BOONE—Brian Myer of Boone received a bachelor’s degree in physics from Appalachian State University on Sunday. In August, he enters the doctoral program in optical science at the University of Arizona.

Sam Brewer of Andover, Mass., also received an undergraduate degree in physics this weekend. He enters the doctoral program in physics at the University of Maryland this fall.

Both students will receive $20,000 graduate assistantships, healthcare coverage, and tuition waivers from the respective graduate schools.

Having students enter Ph.D. programs straight from the undergraduate physics program in Appalachian’s Department of Physics and Astronomy isn’t unusual, says department chairman Dr. Anthony Calamai. “We have three, sometimes four graduates who receive full stipends to attend graduate school,” he said.

That’s an impressive track record for a department that graduates around 10 or 11 applied physics majors a year. The department has about three dozen undergraduate majors.

Myer, son of Angela Owen of Boone and a graduate of Watauga High School, says

his years at Watauga High contributed to his success – science teacher Tom Brown, in particular. “I really noticed a difference in how well prepared I was for college, especially in problem solving,” Myer said. “Brown uses a modeling approach in his physics class. Instead of just lecturing to the students, he urged us to develop a hypothesis, test it, and understand why we were right or wrong.”

Myer says the opportunity he had to participate in research with faculty members at Appalachian inspired his decision to pursue graduate work. He has assisted Calamai and Professor Adrian Daw in the department’s ion trapping lab on a National Science Foundation grant supporting astrophysical chemistry research.

“It’s a friendly department. It’s easy to get to know the faculty and other students well,” Myer said. “The faculty has time to talk with you, and they encourage students to work together.”

Brewer agrees that assisting with faculty research and the small class sizes helped him with his academic goals. “The small classes helped a lot. We were able to ask the professors lots of questions,” he said. “And there are a lot of opportunities for undergraduates to do research.”

Brewer also worked in the ion trapping lab with Calamai, and spent a summer working at the National Institute for Standards and Technology in Maryland.

Brewer’s curiosity as a child into how things worked led him to study physics. “It’s hands on,” he said of the field. “It’s a nice combination of hands-on work and using your brain. You’re not just doing pure theory at your desk.”

Brewer has helped build equipment that supports research in the department’s ion trapping lab.

He plans to continue his academic focus on ion trapping at the University of Maryland.

Brewer is the son of John and Mary Brewer of Andover, Mass.

Photo Captions: Brian Myer, top, and Sam Brewer, bottom, have received full scholarships and research assistantships to attend doctoral programs in physics. Myer and Brewer graduated from Appalachian State University on May 7. (Top photo by University Photographer Mike Rominger. Bottom photo by Angela Owen)