2018: Judith McGovern

Probing the Proton

Dr. Judith McGovern
Senior Lecturer in Physics
School of Physics and Astronomy,
University of Manchester

The proton (hydrogen nucleus) is a fundamental constituent of everyday matter, but it turns out we don't know as much about it as you might think - even measurements of its volume vary by more than 10%. And while we know it is made of quarks, we have less idea of how these interact to give its properties such as its mass and stiffness. A combination of theoretical and experimental developments is gradually improving our understanding of the proton, and this lecture will cover these and discuss their implications for other nuclei.

About the Speaker

Judith McGovern is a senior lecturer and former Director of Teaching in the School of Physics and Astronomy. She is originally from Edinburgh, and completed an undergraduate degree in Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge before moving to Manchester to do a PhD in theoretical Nuclear Physics. After a period as a postdoctoral associate at the University of Tübingen, she returned to Manchester as a lecturer.

About the Lecture Series

The Frances E. Walker Fund for Women in Physics was established by Dr. Mary Anne Frye to acknowledge her mother, Frances E. Walker and to support programs that encourage and increase the participation of women in the study of physics. The Walker Lecture Series brings prominent women physicists and astrophysicists to campus to highlight their accomplishments and incorporates a mentoring segment for students. The fund also supports a fellowship that is designed to give promising female U.S. citizens the opportunity to engage in research projects under the guidance of a GW Physics Department faculty member. Dr. Frye received a B.A. in Physics in 1970 and earned a Ph.D. in Physiology in 1975 from the GW Columbian College of Arts and Sciences. Frances E. Walker graduated from GW with a B.A. in 1927 and a M.A in Latin in 1931.