Stephanie Viola Chasteen (March 25, 1972 – November 3, 2024) was an American physics education researcher and science communicator, known on social media as "sciencegeekgirl".

Life and work

Chasteen was born on March 25, 1972, in

Appleton, Wisconsin Appleton () is the county seat of Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States, with small portions extending into Calumet County, Wisconsin, Calumet and Winnebago County, Wisconsin, Winnebago counties. Located on the Fox River (Green Bay tributary ...

. She was educated at Oyster River High School in

Durham, New Hampshire Durham is a New England town, town in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 15,490 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 14,638 at the 2010 census.United States Census BureauU.S. Census website 2010 ...

, and majored in social psychology at

Bard College Bard College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. The campus overlooks the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains within the Hudson River Historic District ...

, graduating in 1995. After serving in the

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an Independent agency of the U.S. government, independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to communities in partner countries around the world. It was established in Marc ...

Guinea Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea-Bissau to the northwest, Senegal to the north, Mali to the northeast, Côte d'Ivoire to the southeast, and Sier ...

, West Africa, she received a Ph.D. from the

University of California, Santa Cruz The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of C ...

, in 2005, specializing in

condensed-matter physics Condensed matter physics is the field of physics that deals with the macroscopic and microscopic physical properties of matter, especially the solid and liquid phases, that arise from electromagnetic forces between atoms and electrons. More gen ...

. During her graduate studies, with the support of a fellowship from the

American Association for the Advancement of Science The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is a United States–based international nonprofit with the stated mission of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsib ...

, she also interned as a science news reporter at

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

. After postdoctoral work at the

Exploratorium The Exploratorium is a museum of science museum, science, technology museum, technology, and art museum, arts in San Francisco, California. Founded by physicist and educator Frank Oppenheimer in 1969, the museum was originally located in the ...

in San Francisco, from 2005 to 2007, she worked for the

University of Colorado Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University o ...

Science Education Initiative for over ten years, beginning in 2007. She also worked as a lecturer in physics beginning in 2012. Following this, she became an independent consultant in physics education, remaining active in external evaluation of physics programs. Chasteen died on November 3, 2024, after a year-long struggle with

glioblastoma Glioblastoma, previously known as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), is the most aggressive and most common type of cancer that originates in the brain, and has a very poor prognosis for survival. Initial signs and symptoms of glioblastoma are nons ...

, a form of brain cancer. She was 52.

Recognition

Chasteen was the 2024 recipient of the Lillian McDermott Medal of the

American Association of Physics Teachers The American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) was founded in 1930 for the purpose of "dissemination of knowledge of physics, particularly by way of teaching." There are more than 10,000 members in over 30 countries. AAPT publications includ ...

, and was named a Fellow of the American Association of Physics Teachers in 2024. Chasteen was posthumously named a

Fellow of the American Physical Society The American Physical Society honors members with the designation ''Fellow'' for having made significant accomplishments to the field of physics. The following lists are divided chronologically by the year of designation. * List of fellows of the ...

(APS) in 2024, after a nomination from the APS Topical Group on Physics Education Research, "for significant contributions to physics education research, including groundbreaking work on departmental change, teaching upper-division courses, evaluating and supporting numerous research projects and dissemination programs, and outstanding service to the APS Topical Group on Physics Education Research".

References

External links

Sciencegeekgirl blog (archived)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chasteen, Stephanie 1972 births 2024 deaths People from Appleton, Wisconsin Bard College alumni University of California, Santa Cruz alumni American physicists American women physicists Physics educators Fellows of the American Physical Society