Olivia DrakeEric Williams, systems and facilities manager of the Astronomy Department and Van Vleck Observatory, stands outside the observatory's 24-inch Perkin research reflector, where he often hosts weekly open houses and star gazings. "What's beautiful about astronomy is that there are always unanswered questions, and when you answer one, that will open up five more questions," said Eric Williams, the systems and facility manager for the Astronomy Department and Van Vleck Observatory. "I'm always curious." An interest in astronomy, physics and computers led Williams to Wesleyan in 1996. "I've always wanted a job like this," Williams said, "I get to experiment…
NOW YOU SEE IT, NOW YOU DON'T: Fred Ellis, professor of physics, pours liquid nitrogen onto a stool during a lab demonstration January 13 in the Physics Department. About 90 students visiting from the Thomas Edison Middle School in Meriden attended six demonstrations, led by Wesleyan physics faculty and graduate students. (Photo by Olivia Bartlett) LASER LIGHT: Graduate student Paula Matei teaches seventh grade students from Thomas Edison Middle School about lasers inside the Physics Department's Molecular Collision Laboratory. Matei works under the supervision of Associate Professor of Physics Brian Stewart and studies the different kinds of few-body dynamics that…