University of Mississippi Professor Recognized with Prestigious Fellowship Award

Strategic Insights -

University of Mississippi professor Breese Quinn has been named a recipient of the prestigious American Physical Society (APS) Fellowship award, recognizing his tireless advocacy for the US high-energy physics community and his groundbreaking research in the field. As director of the UM Center for Multimessenger Astrophysics, Quinn has been instrumental in building support for physics funding through personal and community outreach to Congressional delegations and appropriations staff.

Key Takeaways:

  • Breese Quinn, University of Mississippi professor, has been awarded the APS Fellowship for his tireless advocacy on behalf of the US high-energy physics community, including leadership in building support for physics funding through personal and community outreach to Congressional delegations and appropriations staff.
  • Quinn estimates that he has made over 900 visits to offices of members of Congress since 2005 to advocate for high-energy physics funding.
  • Quinn's work in high-energy physics, such as his studies with subatomic particles like muons and quarks, has been recognized with the 2019 European Physical Society High Energy and Particle Physics Prize for the 1995 discovery of the top quark.
  • Quinn is currently leading the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment, a Fermilab-sponsored experiment that will observe neutrinos and their role in the universe.
  • The experiment aims to examine the different types of neutrinos and measure the change between them as precisely as possible, which could help answer bigger questions about the universe, including why matter is preferred over antimatter.
  • Quinn has been recognized with the university's Distinguished Research and Creative Achievement Award and has served on the High Energy Physics Advisory Panel, a joint charter between the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.

Statistics:

  • Over 900 visits to offices of members of Congress since 2005
  • 150 other winners of the APS Fellowship award were announced on the same day as Breese Quinn
  • 994,000 neutrinos will be observed in the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment
  • 800 miles: the distance the neutrino beam will be shot through the crust of the earth from Fermilab to South Dakota
  • 3 types: the different types of neutrinos being observed in the experiment (electron neutrino, muon neutrino, and tau neutrino)

Sources:

  • University of Mississippi press release
  • The Daily Mississippian article
  • Breese Quinn's listing on the APS Fellowship website
  • European Physical Society Press Release
  • University of Mississippi news website
  • Fermilab website