Dr Margaret Wegener

Senior Lecturer

Physics
Faculty of Science
m.wegener@uq.edu.au
+61 7 336 51244

Overview

As a lecturer and First-Year Teaching Director in Physics at the University of Queensland, Dr Margaret Wegener teaches both aspiring physicists and physics service courses; she is interested in the educational problems of contextualising physics, and the transition between school and university.

Her PhD was awarded for laser diagnostics of a Superorbital Expansion Tube, by multiple holographic recordings. As well as holography showing the rupture process of a light diaphragm in an expansion tube, this included holographic interferometry of high-speed gas flows around models, and analysis of the resulting images to yield quantitative information about the gas flow structures.

She pursued an interest in physics education by completing further study in Tertiary Teaching. A major concern of her work is to effectively engage students in order to make physics fundamentals meaningful. This includes developing experiments for undergraduate learning.

She is also interested in the interrelationships between science and the arts.

Qualifications

  • Postgraduate Diploma in Education, The University of Queensland
  • Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
  • Bachelor (Honours) of Science (Advanced), The University of Queensland
  • Bachelor of Arts, The University of Queensland

Publications

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Grants

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Available Projects

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Publications

Book Chapter

  • Wegener, Margaret J. (2021). Enmeshed: Multiple Dimensions of Art and Science. Lincoln Austin: The Space Between Us. (pp. 43-58) Ipswich, QLD Australia: Ipswich Art Gallery.

  • Heckenberg, N. R., McDuff, R., Smith, C. P., Rubinsztein-Dunlop, H. and Wegener, M. J. (2014). Laser beams with phase singularities. Optical angular momentum. (pp. 155-166) edited by L. Allen, Stephen M. Barnett and Miles J. Padgett. Boca Raton, FL, United States: CRC Press.

Journal Article

Conference Publication

  • Wegener, Margaret J., Hughes, Stephen and Gurung, Som (2022). Making more diffraction orders by shrinking wavelengths. Australian Institute of Physics Congress, Adelaide, SA Australia, 11-16 December 2022.

  • Wegener, Margaret J. (2022). Active learning using online interactivity. IUPAP International Conference on Physics Education, Online, 5-9 December 2022.

  • Hughes, Stephen, Wegener, Margaret and Gurung, Som (2022). Using a laser pointer to demonstrate the decrease in the wavelength of light in water. IUPAP International Conference on Physics Education, Online, 5-9 December 2022. Sydney, NSW Australia: IUPAP.

  • Wegener, Margaret J., Kenny, Elise , Ponce Campuzano, Juan , Roberts, Anthony P., Matthews, Kelly and McIntyre, Timothy J. (2017). Using interactive simulations to enhance student engagement in mathematics and physics. Australian Conference on Science and Mathematics Education, Melbourne, Australia, 27-28 September 2017.

  • Ponce Campuzano, Juan Carlos, Kenny, Elise P., Edirisinghe, Jeremy, Bu, Yitong T., Roberts, Anthony, Wegener, Margaret, Matthews, Kelly and McIntyre, Tim (2016). Dynamic, Interactive Simulations for Enhancing Student Learning. Australian Conference on Science and Mathematics Education, Brisbane, QLD Australia, 28-29 September 2016.

  • McIntyre, T. J., Wegener, M. J., Roberts, A. P., Kenny, E. P., Ponce Campuzano, J. C. and Matthews, K. (2016). Active learning using interactive simulations. Joint Asia Pacific Physics Conference and Australian Institute of Physics Conference, Brisbane, Australia, 4-8 December 2016.

  • McIntyre, Timothy J., Roberts, Anthony P., Wegener, Margaret J., Juan Ponce Campuzano, Elise Kenny and Matthews, Kelly (2016). Dynamic, interactive simulations for enhancing student learning. Australian Conference on Science and Mathematics Education, Brisbane, QLD, Australia, 28-29 September 2016.

  • Foley, C. P., Maynard-Casely, Helen and Wegener, Margaret (2015). Australian Update on Women in Physics in 2014. 5th IUPAP International Conference on Women in Physics, Waterloo Canada, 5-8 August 2014. Melville, NY United States: American Institute of Physics. doi: 10.1063/1.4937651

  • Wegener, Margaret J., McIntyre, Timothy, McGrath, Dominic, Peet, Sam and Holmes, Catherine (2015). Students’ pre-class preparation: concise and interactive online modules that students use. International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Conference, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 27-30 October 2015.

  • Wegener, M., Drinkwater, M., McIntyre, T., Gannaway, D., Sheppard, K., McGrath, D. and Cody, A. (2013). Manipulating Space and Time for Active-Learning Lectures. International Conference on Physics Education, Prague, Czech Republic, 5-9 August 2013.

  • Drinkwater, M., Gannaway, D., Sheppard, K. and Wegener, M. (2013). More than the sum of its parts: Evaluating a model of teaching and learning. HERDSA Annual International Conference, Auckland New Zealand, 1 - 4 July 2013.

  • Savage, C., McGrath, D., McIntyre, T., Wegener, M. and Williamson, M. (2010). Teaching physics using virtual reality. International Conference on Physics Education, ICPE-2009, Bangkok, Thailand, 18 -24 October 2009. College Park, MD United States: American Institute of Physics. doi: 10.1063/1.3479848

  • Wegener, M. (2008). A Century After A Nobel Prize: The Legacy of Lippmann's Colour Photography. 18th Biennial Australian Institute of Physics Congress, Adelaide, South Australia, 30 November-5 December 2008. Australian Institute of Physics.

  • Wegener, Margaret, Savage, Craig and McIntyre, Tim (2008). Learning special relativity through virtual reality. GIREP (International Research Group on Physics Teaching) International Conference/13th Multimedia in Physics Teaching and Learning Workshop, Nicosia, Cyprus, 18-22 August 2008.

  • Savage, C., Wegener, M., McIntyre, T., McGrath, D. and Williamson, M. (2008). Teaching physics using virtual reality: Special relativity. AIP 18th National Congress, Adelaide, South Australia, 30 November- 5 December 2008.

  • McGrath, Dominic, Savage, Craig, Williamson, Michael, Wegener, Margaret and McIntyre, Tim (2008). Teaching special relativity using virtual reality. National UniServe Science Symposium, Sydney, Austalia, 2-3 Oct 2008. University of Sydney, Australia: UniServe Science.

  • Myatt, Paula, Farrand, Kirsten, Wegener, Margaret and Blanchfield, Joanne (2008). Undergraduate research experiences: Bridging the gap between teaching and research in a research intensive university. 31st Annual HERDSA Conference 2008, Rotorua, New Zealand, 1-4 July, 2008. Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia.

  • Wegener, M. J. (2005). Contemporary service course students: Who are they?. Blended Learning in Science Teaching & Learning, The University of Sydney, 30th September 2005. The University of Sydney: UniServe Science.

  • Wegener, M. (2005). Gravity measurement via a rolling pendulum for embedded learning of fundamental lab skills. 2nd International Pendulum Conference, Sydney, Australia, 13-15 October 2005.

  • Wegener, Margaret, Sutcliffe, Mark, Morgan, Richard, McIntyre, Tim and Rubinsztein-Dunlop, Halina (2001). Diagnostics of A Range of Highly Superorbital Carbon Dioxide Flows. 39th AIAA Aeropspace Sciences Meeting and Exhibit, Reno, USA, 8-11 January, 2001. Reston, Virigina: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Inc.. doi: 10.2514/6.2001-304

  • Wegener, Margaret (2000). Fundamental Skills in Physics: Embedded Learning. Effective Teaching and Learning Conference 2000, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia, 9 - 10 November 2000. Brisbane, Australia: TEDI (Teaching & Educational Development Institute), University of Queensland.

  • Wegener, Margaret, Bishop, Alexis and Thomas, Amberyn (1997). Optical measurements for a superorbital expansion tube. 35th Aerospace Sciences Meeting and Exhibit, 1997, Reno, NV, United States, 6-9 January 1997. Reston, Virigina: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Inc, AIAA. doi: 10.2514/6.1997-775

  • Wegener, Margaret, Bishop, Alexis, McIntyre, Tim and Rubinsztein-Dunlop, Halina (1996). Holographic interferometry of superorbital test flows. Proceedings of the 1996 Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics Europe, CLEO/Europe, Hamburg, Germany, 8 - 13 September 1996. Piscataway, NJ United States: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

  • Barker, P., Wegener, M., McIntyre, T. J. and Rubinsztein-Dunlop, H. (1996). Optical diagnostic methods for superorbital test facilities. Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics CLEO'96, Anaheim, CA United States, 2-7 June 1996. IEEE.

  • Rubinsztein-Dunlop Halina, Barker Peter, Thomas Amberyn, Wegener Margaret and Stalker R.J. (1994). Laser-based methods for hypervelocity flow diagnostics. Proceedings of the 1994 Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics Europe, Amsterdam, Neth, August 28, 1994-September 2, 1994. IEEE.

Other Outputs

Grants (Administered at UQ)

Possible Research Projects

Note for students: The possible research projects listed on this page may not be comprehensive or up to date. Always feel free to contact the staff for more information, and also with your own research ideas.

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