Helen Quinn: theoretical particle physicist

Physicist Helen Quinn joined the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) in 1967 as a research associate, was made part of the permanent staff in 1979, and, by 1993, worked her way up to full professor. In addition to her research ("unifying the strong, weak and electromagnetic interactions into a single coherent model of particle physics"), she also devotes her time to physics education, including managing SLAC's education and outreach programs and being the founding President of the Contemporary Physics Education Project.

Her awards include:

• Fellow and past president of the American Physical Society
  
• 2000: Dirac Medal, awarded by the International Center for Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy
  
• 2003: elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
• 2004: Order of Australia medal, given as "recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"

In 2004 she interviewed by the National Academy of Sciences. She talks about her research on the charm quark, the balance of matter and antimatter, being one of only three women in her class in Stanford's physics program, following her husband to Boston and teaching high school physics, and the role of women in contemporary physics. Go have a listen (RealPlayer required).

Tags: Helen Quinn, SLAC, physics