Samuel Roland

Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Physics

Columbia, Missouri, United States

About

I am fascinated by how our world works, from the Planck to the Hubble length, and everything in between. I love solving complex problems and sharing my insights with others.

Experience

  • Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Physics at Stephens College
    Aug 2021 - Present · 4 yrs 11 mos

  • Data Scientist at Broadcom Inc.
    Dec 2017 - Jun 2020 · 2 yrs 7 mos

  • University of Michigan (4 yrs 10 mos)
    • Lead Graduate Student Instructor
      Aug 2013 - May 2017 · 3 yrs 10 mos

      Manage all graduate student instructors for the introductory electromagnetism labs (Physics 236/241/261). Teach a training course for all new graduate student instructors. Lead weekly meetings for instructors. Organize and maintain course website. Mediate grade disputes.

    • Physics Graduate Student
      Aug 2012 - May 2017 · 4 yrs 10 mos

      My area of research is theoretical particle physics. I build models of dark matter and neutrino physics, investigating the implications for the early Universe and making predictions for current and future experiments. I have also collaborated with mathematicians to explore the structure of certain supersymmetric quantum field theories. My work involves both analytical and numerical computation.

    • Graduate Student Instructor
      Sep 2012 - May 2013 · 9 mos

      Instructor for introductory electromagnetism lab (Phys 236 and 241). For each lab I wrote a brief 10 minute lecture, and worked directly with students as they completed the lab. On teaching evaluations, I received a 4.90/5 when students were asked whether the instructor was an excellent teacher.

  • Cornell University (1 yr 10 mos)
    • Undergraduate Research Assistant
      May 2011 - May 2012 · 1 yr 1 mo

      Designed and implemented an analog feedback circuit to stabilize the local magnetic field. Used for precision control of the field in a vacuum chamber that contained a Bose-Einstein condensate.

    • Physics Tutor
      Aug 2010 - May 2012 · 1 yr 10 mos

      Held weekly tutoring hours at the Learning Strategies Center, open to all undergraduate Physics students. I worked one-on-one with students from a wide range of backgrounds and physics classes.

  • Undergraduate Research Assistant at Kansas State University
    Jun 2010 - Aug 2010 · 3 mos

    Accepted to the Research Experience for Undergraduates program at Kansas State. I worked in Dr. Itzik Ben-Itzhak's lab to investigate the ionization of diatomic molecules by a short laser pulse. Used C++ and Origin to collect and analyze data from particle detector.