Distance learning is a great way to learn when not able to attend the traditional classroom in a college or a university; however, the shortfall is distance learning is somewhat impersonal not meeting your fellow students and teacher. To help you at least get acquainted with your instructor, what follows is a little bit about me.
- Aside from my day job, I am an adjunct faculty instructor at the Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I teach Physics and Meteorology courses online, and occasionally traditional classroom courses in Mathematics and Astronomy. I have been teaching part-time since 1993 and have taught Physics at Robert Morris University and Mathematics at La Roche College.
- I did graduate studies at Kent State University in experimental medium energy nuclear physics, and my research focused primarily on spin observables for proton-neutron (p,n) reactions, which are useful reactions to study nuclear structure. Experiments for my thesis were conducted at the Indiana University Cyclotron Facility in Bloomington, Indiana.
- After completing a PhD in early 1989, I received an appointment as a staff scientist at Brookhaven National Laboratory, Long Island, New York. There I worked on neutron beam experiments and developed Fortran and C++ software tools to analyze nucleon-nucleon scattering data. This work ultimately led to further career growth in computer science in the area of expert- and knowledge-based systems using Oracle databases, object-oriented languages, and Internet technologies.
- Before starting a professional and an academic career, I served in the U.S. Navy as an engineman and a scuba diver on the USS Tang (SS-563), a fast-attack, diesel-electric submarine. As a young man, I profited highly from the experience as I was fortunate enough to serve with some really sharp and inspiring people.
- Outside my family and professional interests, I enjoy amateur astronomy, digital photography/art, and maintaining good health and fitness through walking and biking (my son and I with Grand Master Kong, 2003).
- I live in Pittsburgh, PA with my wife Dr. Sulakshana Plumley.