1. Introduction to Dr. Kaplan  Some things about my background  Some things about me  What I believe in

2. Where I went to school  Oceanside High School, Long Island, NY  B.S. at Albany State University  Ph.D. at Princeton University

3. Work Experiences  High School Teacher  Research and Development Argonne National Laboratory Brookhaven National Laboratory SUNY Albany Bell Laboratories – Murray Hill, NJ  Information Technology Lucent Technologies Agere Systems  Types of jobs before teaching Technical Research and Development Developer and support of Software Manager of Teams of People

4. Types of Technical Research  Nuclear accelerators  Alpha particles probing solids  X-ray Physics  X-ray “microscopes” – looking in between atoms  Developing lasers, light emitting diodes, and photo-detectors for fiber optic communications  Ultra-high reliability devices for undersea communication

5. What I do for fun  Spending time with friends and family  Reading – Fiction and Scientific  Long distance cycling  Spinning  Hiking  Yoga  Drums  Guitar

6. Ariella – My granddaughter (at ~6 months: born 1/31/07)

7. Appalachian Trail – Mount Washington

8. Why I teach  I have a very strong belief that everyone has the ability to be amazing.  I enjoy interacting with high school students. They see the world in unique ways.  I believe that the study of science provides students with special skills to address and solve problems of all types.  I want to teach students that they can take on challenging problems with confidence, using what they know, what they can learn, what they can research, and what they can deduce.  Whether or not they go on to study science, these skills will give them a distinct advantage.