Kevin T. Pitts

Key takeaways

Kevin T. Pitts belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Kevin T. Pitts to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Kevin T. Pitts from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Kevin T. Pitts (born 1965) is an American high energy particle physicist. The Dean of Virginia Tech College of Science and professor of physics, he has served as Chief Research Officer at Fermilab National Accelerator Laboratory. His research interests have included the CDF experiment and the Muon g-2 experiment at Fermilab.

Early life and education Kevin T. Pitts, born in Indiana in 1965, is the son of William and Beverley Pitts. He earned a B.A. in physics and mathematics at Anderson University, where he also played baseball and made appearances in the NAIA College World Series in 1984 and 1987. He earned M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in physics at the University of Oregon. In 1994 Pitts completed his dissertation, titled Electroweak coupling measurements from polarized bhabha scattering at the Z0 resonance, advised by J. Brau.

Career Pitts began his research in high-energy physics at Fermilab in 1994. At the Fermilab Tevatron he investigated heavy-flavor physics and participated in the CDF experiment Higgs boson searches. Pitts is a member of the Muon g-2 experiment at Fermilab. He joined the faculty at the University of Illinois in 1999, becoming associate head for undergraduate programs in 2010. In 2014 he became associate dean for undergraduate programs in the college of engineering, and was the vice provost for undergraduate education. As vice provost, he was the architect of the "Illinois Commitment" program to offer free tuition and fees to "talented low- to moderate-income students and those who are the first generation to go to college". He was also the principal investigator on a grant to increase access to science and engineering for low income students, an effort supported by Amazon. Pitts served in the chair line for the National Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP). He also founded "ICANEXSEL", a University of Illinois College of Engineering program to engage inner-city Chicago middle and high school students in STEM. In addition, Pitts served on the board of directors for the nonprofit Chicago Pre-college Science and Engineering Program. In March 2021, Pitts became chief research officer at Fermilab National Accelerator Laboratory. His responsibilities there included oversight of the international Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment. He participated in the top quark discovery in 1995, and served on the Long Baseline Neutrino Committee. Pitts also served on the Particle Physics Project Prioritization Panel. In June 2022, Pitts was appointed Dean of Virginia Tech College of Science by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors. He is also a professor in the Department of Physics at Virginia Tech.

Selected publications Abi, B.; Albahri, T.; Al-Kilani, S.; Allspach, D.; Alonzi, L. P.; Anastasi, A.; Anisenkov, A.; Azfar, F.; Badgley, K.; Baeßler, S.; Bailey, I. (2021-04-07). "Measurement of the Positive Muon Anomalous Magnetic Moment to 0.46 ppm". Physical Review Letters. 126 (14) 141801. arXiv:2104.03281. Bibcode:2021PhRvL.126n1801A. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.126.141801. ISSN 0031-9007. PMID 33891447. S2CID 233169085. Pitts, Kevin T. (2008-04-02). "Future Science Needs Aid Now". Chicago Tribune. pp. 1–13. Retrieved 2021-03-29. CDF Collaboration (2006-12-12). "Observation of Bs-Bsbar Oscillations". Physical Review Letters. 97 (24) 242003. arXiv:hep-ex/0609040. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.97.242003. hdl:10067/815500151162165141. ISSN 0031-9007. PMID 17280271. The ALEPH Collaboration; the DELPHI Collaboration; the L3 Collaboration; the OPAL Collaboration; the SLD Collaboration; the LEP Electroweak Working Group; the SLD electroweak; heavy flavour groups (2006-05-01). "Precision electroweak measurements on the Z resonance". Physics Reports. 427 (5): 257–454. arXiv:hep-ex/0509008. Bibcode:2006PhR...427..257A. doi:10.1016/j.physrep.2005.12.006. ISSN 0370-1573. S2CID 119482321.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) CDF Collaboration (2000-03-09). "A Measurement of sin2β from B→J/ψK0S with the CDF detector". Physical Review D. 61 (7) 072005. arXiv:hep-ex/9909003. doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.61.072005. ISSN 0556-2821. CDF Collaboration; Abe, F.; Akimoto, H.; Akopian, A.; Albrow, M. G.; Amendolia, S. R.; Amidei, D.; Antos, J.; Anway-Wiese, C.; Aota, S.; Apollinari, G. (1995-04-03). "Observation of Top Quark Production in p ¯ {\displaystyle {\bar {p}}}

p {\displaystyle {p}} Collisions with the Collider Detector at Fermilab". Physical Review Letters. 74 (14): 2626–2631. arXiv:hep-ex/9503002. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.74.2626. hdl:2241/103691. PMID 10057978.

Selected awards, honors American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow, elected 2016. American Physical Society Fellow, 2014, For his leading role in heavy-flavor physics at the Tevatron collider, including the first evidence of CP violation in bottom mesons, and for significant contributions to triggering at the Collider. Arnold O. Nordsieck Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2014, For his creation and inspirational teaching of innovative courses that introduce undergraduates to the philosophy, fidelity, and elegance of science. University of Illinois, University Scholar, 2013. "The University Scholars Program recognizes outstanding members of the faculty and provides each with a funding allocation to enhance their scholarly activities." National Science Foundation CAREER Award, 2004. United States Department of Energy Outstanding Junior Investigator Award, 2002. A Stereo Tracking System for the CDF Detector.

References

External links Official website Saturday Physics for Everyone 2017: Radiation, friend or foe? on YouTube (1:08 hours) ICANEXSEL at Illinois on YouTube (video, 2:31 minutes) Unlocking Mysteries Of The Universe: Neutrinos And Muons To Reveal New Laws? on YouTube (video 46:31 minutes) A Tiny Particle's Wobble Could Upend the Known Laws of Physics, By Dennis Overbye, The New York Times. Muons: 'Strong' evidence found for a new force of nature, By Pallab Ghosh, BBC News.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Kevin T. Pitts

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Kevin T. Pitts claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Kevin T. Pitts before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Kevin T. Pitts ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Kevin T. Pitts

In research: Kevin T. Pitts appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Kevin T. Pitts in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Kevin T. Pitts is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1965 births, 21st-century American physicists, Educators from Indiana, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Kevin T. Pitts outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Kevin T. Pitts in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Kevin T. Pitts means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Kevin T. Pitts out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kevin T. Pitts in simple terms?

Kevin T. Pitts (born 1965) is an American high energy particle physicist.

Why does Kevin T. Pitts matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Kevin T. Pitts?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Kevin T. Pitts.