritus of physics, has been named the 2006 winner of the Robert A. Millikan Award, given by the American Association of Physics Teachers to members who have made notable and creative contributions to the teaching of physics.

Hobson will receive a $7,500 award, an inscribed medal, a certificate and travel expenses to the association's summer meeting July 22-26 at Syracuse University, where he will present a lecture.

In notifying Hobson of the award, Bernard Khoury, the association's executive officer, wrote "I am sure that the award reflects the continuous efforts you have expended to expand the 'target' audiences for physics. It is also a recognition that you have contributed mightily to placing physics into a broader societal agenda."

The award is also in recognition of Hobson's textbook, "Physics: Concepts & Connections," published by Prentice Hall and going into its fourth edition this month.

Hobson describes his book as "a non-technical textbook for non-science college students; it emphasizes modern topics such as quantum physics and modern cosmology, and science-related social topics such as global warming and energy resources."

Hobson and others have formed an unofficial group within the association that encourages physics educators to include social topics such as global warming and energy resources in their teaching. He has been the leader of this group for several years.

Hobson has always been a strong advocate for teaching reforms in the sciences. He believes that in this scientific age, a scientifically illiterate nation such as the United States is a prescription for disaster.

"The reason is simple," said Hobson. "Citizens vote on issues such as nuclear power, energy resources and pseudoscience issues such as creationism. Thus, the University of Arkansas and other research-oriented campuses should place greater emphasis on teaching in decisions about hiring, tenure and promotions. The faculty should spend more time and effort on teaching undergraduate students. In the sciences, more effort needs to be devoted to teaching non-scientists."

Hobson joined the UA faculty in 1964, retiring in 1999 after 35 years of teaching. He says he is working harder now than he did then.

"It's even more fun now. I'm in my office six days a week working on my textbook, my column in the Northwest Arkansas Times and other publications, and working with the association and other organizations to improve science education and to help resolve science-related social issues," Hobson said.

The American Association of Physics Teachers was established in 1930 with the fundamental goal of "ensuring the dissemination of knowledge of physics, particularly by way of teaching." The association currently has more than 11,000 members in 30 countries around the world.

The association also publishes two major peer-reviewed journals, the "American Journal of Physics" and "The Physics Teacher." These journals provide a medium for sharing methods and research about teaching physics at introductory and advanced levels.

To learn more about the Millikan Prize and recent recipients, go to http://www.aapt.org/Grants/millikan.cfm

To learn more about Hobson's textbook, visit his Web page at http://physics.uark.edu/hobson/